by Audra North
Jeanette looked disappointed. Naomi and Victor exchanged a meaningful glance.
“There’s something about that class,” Victor murmured, and Naomi dipped her head shyly.
Adam hated how watching their interaction made him think of Julie. Everything made him think of Julie.
“So, what happened?” Victor looked down the table at Adam. “Because the way you’re behaving, it seems like this Julie person treated you ill.”
Adam thought about what Julie had said. He’d never considered he might find something serious with Julie. Naomi had told him something similar, that he needed to be open to that possibility.
He could see that now, in hindsight. Julie was a brilliant woman who drew him out of his shell and made him laugh. She was a woman who turned him on with talk of dry subjects, just because she was the one talking. She was a woman who knew how to live life fully, who was afraid but recognized it enough to get over it, and despite that he was older and supposedly more established, he was the one who had learned from her.
He’d been afraid for too long, and he’d let that fear destroy something amazing.
Adam shook his head. “I might have done something that your wife warned me not to do. Or failed to do something that she told me to do. Either way, Naomi was right and I messed up. I was so hell-bent on working hard to succeed because that’s how I even got this far. I didn’t realize that I was so close to burnout until seeing Julie made work a little easier.”
He dropped his head. “Now she hates me. I was so focused on how having fun might ruin my life that I missed seeing how much she added to my life.” He huffed out a laugh. “And I didn’t get anything done this week.”
The table was silent long enough for the truth to really sink in. I’ve been an idiot.
Adam stood up so fast that he jostled the table, rattling the glassware. “I have to go.”
“Of course you do. You have to go see Julie.” Naomi glanced at Adam sideways as she calmly served herself some brussels sprouts, then placed several on Victor’s plate, as well. Victor made a face, but didn’t argue.
No one argued with Naomi. Adam should have known that. She was too scary to disobey.
But that wasn’t why he was going after Julie. For once, he wasn’t doing something big out of fear. In fact, going after Julie felt like the bravest thing he’d done in his life.
Chapter Twelve
Julie was trying to follow along with the music, but her feet kept dragging. Tonight she was dancing with Trent, since neither of their partners had bothered to show up. She and Adam were over, and there was no reason now for him to come and torture himself with fun.
Stop thinking about him. It was a fling and it’s done. Move on.
She’d been trying to move on all week, but she couldn’t stop thinking about Adam. At times, she found herself wondering if it would have been better for her to never get involved with him in the first place. Wanting him from afar and not being able to have him had been so much less painful than this.
She let out a heavy sigh.
“You doing okay, gorgeous?”
Trent was looking at her with concern.
She gave him a halfhearted smile, feeling bad for being such a depressing partner. “Yeah, just tired, I guess.”
He frowned. “Does this have something to do with your missing man?”
“He’s not my man.”
“Oh, it’s definitely about him.”
For the first time since she left Adam’s apartment the week before, she laughed.
Trent grinned. “See? I’m always right about things like this. That’s why the ladies love me.”
She laughed again, about to tell him that she’d certainly loved him—as a friend—but his eyes snapped to something just behind her and the smile on his face died away just as he came to an abrupt stop.
She tensed. “What is it?”
Before Trent could answer, a voice sounded from just over her shoulder. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I believe that’s my partner you’re dancing with.”
Adam.
She whirled around on a rush of excitement, before she could remember that Adam had hurt her and she was supposed to be angry with him. But when she saw him, she pulled up short and gasped. “You look awful.”
His eyes were a little bloodshot, and his hair was sticking up in places, like he’d run his hand through it about a thousand times. His chin and cheeks were stubbled, lending to his scraggly look. And he smelled like wine. A lot of wine.
She had never been so happy to see him.
He chuckled. “I guess I deserved that.”
Then, she did remember that she was angry at how he’d treated her, and she crossed her arms and frowned. “What are you doing here?”
He met her gaze, his tired eyes looking sad and apologetic. “I wish I could say something more romantic.” He shook his head and smiled wryly. “But I’m here because I’m sorry, Julie. I’m so sorry.”
Someone gave a sigh of appreciation, and she realized that the room had gone silent, watching the exchange.
But she wasn’t going to let him off the hook just yet. He’d hurt her, and she needed more than an apology. She needed something to believe in.
“Thanks for letting me know.” She kept her voice neutral and her arms crossed. Between that and the expectant look she was giving him, he must have realized that he needed to give her more than that, because the next thing he said nearly took her breath away.
“I didn’t even realize how much of me already belonged to you until I lost you. I acted like a jerk last week and made you leave. And when you did, you took a vital piece of me with you. You took my heart.”
Oh my God. His words nearly killed her with feeling. She uncrossed her arms and stepped toward him, just a little closer. “That was pretty romantic, actually.”
“Don’t let him off so easily, Julie,” Trent piped in, and she laughed at Adam’s frustrated look.
“Julie.” He lifted a hand toward her, as though he wanted to touch her, but stopped himself, dropped his arm back to his side. “I am sorry. I made so many assumptions about us, about me, that I didn’t realize until it was too late just how much I was enjoying being with you. I used work as an excuse, when all along you were right. I was afraid of putting myself out there. Of risking not just my job, but my heart.”
This time, she was the one to reach out. She closed the remaining distance between them and looped her arms around his neck. “Go on,” she whispered, looking up at him.
“I thought I wasn’t able to concentrate because you were a distraction. But after you left, it was even worse. This past week, I couldn’t do much more than sit around my apartment and mope. I finally realized tonight that meant so much more than I was willing to admit.”
She tsked at him. “I wouldn’t believe you capable of just sitting around.”
He smiled at that. “I’m sorry it took me longer to realize than it should have. But once I did, I didn’t want anything to get in the way of me and you. I rushed right here as soon as I figured out what an idiot I’d been.”
She melted against him. “Oh, Adam.”
He pressed his forehead to hers. “From here on forward, I want not only to enjoy my life, but I want to enjoy it with you, to take us seriously.”
“Really?” Her heart was bursting with happiness.
He nodded. “Really.” He kissed her gently, and a chorus of sighs erupted from the rest of the class.
She could feel herself blushing hotly, but she didn’t pull out of his arms. He tightened them around her. “What do you say?”
“I’d say that I have some thoughts about game theory that I’d like to discuss with you tonight.” She looked up at him through her lashes and felt a thrill roll through him. “Later, though.” She slipped back and put her arms in their dance position. “First, let’s take a walk.”
Acknowledgments
As always, huge thanks to my husband for loving me enough to give me time and s
pace to write. I see it as the mark of a true partnership and abiding respect that he has enabled me to have A Room of My Own.
To my children, thank you for being the most wonderful parts of my day, every day.
Tahra Seplowin and Wendy Chen, you two are so much fun and very talented editors. Thanks for making this book so much better, like you always do. I’m so impressed by your insight and all-around smarts!
To AnaLinda, Steve, and all the partners at practicas and milongas that I’ve had the joy of dancing with over the years, thank you for tangoing with me.
To my friends at Wonkomance and on Twitter, my writing partners, and those who have invited me into your writing lives and become friends because of it, thank you. I didn’t realize how much I needed you until you were there.
My readers are some of the most amazing people on the planet. Thanks to all of you for loving love like I do!
About the Author
Audra North fell in love with romance at age thirteen and spent the next twenty years reading as many romance novels as she could. Even now, after having read over one thousand of them, Audra still can’t resist the lure of a happily ever after, and her collection continues to grow. She lives near Boston with her husband, three young children, and a lot of books. Visit her website at audranorth.com or find her (way too frequently) on Twitter @AudraNorth.
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Discover the Stanton Family series by Audra North...
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