The Allure of Julian Lefray (The Allure #1)(86)

“Julian is going to swing by and pick me up after he gets Lily.”

She nodded and gripped a tea towel between her hands, staring hard at my torso.

I leaned my bag against the wall and stepped forward to give her a hug. I’d already said my goodbyes to my dad the night before. He couldn’t stand to see me driving away. It was easier for him to pretend I was just going off to a sleepover or something like I was still in high school. Big softie.

My mom gripped the back of my shirt and I pressed my face into the crook of her neck. I leaned my cheek on her shoulder and inhaled her scent.

“Take care of yourself, okay?” she said.

I nodded and stepped back, trying to keep my feelings at bay.

“It’ll be better now that Lily is coming with me. We’ll have a little family in New York.”

She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. I knew she was putting on a brave face.

“I’ll try to visit more often too. Maybe I can come back down for Christmas?”

She sniffed and glanced away. “That’d be great.”

I heard a car pull up onto the gravel drive outside and I glanced through the front door to see Julian’s rental car. I reached down for my bag and gave my mom another quick hug.

“I’ll call you when we get to New York,” I promised, starting to head for the door.

“Jos—”

I turned back over my shoulder.

She wrung the tea towel through her hands and swallowed hard.

“I want you to know that your dad and I are really proud of you. Not many people around here are willing to go after their dreams the way you have.” She met my gaze and smiled. “I think at first we took it a little personal—the fact that you wanted to leave this town so badly. It was all you used to talk about, but now I finally understand that this place has never been big enough for you.”

My fingers loosened their hold on my bag and it clanked to the floor.

“Just promise me that you’ll keep your head on straight. We raised you as a Texas girl.” She pointed at her chest. “Make sure you always keep that in your heart.”

I bit down on my lower lip, confused by the tears clouding the corners of my eyes. I clenched my teeth and blinked, considering how profoundly her words had hit me. In the back of my mind, I’d been holding out for her acceptance and blessing for the last few years. I’d known I was taking the path less traveled, but I’d still held out for the day when my mom would finally understand.

“I just want you to be happy,” she said as I stepped forward and wrapped her up in another hug.

“I know that. I promise I won’t let you down,” I whispered against her chest as tears slid down my cheeks.

The doorbell rang three times in quick succession and then I heard Lily’s voice on the other side of the door.

“Let’s go, Jos! The plane leaves in four hours and it’s going to take us at least two hours just to get to the airport.”

Her shouting was punctuated by more pounding and when I turned around I saw her face squashed up against the glass, trying to see inside. Such a scoundrel.

My mom laughed and held me back at arm’s length.

“You’d better get going,” she said.

I nodded and tried to compose myself as best as possible. I hadn’t been expecting that speech from my mom. I’d prepared myself to leave without my parents’ blessing once again, but it felt so much better walking through the front door knowing that I was making them proud.

I walked to the edge of the porch and squinted to block the sun shining overhead. The jasmine around the perimeter fence of my parents’ house was swaying in the breeze, filling the air with a sweet aroma. Lily ran to the car, opened up the passenger door for me, and then popped the trunk. Julian stepped out of the car and held his hand up to his brow to shield his face from the sun. When our eyes locked, he grinned and shook his head. The message was clear: Your best friend is a maniac.

Lily ran toward the porch, cursed me for being so slow, and grabbed the bag out of my hand so she could take it to the car.

“Don’t you realize how close I am to finally moving to New York City?!” she asked. “Hurry your ass up!”

I laughed as she tossed my luggage into the trunk.

Julian rounded the back of the car and dipped down to give me a quick kiss. The scent of his body wash momentarily masked the jasmine as he wrapped his arm around my back. I wrapped my arm around his neck and held myself against him for a moment, immersed in the feel of him.

“I can’t believe I let you buy us plane tickets,” I whispered before stepping back.

“Consider it a going away present from Lorena Lefray Designs. Besides, I bought them with points. It’s not a big deal.”

Our original plan had been to ride the Greyhound back to New York, but Julian had quickly put the kibosh on that idea. (Telling him about Gladys might have had something to do with that.)

A loud honk pulled me out of my moment with Julian. When I turned toward the car, Lily was leaning across the front seat with her hand poised over the center of the steering wheel.

“Let’s go you love birds. I’m about to leave you both behind!”

She slammed her hand down on the horn again, this time for a solid ten seconds.

“Stop it! We’re coming,” I shouted.

Before she could honk again, I rounded the front of the car and pushed her into the backseat, far away from the horn. She had the audacity to give me a cheeky smile.