He was better off alone than fighting these kinds of battles with people who refused to believe him when he told them what wasn’t going to happen—ever.
A knock on his door had him sitting up straighter, preparing to answer questions from his family and colleagues about what’d happened with Stacey, which was the last thing he felt like doing.
His twenty-nine-year-old brother, Jackson, who worked as Julian’s associate, came in and closed the door behind him.Like most of the Remington men, Jackson had wavy dark hair and brown eyes.He sported a soul patch under his bottom lip that drove their father almost as crazy as their brother Carson’s longish hair did.
“Everything all right in here?”
“It is now.”
Jackson leaned against the closed door.“You need anything?”
“Better security, but I’ve already spoken to Danvers about that.”
“I was wondering how she made it up here.”
“Apparently, a couple of new people are still learning the ropes.”
“Let’s hope they learn quickly.Dad is looking for you at the partner meeting.”
“I’ll be right there.”
“I’ll let him know.Rachel McDavid’s sister came to pick her up, and they’re getting the boys from school.She said she’d let you know where she ends up.”
“Thank you for handling that for me.”
“No problem.You sure you’re okay?”
“All good.”
“I’m working on getting a digital copy of the restraining order for Rachel,” Jackson said.“Will keep you posted.”
“Thanks.”
After his brother left, Julian gave himself another minute to get his shit together.He’d been off his game since he’d seen Aimee at her parents’ party during the holidays.She held the distinction of being the only woman Julian had ever loved, but it’d been over between them for almost twenty years.He hadn’t given her a thought in ages until he’d run into her—literally—at the party.Two weeks later, he was still trying to understand how his feelings for her could’ve resurfaced so swiftly that they’d taken his breath away and left him spiraling ever since.He would’ve thought he’d become immune to such things.Finding out otherwise had been a huge shock to his system.
Aimee’s oldest kid was nearly an adult.That’s how long they’d been out of each other’s lives.He shouldn’t have felt a single thing for her except nostalgia when they’d come face-to-face for the first time in years.
But the reminder of what’d once been a wild, uncontrollable love had left a bitter taste in his mouth, as if he’d been chewing on burnt popcorn, or something equally revolting.It had ended badly, which had been entirely his fault.
After his parents’ hellacious divorce was finally settled with them sharing joint custody of their minor children, he’d vowed to never get into a situation like the one his parents had dragged him and his siblings through.As they came of age, each of them had joined him in disdaining relationships that might lead to marriage.They figured if they avoided commitment and everything that went with it, they could also avoid that kind of nonsense for themselves.
They’d gone so far as to take an alcohol-fueled vow one evening to never give in to the temptation and had agreed to a full-family intervention if they strayed off course.Each of them took that vow seriously and had remained true to it for years.
At twenty-one, however, he’d been so in love with Aimee that he couldn’t imagine a day without her, let alone the rest of his life.
Back then, Carson had zeroed right in on Julian’s dilemma the way he always did.“How in the world can you be thinking about forever with anyone at age twenty-one?Especially since you know all too well what ‘forever’ looks like.”Their parents’ divorce had been ongoing at the time, souring most of them on relationships.Julian had been the exception, having gone all in with Aimee from the second they first met.
His brother had been right, though.Julian had been far too young to make serious commitments to anyone, especially since he hadn’t even finished college yet and had three years of law school to get through before he’d be worthy of someone like Aimee.Even though she’d grown up as the daughter of Max Godfrey and Stella Flynn, who were Hollywood royalty, she was a go-getter.She’d started her dance studio by then, as she was five years older and light-years ahead of him in more ways than one.During the three years they were together, he’d felt so lucky that a woman of such stunning beauty, intelligence and accomplishment had loved him.
Ending their relationship had been excruciatingly painful and messy, especially since their parents were longtime friends.But when he’d tried to explain that it was too much too soon, she’d told him to grow the hell up and act like a man rather than a little boy pretending to be a man.
That’d hurt.A lot.
Mostly because she’d been right, as usual.He hated that he’d broken her heart when she’d taken such a big chance on him to begin with.When everyone in her life had told her she was crazy to date a much younger guy, she’d told them to mind their own business.She’d truly loved him, and he’d thanked her for that by walking away when shit got real.He’d instantly regretted it, but she’d refused to ever speak to him again.
Aimee had moved on quickly with Trent, so quickly, in fact, that Julian had wondered if she’d loved him as much as she’d said she did.Aimee and Trent had married within eighteen months of her breakup with Julian, and their son was born a year after that.Her life had gone on as if he’d never happened, but judging by the stricken look on her gorgeous face at the anniversary party, she hadn’t forgotten him either.
His desk phone buzzed with a call from his assistant, Mattie.“Yes, ma’am?”
