Julian (Beautiful Mine #1) by Gia DeLuca

my half-dry, half-frizzed hair into a messy top knot, and dabbed on a little bit of foundation, mascara, and lip balm.
    This wasn’t the way I’d imagined it would go, and I cringed when I glanced at my reflection in the mirror, but I had no other choice. I debated canceling on him altogether, but I knew he was only in town for the weekend. Besides, I needed a ride to my car.
    I dialed Arthur and Caroline, since apparently they weren’t home, and told them Julian had been sent to the hospital.
    “Thank you, Evie,” Arthur said, lacking an ounce of emotion. “We’ll be on our way shortly.”
    I felt better going on my date knowing his parents were rushing to his side. I could always visit him afterwards. I didn’t want to overstep my boundaries with his family anyway.
    The second I hung up with Arthur, I received another text from Spencer telling me he was outside. I ran downstairs and jetted out the front door where his shiny, freshly-washed Range Rover was waiting in the circle drive. I opened the passenger door and climbed inside, just as I’d done hundreds of times before when we were younger. The smell of his signature Burberry cologne mixed with the sensation of smooth, buttery leather under my hands instantly transported me to a time, just a few years ago, when we were both seniors in high school and had our whole lives ahead of us. Back when we were filled with hope, excitement, and a hefty dash of naïveté as we forged into the great unknown.
    “I know how you always get cold, so I turned the seat warmer on for you,” he said. It was just like old times already.
    “Some things never change,” I said with a sweet grin. “Thank you.”
    I glanced over at his familiar face and so badly wanted to lean over and kiss him. It seemed like such a natural thing for me to do, but I couldn’t. Not yet.
    “Oh,” Spencer said as he looked me up and down. “I guess I’m a little overdressed for tonight.”
    I instantly remembered the way I looked and my cheeks turned ten shades of crimson. “Um, here’s the deal. Julian had a fall, and I had to call an ambulance. It all happened really fast, and I didn’t have time to finish getting ready before you got here.”
    “It’s cool,” he said. “We can just go someplace casual. Not a big deal. I did make us reservations at Maison Bleu, but I’ll cancel them.”
    Maison Bleu was our old date night restaurant, and I hadn’t been there since high school. I could never bear the thought of going there without him. That place was sacred.
    “Do you want to just go to McCool’s Pub?” he asked.
    “They closed.”
    “How about Burger Palace?”
    “Closed.”
    “How did I not know that? That’s too bad. They had the best shakes. Okay, you pick, then,” he said, throwing his hand in the air as if to concede. “Apparently I’m too out of touch with Halverford to know what’s even here anymore.”
    As his hand came down, it rested on the center console mere inches from my own hand. I froze, not knowing whether to move my hand to my lap or let it continue to almost touch his. It took everything I had not to revert to our old ways, but I had to remind myself we were just old friends hanging out. Nothing more. Nothing less.
    “Let’s go to Pasquale’s,” I suggested, though I had a feeling I wouldn’t be focused too much on food that night. I sat back in the warm seat and relaxed a little before my mind wandered itself right over to Julian. The sting of guilt seared through me as I realized what I’d done. He was lying unconscious in a hospital bed, and here I was going on my date as if nothing had happened. It felt wrong, but the regret that flooded my thoughts was soon overruled by the stupid excitement of being with Spencer Goodwin again.
    His parents are there with him, I told myself in an attempt to justify my decision to keep my plans. He’s just my client. I’m off work. Nurses don’t follow their patients around when they’re off work, so why