"I must speak to my mother, so I will let you two speak. Excuse me," Penelope said, parting ways with Julie.
Penelope hoped that with the loss of Tabitha, both Julie and Odessa would take this time to make amends with each other since their troubles could easily be sorted out.
"You have not allowed me the chance to sit with you after the attack you faced. Do you hate me so much that you would like to see me worry? Regardless of what you think, I care for you. Imagine my pain from having to hear of your state from Ally," said Odessa.
"I needed a moment, but surely my mother or father would have answered your letters. I didn’t purposely avoid you to hurt you. I was settling my feelings from that event, and it made me question my life," Julie said.
"I am happy that you are well, but had you not stormed out of my home, then it wouldn’t have happened. You were safe with me, and I would have liked to finish our talk. Surely you also regret how our talk ended," Odessa said, hopeful they could settle it now.
"I do regret leaving, but not for the reason you think. I regret that I was there, so Rue had to protect me and couldn’t fight with her guards. Almost everything I said that day remains. Just know that I don’t hate you," said Julie.
"I dislike your favouritism to Ally, but I do not hate you. I’ve accepted that you will never admit you think little of my mother-" Follow current novᴇls on 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩~𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢~𝔫𝔢𝔱
"That is not true!" Odessa exclaimed. "Had I thought little of your mother, I wouldn’t have let her marry my son."
"I do believe you accepted her for my father, but I also believe you expected her to cut ties with my grandparents. They have ended their business in the red light district, so I’ll be seeing them more often. I’m not ashamed of them," Julie said proudly.
"Their work is far from what you did, and they are looked down upon, but they are my grandparents. If being with them makes me less of a lady, then so be it. Everyone in town has their little secrets. Must I remind you of Quinn?" Julie asked, having a few others in mind.
"You are not like that man, and you shouldn’t be like everyone else. I pushed Ally forward because she wanted to get married, while you were more interested in being with your friends. Now Penelope has married, Lily has many suitors, and even Rue is being courted."
"Even Rue?" Julie repeated, offended by how Odessa said it. "So what if they are all being courted and I am not? It is not a contest for me. I assure you that I will find a good man this season, but one who will suit me. One who will accept who I am."
Julie still believed it was possible, and she was going to use her ties to Hazel and Tyrion to help her.
"Since you are the elder, I will apologise for my behaviour so the family can move on. However, I do not need your help with finding a husband. I hope that you may one day accept my grandparents because they are not going anywhere," said Julie.
"Perhaps I have been thinking of how being seen with them would affect you, but I do not hate them. You have two sides of family who shouldn’t interact with each other, but we do because we love your mother. I have always avoided the red light district," Odessa explained.
"I never heard of my mother hiding who her family was, and you had plenty of years of knowing my grandparents. I do understand your concerns because I know how it could affect me, but ladies and men around the town already know," said Julie.
There were more times than Julie could count on her fingers that her peers teased her about having relatives who owned a brothel in the red light district. The ladies weren’t going to magically forget now, even if Julie stopped speaking to her grandparents.
"I know. Give me a chance to make up for my mistakes. Life is too short," Odessa said, not wanting this to go on longer.
Julie glanced at where Tabitha now rested. "I agree. I don’t want this to go on for much longer. I think it would be better suited to have a day where you and I just sit together. No disturbances, just you and me."
"I would . I care for you so much," Odessa said, pulling Julie close for a hug.
"Grandmother," Julie whined.
"You’ll survive being seen hugged by your grandmother. Now, go on. I know you want to be with your friend," Odessa said, now in a better mood.
Julie smiled and walked away from Odessa feeling better than before.
Julie’s troubles with Odessa were far from solved, but there was hope for them to understand each other.
"Have you and grandmother made amends? She has been worried about you," Ally said, stopping Julie in her tracks.
"We are on the path to being better with each other. We need another day in a different setting where we can speak about our feelings. I think we would be well then," Julie said, hopeful.
"No," Julie declined the offer. "What I seek has been time alone with her. Allow me to have it, please. I don’t want to fight with you. Just allow me to have my time with her, and I will do better to hide my jealousy when she sits with you. Can we do this?"
Julie was worried that her simple request would upset Ally.
Ally rubbed her arm. "After speaking to Lily, it was pointed out that I have a way of being a little too competitive. Even now, I shouldn’t have thought of myself being present, but there are times when I feel you all leave me out. You are closer to the others than I am."
"You’re more involved in the season. I have more time to visit their homes if they need company. I don’t believe anyone tries to exclude you. If we meet without you, it is not on purpose," Julie assured Ally.
"There is something we can all fix, but I know for certain that we all care for each other. I prefer us getting along rather than being at odds. Why don’t we take a walk and enjoy being in the palace? There is much to see," Julie said, offering her hand to Ally.
Ally smiled and held Julie’s hand. She stood close to Julie and said, "What news do you have?"
"I have plenty," Julie answered.