Julien's Book by Casey McMillin Read Free Book Online Page A

small, aluminum boat with a motor that he tied to their dock. He had been tying it to a tree on his property, but they offered him the parking spot, and docking it was much easier. Max loved going out on the boat, and went completely nuts every time Julien asked him if he wanted to go fishing . 
    Julien could clean a fish if he had to, but most of the time he just went fishing for fun and bought his fish at a grocery store. Maybe it was the new kitchen tiles that had him inspired, but Julien decided to clean and cook two of the small bass he caught earlier. He was exhausted by the time he went to bed that evening.
    ****
    The next week was business as usual. Julien trained at the gym and taught all of his regular classes. Part of him thought the girl with the accent would come back, but she didn't, and he was thankful not to have to see her embarrass herself again.
    Then, just when he thought he was in the clear, she showed up at the gym.
    It was a random Wednesday night, and Julien was about to start a women's kickboxing class when John David showed up at the door of the striking room. He looked a little pale, and Julien wondered for a second if he was sick. Then his gaze shifted to the person standing at his side and Julien realized it was the girl who came in a week or so before calling herself Nadine. Julien already had the rest of the women warming up, and couldn't really take the time to talk much, but he told "Nadine" she could get on the mat and finish jumping rope with the rest of the class. John David gave him an almost helpless shrug as he turned and walked out which made Julien slightly nervous and extremely curious. He couldn’t stand it any longer. He didn't usually leave in the middle of class, but this whole scenario was just too weird. He gave the girls a series of warm-ups to finish and followed John David out into the office.
    "Hey, what's that all about?" Julien said in the hall that connected the striking room to the office.
    John David jumped at the sound of his voice. He focused on Julien with an unreadable expression that had Julien feeling a little uneasy.
    "What's she doing in there?" Julien asked. "Didn't you ask her for her ID?"
    John David stared at him for a few long seconds before replying. "Yeah."
    Julien looked at him like he must have misheard. "Yeah, what? She showed you her ID?"
    "Yeah." John David threw his hands in the air. "It said her name was Nadine. What was I supposed to do?"
    Julien followed him into the office where John David pulled the copy of her driver's license off of the top of a stack of papers. Julien stared down a t it through disbelieving eyes. A photograph of the girl along with the name Nadine LaBelle was clearly printed on the thing.
    "Mother fucker," he whispered. "What kind of lunatic gets a fake ID to make herself a character in a book?"
    John David shrugged helplessly. "I'm sorry. I didn't know what to do. It's not like I could accuse her of using a fake ID to take a kickboxing class."
    Julien knew he had to be getting back to the class even though he really didn't feel like dealing with the crazy girl. "Make me a copy of that thing when you get the chance," Julien said, taking off toward the striking room.
    Normally John David wouldn't do such a thing, but given the circumstances, he made a copy right away and placed it in Julien's box. He never imagined a girl would take the whole Nadine thing this far, and he felt a little bad for Julien for having to deal with her.
    Julien worked the shit out of those girls in hopes that Nadine would give up and go home in the middle of class. He felt slightly sorry for the other girls, but he knew they'd forgive him once they heard about the crazy girl. He was in a crappy mood, and all the regular girls in the class commented on how they wanted the old Julien back. He'd apologize to them later, but he was hoping his drill sergeant approach would do the trick. "Nadine" was utterly exhausted by the time the class was over, and