Page 54 of The Sweetest Mistake

“That’s because I am.”

“Sounds like you’re a little too cocky.”

I used to accuse him of that too.

“Not cocky. Confident,” Connor stated.

After a moment of silence, Julia wondered if they were done talking, but then Alec piped up again.

“I didn’t come here to get between you two,” he said, his voice clear and calm. “I came because I was worried about her. Julia’s one of the greatest people I’ve ever known, and she deserves the best.”

“I agree.”

“I’m not sure that you’re what’s best for her,” Alec said.

“That’s for her to decide.”

Julia lay there for a few more minutes, waiting to hear more, but other than some rustling sounds from them getting settled, there wasn’t anything else. She carefully rose from the floor and slipped back into bed, still wearing her clothes from earlier.

She lay there in silence for a while, listening to the sound of the wind in the trees outside her window and replaying what she’d overheard. She hoped that Connor was being truthful about Cam not living with him and hadn’t been trying to cover it up in front of Alec. Alec might be the one who was studying to become a doctor, but Connor was no dummy. He’d have known that anything he said to Alec would have a good chance of getting back to her parents. So, until she heard it from him directly, she wasn’t going to get too excited.

The same went for his confession about not wanting to lose her. She’d heard the conviction in his voice, but it would mean more once he said it to her face. And he probably would have if she hadn’t banned them both to the living room. But what else was she supposed to do? It was already awkward enough having them both there. She couldn’t very well haul Connor up to her room to talk, even though that’s exactly what she’d wanted to do when he’d shown up at the door. Well, that and a few other things, if she were being honest.

What was it about him? How had he gotten under her skin so quickly to where it was difficult to imagine her life without him? And why was it that she could easily envision her, him, and Ava having fun together in the park, just like the family of three she’d seen earlier? Interestingly enough, she didn’t see Cam anywhere in that picture, and that was the problem. Because, no matter how much Julia wanted to be with Connor and Ava, she’d have to accept Cam’s presence in her life too.

Glancing at the clock, Julia saw that it was after midnight. Instead of getting out of bed to find her pajamas, she decided to peel off her clothes and sleep in her bra and underwear. She didn’t want the floor to creak and alert the men that she was still up. Wriggling out of her clothes, she laid them at the end of the bed and then crawled underneath the covers.

The best thing she could do was try and get some sleep since her troubles would still be there in the morning—both of them!

Chapter Seventeen

Connor was tired of waiting. He’d spent an entire day and night trying to get to Julia, and now that he’d tracked her down, he was anxious to talk to her. Alec had had the decency to leave early that morning, rousing Connor from his sleep to say, “Be good to her,” before placing the blanket he’d used neatly at the foot of the couch and departing.

Somehow, Connor had managed to sleep through the night even though Alec’s snoring had threatened to keep him awake. And now with Alec gone, he could finally talk to Julia, assuming she was awake.

She hadn’t come downstairs yet, and he wondered if she was delaying their confrontation. Pushing himself to an upright position, he ran his fingers through his hair and realized he’d peeled off his shirt and socks sometime during the night.

Oh well. This is how she gets me.

Not bothering to walk softly, he took the stairs two at a time until he reached the top. He glanced both ways down the hall, not sure which room was hers, and stopped to listen for any sounds. Nothing.

Trying the handle of the door closest to him, he pushed it open and peered inside. The room was a home office equipped with a large cherrywood desk, leather office chair, and floor-to-ceiling bookcases.

Connor closed the door and moved on to the next room, which was a feminine-looking bedroom decorated with white wicker furniture, floral accents, and a white bookcase. This must have been Julia’s room when she was a child. Curious, he walked up to the bookcase and ran his eyes over the titles: Nancy Drew mysteries, the Hardy Boys, and an assortment of other childhood classics.

“Snooping?” Julia said from behind him.

Connor had his hand on a copy of Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret when he spun around, and the book fell to the floor.

Glancing down at the title, Julia laughed. “Thinking of doing some reading?”

“No,” Connor said, quickly inserting the book back into position on the shelf. “Are these in alphabetical order?”

“Yes. Why?”

“Just wondered,” he said, scratching the back of his head.

“I’m an organized person.”