Read Online Moments of Julian by Keary Taylor - Free Book Online Page B

conscious effort on his part. I’m pretty sure they
do that in his sleep. “But I will cut your throat if you throw a
party here while I’m gone.” I zip the suitcase closed and give him
a hard stare.
    “ You’ve been such a
tightwad the last week and a half,” Kale says, glaring at me. “Who
shoved the stick up your—”
    “ No one has shoved
anything up my anywhere,” I snap as I grab my carry on and head for
the closet. I start grabbing the shoes that go with what I’ve
packed into shoe bags and carefully put them in the luggage. “I
just need to blow off some steam this weekend.”
    “ Some?” Kale comments, but
his tone has softened. I hear him cross my room and flop on his
back on my bed. I cringe. Martha already made it this morning, but
I’ve been witchy enough to Kale today.
    “ How are finals going, by
the way?” I ask.
    “ I finished my last one a
week ago.” I come out of the closet, suitcase in hand, to see him
lying on his back staring up at the ceiling. “I think my brain has
melted from all the studying. Words feel a bit like mush right
now.”
    I pull the handle up, cross one ankle
across the other, and lean on it. “I’m proud of you, you know.
You’ve taken these last few weeks seriously. Have you made a
decision yet?”
    Kale rolls onto his side and props his
head up with his hand. His expression is serious at first, but then
a smile starts to curl on his face. “I told Calvin I’m starting
full-time Monday.”
    Normally, a part of me would cringe at
his declaration that he’s done with school for the foreseeable
future, but I’m just glad to see someone else look happy for a
change. I want to steal a little bit of that and hold onto it for
just a little while.
    “ I’m happy for you,” I
admit.
    Kale climbs to his feet and presses a
kiss to my forehead. “Thanks, Sage.”
    “ Now go get dressed so you
can take me to the airport!”
     
    I check the bag with my clothes, but
there is no way I am letting a bag with seven thousand dollars
worth of designer shoes out of my sight. The flight attendants
carefully stash it and my briefcase into the overhead compartment.
I just have to settle back into the oversized, plush first class
seat and wait for takeoff.
    My brain wouldn’t shut off last night,
running through all the possible outcomes of this Toronto deal over
and over. I’d done my research on Katherine Valchez and thought I
had a pretty good feel for how to approach her, but you can never
really read a person until you’re standing face to face with
them.
    And then as soon as I finally started
to drift off to sleep somewhere around three in the morning, I had
nightmares about missing my flight, about not being able to get a
taxi, about not being able to find Katherine’s building.
    I was back to being wide awake again
by five.
    Grateful for the four hours of quiet
ahead of me, I lean my seat back and close my eyes.
    I don’t mean to fall asleep, but
within three minutes, I am out cold.
     
    “ Ladies and gentlemen, we
are starting our final descent into St. Paul,” a voice echoes. “The
captain has turned on the seatbelt sign and we ask that you remain
in your seats for the rest of the flight.”
    I blink the sleep out of my eyes and
turn toward the window. There isn’t much to see. Heavy clouds cover
most of the view, but every so often there is a patch that breaks
and reveals city.
    “ Can I get you anything
else before I have to sit down, Mr. Dohring?”
    My neck nearly cracks, I whip my head
to the other side so fast.
    “ No, I’m fine,
thanks.”
    There, sitting one row up from me in
the aisle seat, is Julian.
    “ How about you, Miss
McCain? I hope you slept well.”
    My eyes dart up to the flight
attendant just as Julian looks back at me. My eyes flick back and
forth and I’m pretty sure my mouth is hanging open in
confusion.
    “ Uh,” I start to recover.
“No, I’m fine, thank you.”
    The flight attendant smiles pleasantly
and moves to the front