*James*

Paris was amazing.

Trisha made sure we kept with the schedule she had planned. We saw the Eiffel Tower, which was pretty cool. Ate some fantastic French food at a few restaurants she had been to in the past and did a TON of walking. 

It was fun. But it would have been better if Julia was here to experience it with me. Casey and Trisha took good care of me while Julia's addiction took over her body, making her very ill.

"Did you have fun today?" Trisha asks as we leisurely walk through a quaint area of Paris. Case, Jonah and the dog are in front of us, Paul behind us.

"Yeah, thanks for planning all this." I smile over at her. She talks and walks and texts all at the same time but still gives me her full attention. "You're texting that Noah guy, aren't ya?" I smirk, and Trisha cheeks turn a little rosy. I'm  kinda jealous right now but would never admit it.

"He wants to go out for coffee when he gets out of work."

"You should go." I lean into her a little to nudge her.

"What's the point? We leave tomorrow." She puts her phone in her pocket with a sigh. "But yeah... I said yes." 

I laugh, and Trisha gives me a little sarcastic look.

"You're gonna hook up with him, aren't ya?" I raise a brow.

"James!!!  I'm not telling you that!" Her eyes practically bug out of her head, making me laugh even harder now.

"It's ok to take advantage of the moment. There's nothing wrong with that. If it feels good, go for it." I shrug and stare ahead into the distance while we walk.

"Oh? Is that your life motto, Mr. Gallo?"

"Actually, yes. Yes, it is."

******

*Trisha*

He's outta his tree. But he's right. I REALLY want to be with Noah. I don't know why, to be honest. I'm not really one for one-night stands. Not at all. But I never just live a little. Nate does. James apparently does. Hell, Paul does. There have been times in the past I've known him to have a little fun before we move on to the next city.

 God, Nate would have a one-night stand almost every night, that one. To think he is actually willing to grow up and settle down with Julia baffles me. Nate lives up to his "America's Heartthrob" name and is known to have a different woman on his arm at every event. Aside from his time with Macy. Even more so after they broke up.

Why can't I have a little fun if I'm safe? A no strings attached night. I think I know the reasoning behind it. Nate Hollan. Nate Hollan, with a touch of James Gallo sprinkled on top, because today was a really fun day with James. He really is the whole package. And funny as hell. I've never laughed so hard as I do when I'm around James.

And there was a moment. A fleeting moment when Jonah and Casey popped into a boutique, and Paul went to the restroom when I thought James was going to kiss me.

We were on the side of the small brick building waiting for everyone when James's stood in front of me while I was leaning against the wall. His eyes darkened, and I smiled up at him. James took a step closer, so our bodies were touching and tucked my hair behind my ears while gazing at me. I wanted him to kiss me. I REALLY wanted him to kiss me. But the bells on the boutique door rang in our ears, letting us know Jonah and Casey were coming back outside.  James backed away before they turned the corner to meet u,  and the moment was gone.

So yeah, I have some conflicting feelings.

But I did say yes to meeting Noah at a coffee shop near our hotel. In walking distance so I can escape if things go south without worrying about a ride.

"What do ya say we head back? My legs are Jell-O." Casey says, which surprises me since, like me, she is a runner. But the way she won't let go of Jonah's hand and how she is gazing up at him makes me think our little mini-Julia wants some alone time with her boyfriend. 

Paul is looking pretty tired as well, though he is used to me dragging his ass all around town as my bodyguard. It's three in the afternoon, and I could go relax for a little bit before Noah gets out of work.

"Sure. Let me call the driver to come get us."

*******

*James*

"She wants to what??" I ask Nate while sitting on the couch petting my dog.

"She wants to start her detox. Jeremy agrees that things are only going to get harder the longer we wait." Nate paces around the large living room. Julia is sleeping right now after a full day of being an emotional rollercoaster and barely eating breakfast or lunch.

"Yeah, but how do we even do that? Don't we have to travel tomorrow?"

"We do. I'm gonna have a meeting with Jeremy first thing in the morning before we head out to see how we are going to make this work. It needs to be done, James." Nate is persistent, but he's also right. Things are only going to get worse for Julia the longer we wait. "Should we order room service for dinner tonight while she rests, or would you like to go out?" He changes the subject.

"Room service sounds good to me. Can you set me up to face time my sisters around five? It will be 8 pm back home." I ask, knowing on Sundays my sisters all go to mom's house for the day.

"Of course." Nate grabs the Room Service Menu off the kitchen counter, and we look at it together on the couch while Julia sleeps.

"I'm probably just going to order everything on the menu so Julia can pick something to eat. She's been a bit difficult today." Nate's British accent shines through a little while he talks, which I've learned happens sometimes when he is nervous. He is nervous about Julia. Nervous about her detox. We all are.

"I remember when you ordered the whole damn menu at the Marriott that day. God, I hated your guts." I laugh just thinking about it.  At the time, I wasn't aware of any of Julia's struggles. Not like now. Nate laughs, and it echoes through the suite.

"Feeling was mutual, pal. I was such a dick to you, too." He smirks. "Now look at us. I only hate your guts when you sleep with her. AHEM....." Nate raises an eyebrow at me, making it known he heard us last night.

"Hey man, she molested me last night, not the other way around. I was content sleeping." Are we really talking about our sex life right now when it concerns the woman we are both in love with? I mean, I could care less, but I'm very surprised Nate brought it up so lightly the way he did.

"Yeah, yeah, let it be known she was high as a kite last night, Gallo." He shakes his head while looking at the menu, purposely avoiding eye contact.

"She had more than her usual dose??"  I ask, very concerned now.

"No. But, and she doesn't know I know this, she caught on the meds are stronger on an empty stomach.  I think, aside from this morning, which I know full well was genuine since she was dry heaving uncontrollably, she has been purposely making sure her stomach is empty before her dose. Forcing herself to throw up if need be.

"She's friggen bulimic now?? "

"I mean.... yes, but no. Yes, she's doing it on purpose, but no, not to lose weight, just to assure herself her addiction will get fed and she will feel numb."

Shit. Julia really does need to start her detox. The sooner, the better.

******

*Trisha*

I walk into the little French cafe and search the room. Usually, people come here either earlier in the day or after dinner for a cup of coffee, not at five thirty when it's dinnertime. My eyes lock with Noah's, who is sitting at a small table near the window, waiting. Waiting for me.

He's hot. We all know that. But there's something about him that makes my stomach flutter even more than just his attractiveness, and he's not even trying. He stands up to greet me wearing a pair of jeans and a Nate Hollan "Around the World" tour T-shirt with the concert dates on the back. He did it on purpose, making me laugh.

"Eh? Do you like it?" He holds out his t-shirt away from his body and looks down at it. "Sorry, I couldn't resist." Noah laughs. He has a great laugh. He has the perfect smile that makes him even that much more good-looking.

"Now, THAT'S funny." I laugh and roll my eyes as we sit down at the table. The waitress comes by, and we order our coffee and some pastries for the table. Nate can pay. He's the one who wanted this whole thing to happen in the first place.

"How is your sister and newborn nephew doing?" I ask, not really sure on what to talk about here.

"Both are doing great. Jeff, her husband, also took time out of work to help take care of them. I need to find my own place eventually, though. I think the baby is colicky."

I don't really know what that means. I don't have kids and rarely hold babies. I think Noah can tell.

"It's when the baby cries nonstop. Even in the middle of the night." He takes a sip of his coffee and then a deep breath.

"Oh my God, that sounds horrific!"

"You get used to it, and eventually, it goes away. Alex was a colicky baby." Right, he has children of his own. Five-year-old twins.

"What's it like having twins?" I really don't care to talk about children. It's not my thing, but he has kids, so it most definitely is a comfortable topic to talk about for Noah.

"At first, fucking hard as hell...sorry." He catches himself swearing and stops the conversation.

"Noah, I swear like a trucker. Doesn't faze me. You can be normal around me."

"Sorry. I'm a little nervous here. I haven't been on a date in... wait.. is this a date?"  He sudden looks embarrassed. It's cute. He's a little rusty. I like that.

"Yes, Noah. I'd say this is a date." I boldly reach over the table and hold his hand while I say that. Just for a few seconds before giving it a little squeeze and sitting back again.

"I'm a bit off my game. And you're beautiful and I just moved here and haven't dated since Mindy." Noah blurts out and I chuckle.

"I understand. And thank you. You're not so bad looking yourself Fireman Noah." He's fucking gorgeous.  I don't even think he realizes it, does he?

As the evening goes on Noah relaxes more and is the guy I met yesterday when we were around others. Flirty and funny and easy to talk to. I think we stayed in that cafe for two hours straight just chatting and getting to know each other.

I also find it cute he is taking things slow. He may flirt like Nate but he's not a player and when he walked me back to my hotel, he became very nervous.

"Thanks for tonight. And tell Nate thanks for the picking up the bill." Noah smirks. He fought me at first about paying. He's a true classic gentleman and wanted to pay but once I told him it's on Nate, he finally gave in.

"Tonight was nice, Noah." I watch as he nervously shoves his hands in his pockets and looks around a little while we stand outside the Ritz.

"Um... so..." God he really is rusty.

"Noah. Kiss me."

*****

*James*

I watch Julia like a hawk now. She eats just fine tonight. Nate wasn't kidding when he said he was going to order the whole damn menu either. He really did. But when Julia is finished eating, she stands up to head to the bathroom.

"Babe, sit down." I clumsily take her hand and yank her to sit back down at the table. Nate suddenly looks uneasy.

"I just gotta use the bathroom real quick." She gives me a funny look like I have two heads.

"Digest your food first." I say in a manner that makes Julia know we caught on.

"What? James. I need to use the bathroom." She tries to pretend I'm not aware of what she really wants to do. She tries to stand up, but I hold her hand and kiss it.  I shake my head at her, and Julia begins to cry. "Let go, James. I have to!"

"No you don't, babe. It's just making everything worse." I hold her trembling hand with both of mine now. Nate was right. How he figured it out, I'm not sure. But Julia has been throwing up to ensure the Ativan works.

"You don't understand!" Julia cries hard, but I can tell she is also embarrassed about this.

"Julia, look at me." I don't care that Nate is sitting across the table watching this all unfold. I take Julia's face in my hands and peck her lips. "I love you. I want to see you get healthy, ok? Forcing yourself to always have an empty stomach to make sure the Ativan works to its fullest potential is just opening a door you don't want to open. You're purposely adding a new diagnosis to your resume. And your resume is full, sweetie. Throwing up gets easier and easier to do and harder to stop the more you do it. Ask Kendall. She knows all about it."

Poor Kendall. My baby sister has struggled with eating disorders since she was twelve. She goes to therapy and gets the help she needs, but we still need to watch her to make sure she doesn't fall back into that hole she dug.

Julia's eyes widen hearing this.

"Just sit with me for a little while. Let your food settle." I beg, but it's no use. Julia pulls away mid-sentence.

"I have to." She books it to the bathroom, but it's like Nate knew she was gonna make a run for it. He is already out of his seat and stopping her.

"Nate! Stop!" She tries to wiggle out of his arms, but Nate is strong.  Maybe not as strong as me, but he bulked up a decent amount for that Heartbreak Hotel music video with Mila Giovanni.

"Jules. Don't do this. Not tonight, doll." Nate says calmly. Julia knows she can't break from his grip and gives up, turning to putty in his arms while crying. He slides down the wall while still holding her, and I watch him calm her down. He rocks her from side to side slightly, and she buries her head in his chest.

"Please, Nate." Julia whimpers, but Nate shakes his head.

"Not tonight, baby. You need to keep food down tonight." He continues to calm her down. "It's ok. You're ok. I've got ya." I hear Nate whisper, and Julia closes her eyes.

I watch Nate take care of Julia.