Page 70 of The Sweetest Mistake

It wasn’t overly encouraging, but it was a step in the right direction. Debra rubbed Julia’s back a few times and then stood up to serve dessert.

Julia excused herself to the bathroom, where she splashed cool water on her tear-stained face and took some deep breaths. She’d done it. She’d stood up to her father and proclaimed her love for Connor all in one swoop.

But now she suffered a brief moment of uncertainty. Did Connor feel the same way about her? He’d been so sweet and attentive to her at the lake house, and he’d shared more of himself than he had up until then. He’d told her how much he cared about her and how important she was, but was that the same as love?

There were still a lot of unknowns, and she dealt better with certainties. Case in point: her career choice, where one plus one always added up to two. Thinking back, it was probably the same reason that she’d been with Alec. He was known to her, and he was calm, steady, and predictable. He would have given her the kind of life her father had alluded to—a life of comfort and luxury.

But in the end, that hadn’t been enough. She hadn’t loved Alec passionately the way she did Connor. She probably would have ended up bored and childless. And now look, Connor had suddenly become part of a package deal. If they stayed together, she’d have Ava too, and hopefully more children down the road.

Hold on, Julia. You’re getting way ahead of yourself.

When she returned to the dining room, her dad was no longer at the table, but there were three thick slices of chocolate cake at each of their seats.

“Where’d Dad go?” Julia asked as she sat back down.

“He had to take a phone call,” Debra said.

After taking her first bite of the moist cake, Julia said, “Thanks, Mom.”

“I know it’s your favorite,” she said.

“Not just for the cake. For sticking up for me in front of Dad.”

Debra patted her hand. “You know he means well, right? You’re our only child, and he worries about you. We both do. Once you have your own child, you’ll understand.”

“I’m already starting to,” Julia said, thinking about Ava.

Julia felt much lighter when she left her parents’ house, and she wondered if Connor had had similar success with Cam. She considered driving straight to his house, but she didn’t want to interrupt if they were still talking. She was still debating what to do when she pulled onto her street and saw his Jeep in her driveway. Apparently, he was anxious to see her too, and the thought of that made her heart swell.

When she pulled in beside him, she saw that his head was leaned back and his eyes were closed. Was he sleeping in her driveway? She made a mental note to give him a key to her house. And then his eyes popped open, and he smiled at her—a slow, sleepy grin that made her insides warm.

They both got out of their cars at the same time, and he lifted her right off her feet and spun her around.

Laughing, she said, “What was that for?”

“Just for fun,” he said as he set her back down and followed her into the house.

Once they were behind closed doors, he pulled her into his arms and planted a firm kiss on her lips, making a loud smacking noise when he pulled away.

“Wow! Does this mean things went well with Cam?”

“As well as you might expect,” he said, making himself at home on the couch.

She set down her purse and joined him, nestling in close and soaking up his presence. “Tell me everything.”

“Ladies first. How did it go with Dr. Lee?”

There was no malice when he said her dad’s title, and she decided that he was just being respectful. So, she launched into a summary of her conversation with her parents and ended it on what she hoped was a positive note.

Afterward, she said, “Now tell me about your discussion with Cam.”

He gave her the highlights, shifting uncomfortably when he confirmed her suspicions about Cam still wanting to be with him. But Julia didn’t have the heart to say, “I told you so,” especially when she thought about how difficult the conversation must have been for him. It sounded like he’d said all the right things without giving Cam any false hopes. There was a part of Julia that felt sorry for Cam. She’d messed up a good thing, and they were all in an awkward situation because of it. On the other hand, Julia wouldn’t have been with Connor if things hadn’t gone the way they did.

“It sounds like you handled it well,” she said.

“I did my best. Oh, and there’s one more thing I wanted to tell you.”

He’d raised his right arm to run his hand through his hair, and she caught a glimpse of his tattoo. Crazy enough, just the sight of it turned her on. She had the sudden urge to touch it, to touch him, but he wasn’t done talking yet.