What if I Fly? by Jayne Conway Read Free Book Online

grinning.
    “Your line,” Will said, smiling.
    “Thank you,” she replied, her ears growing hot, and silently reprimanded herself. Good Lord! He’s just a guy!
    Scanning the script, she used her pen to highlight the rest of her lines, and for the remainder of rehearsal, read her part and tried to forget he was there.
    When rehearsal finally ended, she excused herself and wove through the crowd to the ladies room. Paula, the choreographer, was washing her hands while Julia leaned over the next sink, taking deep breaths.
    “You okay Jules?” Julia nodded, splashed cold water on her face and Paula handed her a few paper towels.
    “Thanks. Yeah. I was a bit dizzy but I feel better now,” she fanned herself with her hand. “It’s warm in there.”
    “Is that what happened?” Paula giggled. “I thought maybe it was that gorgeous man sitting next to you, getting you all flustered.”
    “Please, Paula, give me some credit,” Julia rolled her eyes.
    “Honey, if he was sitting next to me, I’d be doing the same thing,” Paula said, tossing the paper towel in the basket.
    Julia exited the bathroom, and waved to a few people as she left the rehearsal room, “See you tomorrow night!” She didn’t linger like she normally would. The faster she got out of there the better.
     
    Walking out into the fresh night air, she found Will standing near the church, his face breaking into a smile as their eyes met. Julia stopped in her tracks, butterflies fluttering in her stomach. How does he do that? Why does he make me so nervous?
    Living in New York, she’s spent a lot of time around good-looking men, some of them models, but no one had ever thrown her off balance before.
    “Hey Julia. What’re you up to tonight? Do you want to grab a drink?”
    “A drink?” Her eyes darted around the churchyard as people walked to their cars. He’s asking me to hang out with him, alone?
    “Yes, a beverage,” Will laughed. “Something to quench your thirst?”
    He meant a real drink, not Del’s Lemonade. Her instinct was to run, to put as much distance between them as was humanly possible. But she stopped herself, figuring if they were going to be in this play together and spend the following ten weeks in each other’s company, she figured she’d better get used to being around him.
    So instead of running, she smiled and nervously tucked a curl behind her ear.
    “How about some ice cream?” she asked. “Maybe a cone of strawberry or a hot fudge sundae?”
    A corner of his mouth turned up, his eyes amused.
    “How old are you?” he asked, a smile in his voice.
    “Not old enough! I’ll be twenty in September. How old are you?”
    “I turned twenty-two in January.” He gazed at her for another second then nodded his head, “Okay…Ice cream it is.”
     
    It was a warm summer evening. The sun set not long before, an invisible artist painting colorful strokes in the night sky. Hints of red, purple, and orange lingered, casting a glow over the town. They wandered through the streets of downtown, neither of them in a hurry.
    This section of Bristol is a maze of historical homes, varied architecture, and stunning water views. Julia took this beauty for granted until she moved away to college, but not anymore. She was lucky to grow up in such a picturesque town. Compared to the squalid conditions she witnessed people living in back in New York, Bristol is paradise.
    As they made their way to the harbor, Julia shared tidbits of town trivia, more out of nervousness than a desire to give a history lesson. Her hometown has a rich, sometimes troubling history stretching back to pre-colonial days. While the seaports of Providence and Boston became prosperous through the China trade, Bristol gained its wealth from the slave trade and privateering.
    “This used to be a holding area for slaves,” she pointed to a yellow clapboard house on the corner of State Street. Will stopped and stared at the building, his eyes squinting as he peered