Page 48 of Julian

“Yes, I’d like to see her.” He glanced over at Dr. Carlisle. “Would that be okay?”

The doctor hesitated, then gave a nod. “I think that would be fine.”

“I can go get her,” Angela offered.

“We’ll have Marcus bring her,” the doctor said. “And we’ll give them a bit of privacy.”

Angela gave Julian another hug. “I hope to see you again soon.”

“Julian,” his dad said, holding out his hand. “We’ll talk again.”

Though he took Duncan’s hand and gave it a firm shake, Julian still had mixed feelings about the man. Even more mixed than he’d already had. He didn’t know if that would ever not be the case.

Once they’d left the office, Julian pressed his palms against his jeans. He wasn’t sure why he was nervous about seeing Kiara, but he was.

Would she be as understanding and forgiving as Angela had been? Though what he’d done hadn’t impacted Kiara, it had impacted someone she loved very much. She might have a different outlook on things than Angela.

When the door swung open again, Kiara came into the room, and the man with her shut the door behind her, leaving just the two of them in the quiet of the office.

“Hey!” She gave him a smile as she walked toward him. The smile faded as she got closer. “You look terrible.”

Julian lifted his brows at her and gave a huff of laughter. “Thanks.”

“I didn’t mean anything bad by it,” she said, lifting her hand to cup his cheek briefly. “Just that you look really tired.”

“I am,” he admitted. “Between getting sober and now all of this, I haven’t been sleeping well.”

“How did things go with Angie?”

“She didn’t tell you?”

“I figured she wanted to come here to tell you she forgave you.”

“Yes, she did. Does that surprise you?”

“Not at all,” Kiara said. “That’s the sort of person Angie is.”

Julian put his hands into his pockets. “How do you feel about what I did?”

“I’m not angry with you,” Kiara said as she crossed her arms loosely. “It’s not really my place to forgive you. Plus, I’m kind of selfish in this situation.”

“What do you mean?”

Kiara lowered her gaze to the floor. “If you hadn’t done what you did, Angie never would have come into my life.” She looked back up at him. “And I needed her in order to survive the way my life was growing up. In a harsh and unloving world, she brought a gentleness and love that I desperately needed.”

“And you protected her in exchange,” Julian observed.

Kiara nodded. “Yes. She gave me something I needed, so the least I could do was give her what she needed. And I’ll always give her that. I love her, and I’m grateful that she’s in my life.”

“She’s stronger than I thought she was,” Julian observed, as he gestured to the chairs by Dr. Carlisle’s desk.

After they were seated, Kiara said, “I would say a lot of that strength has come from her becoming a Christian.”

“Really?”

Kiara nodded. “She gained some sort of confidence after she made that decision. Not that she takes on everything without fear or apprehension. It was just that she somehow finds the strength somewhere to tackle those difficult situations head-on.”

“I’m grateful she offered forgiveness when she didn’t have to.”