Julia's Journey (A Coming Home Again Novel Book 2) (23 page)

Julia walks over and kisses
me on my chest as she wraps her arms around my waist.

Even though I’m beyond mad,
I give in and hold her. “That was the weirdest introduction to someone I have
ever had.”

“That’s my brother.” She
places one more kiss on my chest right below my scar before she retrieves my
shirt off the floor and tosses it to me. “Come on. JP wants to get to know
you.”

I look at the clock and see
it’s one in the morning.
“In the middle of the night?”
I bicker but she’s already disappeared out of the room. I’m not crazy about the
idea of getting to know him in the middle of the night, but it is his house, so
after huffing and puffing a while longer, I go join them.

We sit on JP’s deck getting
to know one another until the sun lights up the sky over the ocean. And man is
that sight spectacular.

JP filled us in on the two
photo shoots he just wrapped up. The guy doesn’t need to make up stories. He’s
living out some pretty epic ones in real life.

For the remaining Bay Creek
visit, every time I see JP I ask if anyone smells anything or ask him if he
needs to go to the bathroom. I think it’s only fair to harass him after he
brought me close to a heart attack. I’ve gotten to know JP pretty well in this
short amount of time. After I got over the whole stupid intro, we’ve gotten
along just fine. He’s like a punk kid brother you want to beat up all the time.
The dude sure knows his stuff with a camera too. I hung out with him one
afternoon at his gallery while Julia shopped with Savannah. I was blown away by
his photography. He’s one unique talent even if he can be a pain. In the
daylight and minus the beanie hat, he looks like a scruffy male version of
Julia with the blue eyes and light hair. I asked about Savannah looking so
different and Julia explained that her sister took after their dad while they
took after their mother.

I had braved it during that
conversation and asked how their mom was doing. Sister and brother exchanged a
look and a shoulder shrug and pretty much blew my inquiry off. It’s evident
that the mother subject is off limits. I know Julia and her mother don’t get
along, but it totally blows my mind. My mom rocks and it’s hard to picture one
that doesn’t. I know I’m a blessed man, and that night I called my mom and
reminded her that I am.

JP set out to teach me to
surf one day and we learned real quickly I wasn’t teachable. I think I’m too
long for the sport. It may have something to do with the fact I’m not much when
it comes to balance either. He and Lucas can ride a wave like they were born on
a surfboard. The guys just own it when they are on those boards. It’s pretty
impressive. Not me, so I’ve stuck with bodysurfing instead. All I have to do
there is let the wave carry my body to shore.
Easy.

So I’ve added these two
guys to my list of new friends. It’s become a pretty long list this year. I
feel like I have no regrets this way. Julia says I can make a friend with a
statue. But I feel like if I don’t speak to everyone I come in contact with, I
may pass up the most important person who was supposed to be a significant part
of my life. I’m certainly glad I didn’t pass up getting to know her. That
wasn’t an easy choice for sure. Julia’s friendship over the years has been a
larger-than-life challenge.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Julia

Bay Creek has been a
pleasant surprise. I feel like whatever chains once bound me here are now gone.
It amazes me how the past doesn’t seem so significant now. The past year has
really opened my eyes and, more importantly, my heart. I thank God for that as
well as Greyson and some really important people I’ve met along this journey.

Greyson gave me one awful
scare that first night in Bay Creek. I watched over him that entire night,
making sure he was breathing. I tried waking him a few times, but was
unsuccessful. He was sleeping one of the hardest sleeps I’ve ever seen someone
in.

I’ve tried not to let it worry
me, but that’s easier said than done. He’s appeared to be fine ever since. He
went nonstop while we were in
Rivertown
, trying to
keep up with the lively Crowley and all those children. It was like he didn’t
want to waste a moment with them and he didn’t. I think he overdid it and once
we got here it all caught up with him. That’s what I’m going to blame it on
anyway. I’ve been watching him closer though.

And all of that death talk
at the graveyard didn’t make me feel any better. I felt like he wanted me to be
prepared. I ran off, not wanting to hear it. Then I found that verse in my
journal and almost fell apart. I know it was his way of promising me he will be
fine either way. Life or death—that he has no regrets. But I do. I have so many
regrets and I feel I need time to rectify them. And that will definitely take
some time.

There are only two more
stops on our road trip before heading back to New York. I asked Savannah and
Lucas to watch
Fifi
for the remainder of the trip.
They were fine with keeping my girl and their sons were ecstatic. Those two
boys are definitely the apple of her eye. I promised to pick her up when we get
back for the baby’s birth.

So we set out early this
morning, leaving my Savannah and heading to Georgia’s Savannah. It’s a place
I’ve always wanted to explore. Greyson has already scoped out some famous
restaurants and booked us a ghost tour at midnight tonight. He says he’s going
to scare my accent out of me one way or the other. Tomorrow night he says
there’s some kind of fishing excursion. Fishing isn’t an appealing activity to
me at all.

We’ve been on the road for
a few hours so far today. I decide to get up and grab us waters and snacks.

“
Thanks,
honey,” Greyson says as I place his snacks near him.

“You’re welcome, honey,” I
reply and kiss him on his smooth cheek, feeling him smile against my lips. He’s
not one for beard stubble and I like that about him. He likes his face clean
and smooth. I flick the rim of his fishing hat playfully, causing him to flash
those brilliant teeth at me in a grin. He is just the most adorable man. I want
to kiss those full lips of his so bad I can taste it. I sigh before easing back
in my seat and try to behave myself.

I’ve never had good
judgment when it comes to men and physical affection. I’ve only known those who
take it and just act on impulse. I had a good long talk with Lulu before we
left and she pointed out that some things and, most importantly, some people
are worth waiting for. She said waiting will only add to the sweetness of it
down the road. I told her how Greyson is so cautious when it comes to us and
she explained the meaning of respect—something I didn’t know anything about.
She said Greyson is demonstrating it for me. Lulu said it’s obvious that he is
in love with me and thinks he’s using caution to make sure we do things right.
So I’m going to take her advice and let Greyson guide our relationship.

I spent a lot of time
during my stay in
Rivertown
with Lulu. While Greyson
ran around like a kid with all the Mason kids, I sat in long conversations with
this little wise southern belle. One morning I found myself confessing the rape
over a cup of coffee, surprising myself. Besides Greyson, I have never talked
to anyone about it. I shared more details of it all with Lulu though. Especially
about the guilt I have always carried for not protecting Savannah.

Confessing to Lulu about
the drugs, alcohol, and my fight with anorexia was nothing easy, but it felt so
therapeutic. That day, I admitted using these vices to control the pain. And
something she said to me that day in her kitchen nearly knocked me to the
floor. It was such a profound epiphany. One I had never grasped before then.

All
of these years, that add up to more than a decade, I thought I was beating Evan
Grey and numbing him out.
She made me realize I was still letting him win. That he was
still controlling me through not letting go of the pain he inflicted on me. I
was the only one losing by not letting it go. She’s absolutely right. I’ve
lived a miserable life up until this year. Evan didn’t just rob me of my
innocence. I also allowed him to rob me of living. The maddening world of
modeling, drug abuse, rehab, a gross amount of men, alcohol abuse, starving
myself… And in all of this, I only managed to gain more misery. I let Evan Grey
rob me of well over a decade of my life.

He can have no more!

That following Sunday, I
couldn’t stand it until I walked down that aisle and laid my broken life on
that altar and begged God to put it back together properly. I begged Him and He
answered.
Just that simple.
I’m still amazed at how
this world has set out to overlook the significance of
simple
. I got off that altar and walked out of church a free woman.

My only regret is that I
didn’t do it sooner. I thought religion was such a crock. Maybe it is, but a
true relationship with no labels with God is the most freeing and simplest
relationship I have ever experienced. I get that the bad still happened and I
also get that bad can still happen, but now I know God has my back. I know with
Him I can face it.

I feel like this entire
journey was a divine plan and that Greyson has been a big part of God’s plan. I
just hope he’s part of the long-term plan God has for me. For now, I’m going to
take a page out of Greyson’s handbook and live for today and let tomorrow stay
in the rightful hands of God.

~~~~

We arrive in Savannah
before eleven and Greyson immediately parks in a vacant lot and starts pulling
me in a hurry down one of the town’s historic streets.

“What’s the rush?” I ask
behind him as he is close to a jog.

“We’ve got to get in line
or we’ll never get in for lunch.”

“Where?”

“Mrs. Wilkes Boarding
House,” he says in a rush as we turn a corner.

“No, Stone.” I grumble when
I spot a long line down the sidewalk. I have a feeling this is where he wants
us to eat. “I don’t even like eating enough to stand in a line for it.” I try
to pull my hand from his, but Greyson just tightens his grip.

“You’re eating with me so
go ahead and stop whining about it.” We get in the back of the line and wait
well over an hour. He’s fine and dandy with it, because by the time we can see
the door of the four story brick building, he has a half dozen new best
friends. Some are even booking the midnight ghost tour just so they can hang
out with him some more.
That’s Greyson
.

Once we are finally allowed
in, I whine some more. We are set at a large table and are being served family
style with a group of strangers. Bowls and dishes of all sorts of country fair
cover the table along with glasses of tea. I scan the dishes for something in
the not thousand calorie range and only find tomatoes and pickles. Before I can
select those items, Greyson grabs my plate and starts filling it with fried
chicken, potato salad, collard greens, rice and gravy, and cornbread. He does
this, completely ignoring my protests, as he chats up every person at our table
as if they are his closest family members. He plops a few tomato slices on my
plate as an afterthought before returning it to me. He then turns his attention
to his own plate. It’s twice as much food as mine by the time he’s done loading
it down.

After he sets his plate
down, he asks to lead the table in a prayer. Of course, they all agree for they
have fallen head over heels in love with him. He pulls his silly fishing hat
off and reveals a messy mop of dark-blond hair that looks to be styled. The man
always looks flawless and it doesn’t escape my attention that the little
brunette sitting at our table can’t seem to look away from him. Greyson Stone
is a magnet of pure beauty—inside and out.

The meal stretched for over
an hour, and so Greyson agrees to walk me around and do some shopping to help
settle that huge meal. I cleared half of the plate he made me and I feel right
miserable with him seeming smug about it. By the time the late afternoon comes
around, Greyson has us settled at a nearby campground and declares it naptime
so that we will be good to go for the midnight ghost tour.

I watch him stretch out in
his bed and he breathes out a long sigh of satisfaction. I stand by the door
for a while, just enjoying the view, but then I give in and crawl next to him
and drape myself across his side. I feel him stiffen.

“This might not be a good
idea,” he murmurs as he looks down at me.

“I can behave myself, if
you can, big boy,” I sass as I lay my head back down on his chest. He seems to
relax and eventually his breathing evens out in a slow rhythm. He pulls me
closer in his sleep and I let the lullaby of his heart sing me to sleep.

I’m not much of a nap
taker, but cradled in the comfort of Greyson’s arms I couldn’t help but snooze
the entire evening away. I wake to a dark room and find myself alone though.
After getting my bearings, I scoot out of the lonely bed and find Greyson
sitting at the table with his journal. I stay by the door and study him as he
has his head bent to the book and is fervently writing. This man does
everything so passionately. I watch a pucker form along his forehead as though
maybe he’s not pleased at what he is writing, but then in the next instance
it’s disappeared and replaced by a faint smile. He sets the pen down and closes
the journal, and then he bows his head and whispers a prayer that only God can
hear. My heart skips at the sight of this intimate moment and I feel like an
intruder all of a sudden until he raises his head and smiles at me. Those green
eyes are
glittering
and his face is a bit flushed.

“You okay, honey?” I ask
him. There just seem to be so many emotions running through him.

“Absolutely.”
Greyson stands and walks over to me. He wraps
his arm around me briefly and places a kiss on my temple before heading to the
bathroom. “I’m going to shower.”

“Okay,” I mutter, watching
him close the door behind him. “What was that about?” I whisper to myself. I’m
half tempted to nose through the journal entry, but it’s none of my business. I
leave him verses, but never read anything. They are his personal words and I
feel they are not mine to read.

I scoot into the chair and
wait for him to finish. I find myself looking around for
Fifi
.
Then my heart squeezes when I remember she is in South Carolina. I miss my
girl. Only one month and she’ll be back with me, I reassure myself.

“All yours,” Greyson says
and startles me out of my thoughts. He’s still got a grin planted on his face.

I brush past him and
absently head to the bathroom. My thoughts are with the reality that the end of
the road trip is coming up faster than I want. I strip down and pull the shower
door open. I don’t see it at first until I’ve already gotten the water going. I
look up to the shower head and a fit of screams leave me at finding a bat
perched on top of it. I slam out of the bathroom and am jumping up and down in
the main part of the RV. I’m still screaming when I see Greyson coming from the
bedroom laughing.

I slap him hard several
times. “That AIN’T funny!” I shout as I hop around.

His laughter has vanished
and now he is staring at my naked body, and all I can think is that’s what you
get! He snaps out of it and slams his eyes shut. “I didn’t think this through,”
he mutters through clenched teeth.

“I got a good mind to just
walk around like this for a while. That’ll teach you!” I yell at him.

He turns around for good
measure. “I just wanted to get you in the spirit of the night ahead.” He’s back
to laughing. “I got you to say
ain’t
.” He fist pumps the air in victory. “You are so
prissy.” He then mocks an impersonation, jumping around and fanning his hands
all prissy and squealing in a girl voice.

I slap him on his back. “Go
get your little toy out of there or I’m not going tonight.”

He turns back around and
heads to the bathroom with his eyes firmly squeezed shut. I have to laugh while
watching him with his hands out like a blind man.

We board an ancient black
hearse that has an extended roof so that we are elevated. There are a total of
nine idiots going along on the ghost and graveyard tour tonight. Several faces
are familiar from lunch earlier at Mrs. Wilkes. The little brunette has claimed
a seat near Greyson. I watch as he politely smiles at her and a satisfaction
courses through me when he clearly turns closer to me and away from her. He’s
kind, but lets his actions be completely clear to her. Greyson Stone is mine! I
pull his hand in mine smugly.