Always With Love Read Online Free Page A

shrugs.
    ‘No they’re not!’ squeals Lauren. ‘The books were written first and then made into a series by ABC. But even then, it’s only loosely based on them, anyway. Get it right.’
    ‘OK you two, cut it out,’ sighs Julie.
    ‘Tell
her
,’ he moans.
    ‘Tell
him
,’ she whines.
    ‘Listen to you both,’ I find myself cutting in. ‘We’ve only been here for half an hour and already you’ve regressed into the stereotypical annoying older brother role.’
    Billy’s mouth drops in surprise at my words.
    ‘You don’t have any brothers or sisters, do you?’ asks Lauren, instantly calming down, as though a switch has been flicked, and looking amused at my observation.
    ‘No.’
    ‘This is standard behaviour,’ she shrugs. ‘He winds me up and then I retaliate. Wait until the twins get involved later. There’s never a dull moment with us kids around.’
    ‘A constant battle of who can wind the other one up the most,’ nods Billy in agreement, the two forgetting their spat as they explain their interesting family dynamic while cheekily grinning at each other.
    ‘You must love each other really,’ I say, looking at the pair of them as though they’re slightly bonkers and wondering why they can’t just be nice.
    ‘Of course they do. Be lost without one another,’ says Julie for them, calling over from the seat behind us.
    ‘Oh totally,’ nods Billy, looking across me to Lauren and pulling a silly face. ‘She’s just so annoying.’
    ‘Ditto,’ she replies, rolling her eyes before leaning back and looking out the window. ‘God, it’s good to have you back!’ she mutters.
    I lean my head on Billy’s shoulder and squeeze my arm around his, drawing it into my body, so thrilled to be here with him in the comfort of his family who clearly love him as much as I do – even if they have an interesting way of showing it.

3
    Weseem to be driving for ages. Not that I mind, as it’s lovely to look out and get a grasp on Los Angeles and where Billy’s family lives. It’s huge, just like the car we’re sitting in, and seems to just carry on for miles without any clear definition of which neighbourhood we’re in. It all seamlessly merges, although some areas are clearly nicer than others. As I’d hoped, there are palm trees everywhere – even on the side of the motorway (sorry, freeway). LA appears to be mostly flat, although peeping up from the horizon in almost every direction are huge mountains.
    ‘The Hollywood sign!’ I gasp when I catch a glimpse of the iconic landmark sitting up high in the Hollywood hills.
    ‘Yep,’ says Billy, grinning at me and pulling me in for a kiss.
    ‘Bizarre to think of that as your normal,’ I say out loud to the rest of the car once he’s released me. It might be old-fashioned, but I can’t help but feel weird about having a PDA in front of Billy’s parents. I know we’re both adults and free to do as we please, but as this is the first time he has taken me home to meet his parents, I feel a rigidness overcome me and my cheeks flush, making me squirm like an awkward teenager. Hugs are fine, but kissing? Eek!
    Billy clearly notices my apprehension as he has a littlechuckle to himself and softly places a hand on top of mine, patting it gently.
    ‘Yeah … you know what,’ Lauren replies to my earlier comment, thoughtfully staring out of the window. ‘I hardly even notice it’s there any more.’
    ‘Same here,’ says Clive in the back, who’s stayed silent during the rest of the journey while everyone else has been nattering away. I have a feeling that (besides Billy), the women lead the majority of conversations in this family and that the guys just fill in the gaps or dive in whenever they can. ‘You know what it’s like, you see something every day and it’s difficult not to take it for granted.’
    ‘Forget its beauty,’ agrees Julie with a sigh.
    ‘That’s sad,’ I say.
    ‘I still feel the magic, though,’ Julie adds quickly, as though