Page 22 of Julian

Julian's jaw clenched. The right steps?

Everything felt manipulated and forced into place like chess pieces on his father's board. He wanted to argue, to push back against the narrative that painted him as some wayward son finally coming to his senses.

"The facility I've chosen has an excellent reputation," Duncan continued. "They specialize in high-functioning professionals who need to address their relationship with alcohol without derailing their careers."

High-functioning. Julian almost laughed at the irony. If he was so high-functioning, why was he standing here married to a woman he couldn’t remember being intimate with?

“I realize you won’t be able to call or email, at least at first, but once you’re able to contact us, I wouldn’t mind an update.”

Julian didn’t want to update him on the torture he was about to undergo, but he nodded. Maybe he’d feel a little different once he had some distance from this turbulent time.

"I'll keep that in mind," Julian said, forcing his voice to remain level despite the turmoil inside him.

Duncan clapped him on the shoulder, his grip firm. "This will be good for you, son. You'll come back stronger."

Julian nodded again, not trusting himself to speak further. His father's expectations pressed down on him like a physical force.

He turned away, desperate to escape the solarium with its bright sunlight and the eyes of his family—his new wife—watching his every move. “I need to go. The helicopter is waiting.”

After a quick wave to the others in the room, Julian left the solarium and made his way through the house to the mudroom.

Anthony was waiting by the door as promised, his expression neutral but his eyes watchful. "Ready?"

"More than ready," Julian muttered, following his bodyguard out the back door.

The early spring air hit his face as they stepped outside, cool and fresh after the stifling atmosphere of the solarium. Julian loosened his tie, gulping in deep breaths.

A UTV was waiting for them, and Anthony climbed into the front row beside Derrick, another of the security team members, while Julian settled into the second row.

All too soon, the UTV reached the helicopter. Julian and Anthony boarded, and Julian settled into a seat next to the window.

He slipped on the headset that Anthony handed him, though he had no desire to talk. Thankfully, Anthony knew him well enough to understand that conversation wasn’t welcome right then.

As the helicopter lifted off, Julian watched as the estate fell away, growing smaller and smaller until they left it fully behind.

The twenty-minute flight to Coeur d’Alene passed quickly, then they were boarding the plane that would take him to his new home for the next month or more.

The plane had internet, so as soon as it took off, he opened his laptop to do a little work. Mainly, it was writing emails to a few people to let them know that he’d be unavailable for the foreseeable future and to address any issues with Duncan.

The letter to Sean was the hardest to write because he knew he’d be unable to be kept abreast of the latest developments for FemPulse. He didn’t give details about his absence beyond stating that he was dealing with some health issues.

As he sent each email, anger grew inside him. It started out burning strictly for his father, but soon, it grew to encompass himself as well.

He wanted to lay the blame for his current situation on Duncan being unreasonable and demanding, but in his heart, he knew that it was his own actions that had led to this point. He’d chosen to drink as a way to cope with stuff that he didn’t want todeal with. And that drinking had led to him making some not so great decisions. Not the least of which was sleeping with Kiara when he was too drunk to remember it.

By the time they’d landed at the airport in Aspen, Julian was resigned to his fate. After retrieving his luggage, Anthony took it to the car service that was waiting for them.

The treatment center was a little way outside of Aspen, and Anthony would be accompanying him there before returning to take the plane back to Coeur d’Alene.

Julian watched the scenery rush by the car window, mentally preparing himself for what was to come, and wishing fervently that he’d been able to have at least one drink during the flight. But his dad had had all the alcohol removed from the plane, just like he had from the estate.

Nerves were fluttering wildly as the car paused at the gates of the treatment center. Anthony took care of identifying them so that they could enter the property.

Once inside, the car made its way along a meandering driveway up to a large building that looked more like a fancy hotel than what Julian had imagined a treatment center would look like.

The driver pulled up under the port cochere and came to a stop. As soon as they did, a man stepped through a set of large glass doors and approached the car.

He opened Julian’s door and greeted him. “Welcome to Crystal Haven Wellness, Mr. Burke.”