Read Julian (Beautiful Mine #1) for Free Online Page A

couple of free drinks and ran across some old friends from high school.
    “Evie, I haven’t seen you forever,” my old friend, Evan, said as he walked up and wrapped me in a big hug. “What’ve you been up to?”
    “I just started a new job working for the Garner-Willoughby family,” I said with a proud smile. “I’m their son’s nurse.”
    “Oh,” Evan said, wincing. “I’ve heard about them.”
    “What do you mean?” I asked. “They’ve been great, so far.”
    “You just… hear things…” he said cryptically. “I don’t want to get into it.”
    “You kind of have to now,” I insisted, eyebrow raised.
    “Arthur is my mom’s second cousin, or something like that,” he said, taking a sip of beer from his pilsner glass. “I don’t know the full connection. I’ve just heard some pretty, um, interesting things about Caroline. Just be careful around her. But hey, if she’s good to you, she must like you. Good for you.”
    “This is pretty heavy conversation, guys,” Carys interjected, slipping between us and hanging her arms around our shoulders. “Tequila shots?”
    “Oh, no, I can’t do those.” I waved her off.
    “Are you kidding me? Are. You. Kidding. Me,” she said, her tone incredulous. “Don’t be such a lame-ass tonight.”
    She traipsed back toward the bar and returned with a tray full of tequila shots, salt shakers, and lime wedges. She wasn’t taking “no” for an answer. As I licked the salt, shot the tequila, and bit the lime, the world around me began to disappear little by little, and for the first time in forever, I forced myself to just let go.
    “Dance with me,” I shouted to Evan over the music booming from the speakers. I pulled his arm and dragged him out to the dance floor where we danced as if no one was watching.
    About three songs into our two-person dance party, a tap on my shoulder pulled me back into the present moment. I spun around, breathless and red-faced, to be faced with none other than the enigmatic and uber-elusive Spencer Goodwin.
    “Hi,” he said, flashing his trademarked half-smile.
    “Spencer,” I said, trying to catch my breath and nonchalantly wipe the faint perspiration from my brow. “I was just dancing with Evan.”
    “I see that,” he said, glancing over my shoulder to where Evan stood behind me, hands on his hips.
    “I haven’t seen you forever,” I said, nudging his shoulder. “How’ve you been? What’s new? We need to catch up.” I tried to shut up, but the words kept coming. The more he stood there, quietly staring at me, the more I wanted to fill that silence with casual words that took away the sting of staring at a man I hardly knew anymore, but remembered so vividly. “How’s school? How many years do you have left? Do you come home often?”
    As if on cue, Carys popped in between us to intervene and save my inebriated self from regret and humiliation.
    “I’ll bring her right back to you.” She pulled me by the arm back to the corner of the bar. “What are you doing? This is your one shot, and you’re blowing it. Stop talking so much and act like you’re not interested in him. If you him to eat his heart out, you have to play the game. Now, go try again.”
    Sheepish and still red-faced, I sauntered back over to Spencer, but by the time I returned, he was surrounded by other old friends who were also equally as excited to see him. I made a beeline back to our table and ordered another drink. I’d blown my one shot.
    I watched him from afar as he laughed and smiled and talked, practically surrounded by half our graduating class. After several minutes of feeling like a complete ass, I checked the time on my phone. It was barely ten o’clock. Julian was probably sleeping.
    “What’s new with you?” a man’s voice said, startling me. I looked up, only to see Spencer standing before me. He’d come back, and it took everything I had not to melt under the nostalgic warmth of his ocean blue eyes and shaggy,