Julien cleared his throat. "You look amazing," he said.
Her mother and father both looked at him smiling. Apparently, they understood enough English to understand he'd just given her a complement.
Nadine sighed. "I needed about ten more minutes. I couldn't get my hair to cooperate."
"It's perfect. You look beautiful." He wasn't just trying to make her feel good. Shea had been right all along. She was exactly the woman he wanted.
She smiled shyly and popped up to put her cheek to his in a fake kiss. "Pascal's shoes are too small for me and I'm going to have at least a few blisters, but it's worth it for beauty, right?"
"I'm gonna have to get you a dress like this at home," Julien said, imagining peeling her out of it.
"No you won't because Pascal gave it to me," she said.
Julien smiled thinking of the possibilities.
They rode with Nadine's parents to the restaurant. It was French cuisine at it's finest, and Julien was glad his mom, in spite of them not having much, taught him manners. There were four couples and three kids, sitting around the table, and while they didn't mean it to be that way, it felt like an interview of sorts. Almost everyone at the table spoke English, and there was definitely more English than French being spoken throughout the evening. One of the first things brought up was the book, but Nadine somehow managed to pass it off as if it were no big deal. Julien knew she'd tell them at some point, but he honestly didn't mind skirting the topic.
Emile's husband, Eric, sat next to Patrick and acted as his translator and spokesperson. Julien could tell both men cared a great deal about Nadine and all the questions they asked were geared towards making sure he was capable of making her happy. He didn't feel threatened by them or anything, but he could tell they were protective of her, which in a weird way, made him respect them even more than he did already. Everyone else just asked random questions about him—his job, his goals, his house, his dog, etc. It felt a bit like a job interview, but he was glad Nadine had people who cared about her enough to grill potential boyfriends.
Julien tried several French delicacies including something called boudin noir. Julien thought he knew what boudin was since that was something he ate all the time back in Louisiana, but boudin noir wasn't the same thing at all. The small, round slice of sausage he put in his mouth was one of the most pungent things he'd ever eaten—not at all like the sausage made of pork and rice he was used to. Julien was an adventurous eater, though, and had no problem chewing and swallowing it even though everyone at the table looked at him like they wouldn't be surprised to see him spit it in his napkin. He tried several more foods including escargot and headcheese, and each time the family was impressed at his food-swallowing skills.
By the end of the night, Nadine's family was in love with him. He was handsome, and charming, and funny, but most of all they could tell he loved Nadine, and that's what was important to them.
The two of them hadn't really made physical contact during dinner, and Julien was aching to get his hands on her. Nadine was aching for him too. She curled up next to him in the backseat of the car on their way back to the house, enjoying the butterflies she felt at the contact. She closed her eyes and hoped the excitement would last forever.
****
A lot happened in the month after Nadine and Julien got back to Louisiana. For starters, everyone wanted the scoop about what went down in France, and Julien and Nadine ended up telling the story, in it's entirety or in part, a million times. Nadine always got really embarrassed when they talked about the part where she left him at the airport and made him chase her down in France, but no one blamed her. Everyone could sympathize with how distressing it must have been to realize you were the exact personification of a character in a fiction novel—especially with the attempted murder and everything.
For the most part, their life had gone back to normal—except for the fact that they had each other, which was obviously everything. Nadine was still living with Lindsay, but it wasn't uncommon for her to spend the night at Julien's. She was comfortable out there, and besides, she'd fallen in love with Max.
It was Nadine's birthday, which (as you remember) was also Valentine's Day. It fell on a Friday that year, and Julien insisted they have some friends over to celebrate. Basically, he just wanted to prove to himself that she could have a birthday party without the threat of someone trying to hurt her.
Several people from the gym and some of Nadine's friends from school were there. Shea Miller stopped by for a few minutes to say hi, but didn't stay very long. Nadine had seen her at the gym but hadn't had the chance to talk to her since everything went down.
"I just wanted to say I'm sorry," Shea said when they had a moment alone. She shrugged thoughtfully before continuing, "I just want you to know I had no idea—"
Nadine put a hand on her shoulder. "Thank you. I should have told you this before, but thank you. If you hadn't written the book, my life might be very different than it is now, and the thought of that makes me sad."
"I just don't want you to be scared of me or think I'm some sort of—"
Nadine stopped her again. "I feel indebted to you. It may have been unintentional, but you wrote something that altered my life in a positive way, and I could never think badly of you."
Shea sighed with relief just as Coach Brad came up from behind them.
"What's up ladies?" He looked at Shea. "Talking about how I'm the star of your next book?"
The girls both laughed.
"What's so funny? I could totally be the hunky star of a romance novel." He flexed his muscles as proof.
Julien came up behind them putting a protective arm around Nadine. "Why would the ladies be interested in reading about you once they've had a taste of me?" he said, teasing Brad.
Brad laughed for a second then shot Shea a deadpan expression. "Seriously though, if you want to write a book about me, I'm up for it."
"Be careful what you ask for," Julien said.
"Hey, everything turned out alright for you, didn't it?" He gestured at the way Julien had his arms wrapped around his happily ever after.
"What are y'all talking about over here?" John David said as he walked up on the conversation.
"About how Shea's going to write a romance novel about me," Brad said, "One where nobody gets shot."
"I thought I was in the next one," John David said.
Shea spaced out for a second, thinking about the possibility of something she wrote coming true a second time.
"I think it's one in a million," Nadine said, reading her thoughts.
"Me too," Shea said, smiling warmly at the beautiful girl she felt like she knew so well. She said she had to be leaving soon and leaned in to give Nadine a hug. "I just want you to know you're even better than I ever imagined."
Epilogue
A letter from Nadine
Dearest reader,
I'm writing to let you know that in spite of our relationship beginning with the outrageous events you just read about, Julien and I have settled into a normal existence. I finished college and have been working full time at the French immersion school I was so fond of for nearly two years. Julien proposed a few months ago, and of course, I said yes. We haven't decided where we'll have the wedding, but I'm sure it will be fairly small since neither of us really care about having a grand event. (Please don't tell my mother I said that.)
I moved in with him about six months into our relationship and have been helping fix up his old house. I've taken the responsibility of caring for the plants and flowers. I'm trying to convince him to add a koi pond, but Julien keeps warning me that Max would eat them. We also put a fresh coat of paint on the outside, and I'm happy to report that it no longer looks like a shack when you approach. We are both really proud of the place, and have friends over all the time to enjoy it with us.
Julien's had several pro fights, and continues to work toward his goal of making a living as a fighter and coach. As of now, his current situation i
s working fine, but eventually, he hopes to open his own gym. There's a real possibility that will end up happening in France, since I'm starting to get the itch to live closer to my mom and sisters. Julien is making great progress with speaking French and is open to the idea of moving. Nothing is set in stone, but we talk about it, and both feel like it's an option. Julien's family tells us how much we would be missed, but say they'd understand if we needed to make that decision.
But that's all speculation.
Today is all that matters.
Today, I'm content to live in my beautiful little Cajun house with my fierce, handsome fighter. He's got black hair and a tattoo from God, and he takes my breath away on a daily basis just like Nadine from the book.
Two years ago I would have told you that fairytales don't come true. Now I know I was a fool.
Dream big,
Nadine
Thanks so much for reading Julien's Book! This book is a stand-alone, but if you enjoyed it, I'd love for you to check out my other great books.
Book one from my brand new series called How to Tame a Heartbreaker is now available!
**How to Tame a Heartbreaker** series:
Book 1—You're Dangerous
Book 2—set to release early summer 2014
**In Too Deep** series:
Book 1—Three Years Later
Book 2—Seeing Clearly
Book 3—Second String
Book 4—Mind the Gap
Book 5—Three Months and You're Mine
Julien's Book Page 20