All The Wrong Places episode 17

🌼ALL THE WRONG PLACES🌼
🌻EPISODE SEVENTEEN🌻

The worst part of Julianne’s plan to move out of the
Adams Mansion was actually telling Justin and Adrienne
about it. As expected, they offered great resistance and a
series of protests.

“Unnecessary!” Justin said.
“Ian, think this through,” Adrienne said. “We have a
happy setup here that works. Why do you want to change
it?”
“It’s time I do this on my own,” Julianne reasoned. “I
will always be thankful to you guys. Without you, we
would’ve been nothing. And it’s time, I stand on my own
feet.”
“You are standing on your own feet now,” Justin
argued. “But who said you need to remove your safety net?
You can be as independent here as you want. But don’t
remove us from the equation. Give us a chance to be there
for you.”
“You will always be. I will only be a few minutes away.”
“Thirty-five minutes, to be exact!” Adrienne said,
frowning while looking at her phone. Obviously, she googled
the distance between the Adams Mansion and Hyde Park.
“And how safe are you going to be there?” Justin
asked, raising a brow.
“Quite safe,” Julianne asked. “I’m no longer who I used
to be, Justin. And my father refused to recognize my son. We
hold no significant value to be kidnapped. I don’t have any
such valuable possession that would make people want to
rob us. I don’t even have expensive jewelry or trinkets.

Don’t worry too much about me being in the real world. Let
me shine out there on my own.”
Justin sighed, giving her a hærd look. “This is about
your father’s visit here, isn’t it?”
Julianne shook her head. “Justin, please. Let me be. I
should have done this a long time ago.”
“This is not just about you, Ian. This is about Jared
too.”
“I know,” she said. “And who said it’s bad out there?
We’ve lived luxuriously all our lives, Justin. We were lucky.
But who said that living like a normal person was bad? I’d
like my son to be street smart too… to know the outside
world and how to survive in it.”
“He will know that too. Here. We will teach him how.”
“Justin, please,” she pleaded. “Let me do this. If… if it
gets too much for me to handle then… I’ll come back here.
But please let me try.”
Julianne looked at Adrienne with pleading eyes. She
was asking Adrienne to take her side.
Adrienne sighed and then she reached out for her
husband’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.
“Justin, she has a point,” Adrienne said gently. “I
mean, if Ian feels she should give it a try, then let’s give her
that. I grew up in the ordinary world. It’s really not bad. Who
knows? Jared will grow up to be a better man because of the
experiences this will teach him.”
“Jared is far from being spoiled,” Justin argued. “He’s
the same as my sons. He’ll grow up just fine right here.”
Adrienne reached forward and wrapped her arms
around Justin’s wa-ist. “But it’s not our decision to make,
remember? Ian knows what’s best for her son. Like we are
the ones who know what’s best for our children, right?”
“I’m not a child anymore, Justin,” Julianne said.

“Please trust me on this. Let me give this a try. I promise, I
will ask you for help the very first minute things get out of
my control.”
Justin sighed in defeat. He wound his arms around
Adrienne and k-ssed the top of her head. Then he looked at Julianne. There was still uncertainty in his eyes. But he said,
“The very first minute, okay?”
Julianne smiled at Justin and Adrienne. Tears welled up
in her eyes. Then she walked up to them and gave both of
them a hug.
“Thank you, guys. You’ve done so much for me and
Jared. I will forever be indebted to you,” she said.
When they pulled away from each other, Julianne saw
that Adrienne was crying too. Then she said, “We love you.

You know that. You can always come back here. This house
will never be the same without you.”
“We will always come back,” Julianne promised. “We’ll
sleepover once in a while. And you’re also welcome to visit
our place. Let me work on it first.”
“I’m sure you’ll work your magic on it,” Justin finally
said. “I know you like designing stuff.”
“Yeah. If my father allowed me to follow my own
dreams, I would have been designing home furnishings by
now.”
“I can’t say I’m not happy about it. You’re one of my
best employees,” Justin said, ruffling Julianne’s head like she
was still a little girl.

“Well, someday, when I’ve saved enough for Jared’s
future,” Julianne said thoughtfully. “I would still like to try to
pursue that dream.”
“Let me arrange for moving services at least,” Justin
said. “And I suggest, we bring Jared over only after you’ve
fixed everything in your new house. That will make the
transition much easier for him.”
Julianne nodded. “Thank you, guys.”
Julianne was relieved that finally she convinced Justin
and Adrienne. She would tell Gian soon. He might protest,
but he would be much easier to sway. It would not make a
difference to him anyway since they did not live together.
He can drop by and visit them anytime.
By four in the afternoon, Julianne and Jared were
waiting up the steps for River to pick them up. Jared was
ecstatic when Julianne told her that her friend, River
Jefferson, was offering to teach him how to ice skate.
“Is he here yet?” Jared asked impatiently.
“Not yet, sweetie. He said four. It’s only three forty-
five.”
“I can’t wait to play hockey!”
“You need to learn how to skate first. Hockey will be
for later, okay?”
“Okay, Mommy.”
They heard the sound of an engine revving from the
gates.
“Maybe that’s him!”
The gates opened and a familiar green Ferrari drove
towards the driveway. Julianne’s heart pounded in her chest.
This always happened around Jin Starck and she doesn’t
know how to stop it.
Keep cool. Keep cool.

Yesterday, they hadn’t parted ways nicely. She had
told him to stop buying stuff for Jared.
He has a right to do that! He can give Jared the moon
if he wants to!
But Jin Starck did not know that Jared is his son yet. As
far as he knew, they weren’t blood-related. He shouldn’t be
giving Jared expensive stuff and spoiling him with things he
didn’t really need.
Jin stepped out of his car, wearing jeans, white shirt
and a leather jacket.
“Uncle Jin!” Jared called.
Jin went up to him and carried him in his arms. Jared
gave him a big hug.
“I’m going ice skating!” Jared said excitedly.
“Really?”
“Yes!” Jared said. “Mommy’s friend is going to teach
me!”
“Mommy’s friend?” Jin echoed.
Julianne looked ahead towards the gates, refusing to
look Jin in the eyes.
Jin put Jared down.

“Who is this friend?” Jin asked. Julianne knew the
question was meant for her.
He has no right to know anything about my life.
“His name is Mister River Jefferson,” Jared replied.
“We’re waiting for him. He’s coming at four. What time is it,
Uncle Jin?”
Julianne could feel the weight of Jin’s stare on her. She
hoped that he couldn’t see her pulse hammering from the
base of her neck.
What’s the matter? We have no relationsh¡p. We have
no commitment to each other. We enjoyed each other’s
company the other night and we agreed it was a one-night
thing.
But why do I feel like I’m cheating?
“Uncle Jin, what time is it?” Jared repeated his
question.

“It’s five minutes to four, sweetheart,” Jin replied. “If
you wanted to learn how to skate, you should have told me.
I could have taken you.”
“Aww. I didn’t know. Will you take me next time?”
“Anytime, sweetheart,” Jin replied. “Just give me a
call. I will come immediately.”
“Oh no, I can’t do that,” Jared said.
“Why?”
Jared shrugged. “I don’t know your number.”
Jin chuckled. “I’ll tell you later.”
“I can only use Mommy’s phone to call you. You
should tell Mommy your number.”
Oh God, this is awkward!
Thankfully, a white Porsche SUV came through the
gates, getting both Jared’s and Jin’s attention.

“Mommy, is that your friend now?”
“Ummm-hmmm,” she said, still refusing to look Jin’s
way, afraid that she couldn’t bare the weight of his stare,
and the questions he held in his eyes.
River parked behind Jin’s car and then he walked up to
them. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a white knitted
sweater.
“Hello Ian,” River greeted.
“Hey,”
River bent down to look into Jared’s eyes. “You must
be Jared,”
“Hello Mister River Jefferson,” Jared greeted him. He
extended his hand towards River. “I’m Jared Adrien
Sanders.”
River chuckled and shook Jared’s tiny hand. “Nice to
meet you, Mister Sanders.”
Then River turned to Jin. “Hi, we haven’t met yet. I’m
River Jefferson.” River extended his hand to Jin.
Jin had a grave look on his face while he watched
Jared and River shake each other’s hands. Julianne was
afraid he would snap any minute and she couldn’t
understand why he found the scene before him so offensive.

Jin gave River a hærd, measuring look before he shook
his hand. “Jin Starck.”
River nodded. “You must be Justin’s brother-in-law. It’s
a pleasure to finally meet you. Adrienne talks about you all
the time.”
“And Julianne never mentioned you at all,” Jin said
meaningfully, looking over at Julianne.
But Julianne refused to take the bait. Jin didn’t need to
know about her affairs.
“Shall we go?” Julianne asked River.
“Sure,” River said. “Nice meeting you, Mister Starck.
We’ll go ahead.”
“Where are you going?” Jin asked icily.
“Warren Park,” River replied.
“Make sure you take care of Jared. Return him to me
scathe-free,” Jin said to River. His voice was firm. And there
was a hint of threat in it.
Julianne was surprised with what Jin said, and how
authoritative he sounded. She glared at him but Jin only
raised a challenging brow at her.
Who does he think he is?
River cleared his throat, fortunately, cutting through
the tension. Julianne wanted to murder Jin Starck with her
looks alone.

“No worries. Both Julianne and Jared are safe with
me,” River said. “If you want my background checked, you
should just ask Justin.” There was a trace of amusement in
River’s voice, like he enjoys taunting Jin Starck.
“I don’t need Justin’s obviously biased opinion of you,
Mister Jefferson. I have assassins on my beck and call. I can
dig the skeletons you keep in your closet within fifteen
minutes.” It was obvious that Jin would not back down.
“Oh, please. Have your assassins clean up my closet
while they’re at it,” River quipped. “Some of those scandals
just won’t go away on their own.”
“I would be glad to do that,” Jin said coolly. Then he
gave River a grave smile and added, “But how else could I
blackmail you into doing things for me? Like stay away from
things I consider to be—mine!” He raised a brow at him.

River opened his mouth to say something but Julianne
cut him off. “Don’t!” she said pointing a finger at him. Then
he turned to Jin. “You’re welcome to kill each other with your
egoistic remarks—when my son is not around.” She turned
to River and said in a firm voice, “We’re leaving.”
River simply nodded. He gave Jin a nod before he
turned away and guided Julianne and Jared towards his car.
River opened the car door for Jared. Julianne made
sure he was properly buckled in before she went into the
front seat. Jared put on his headphones and listened to the
music from his MP3 player. As they backed down, she saw that Jin was still standing on the front steps of the Adams
Mansion, watching them like a hawk.
River was looking at Jin too as he backed down and
turned his car towards the gates.
“In about fifteen minutes all of my deepest, darkest
secrets will be exposed to Jin Starck,” he mused.
“Do you have deep, dark secrets?” Julianne asked.

“Everybody has one,” he replied in a teasing voice.
“Did I make a mistake in getting in this car with my
son?”
“You’ll know when you hear the sirens on Warren Park.
I’m sure Jin Starck will not hesitate to call the police the
minute he finds something fishy in my file.”
“You really believe he will look you up?”
“I have no doubt about it,” River replied. “Speaking of
which, you didn’t tell me that he’s still not over you.”
“What do you mean he’s still not over me?”
River raised a brow at her. “Come on. You have to
know. The guy is still pretty much hung on you.”
Julianne looked out the window to hide her blushing
cheeks. “I… don’t know. I don’t care.”
“Well, you should. Moreover, he considers you to be
his,” River said. He looked at Jared in the rearview mirror.
“Are you sure he has no idea?”
Julianne shook her head. “He didn’t even ask me
about him. He assumed that my ex-fiancé left me and Jared
because he found out I was cheating on him. He thought I
went on many adventures before my last stop in Paris. He
was thinking that I get kicks from attracting men, making
them fall on my feet. Maybe he even thinks that I have no
idea who my son’s father is.”
“Why would he assume that?”
Julianne shrugged. “He’s trying to make sense of his
foolishness for falling for me. If I had to guess, I think his
ego was hurt more than his heart.”
“And you did not set the record straight?”
Julianne shook her head.
River’s eyes w¡dened. He looked appalled.
“And why the f-ck not?!”
“Did you say the ‘F’ word, Mister Jefferson?” Jared
suddenly asked behind them.
“Umm… yeah. I did.”
“Why?”
“Ummm… because I thought you were using your
headphones and couldn’t hear me?” River replied
innocently.
“You were loud, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to listen.
Mommy told me never to listen to adult conversations,”
Jared said.

“Okay, tell you what. I owe you an ice cream. Each
time you hear me swear, I owe you a scoop. Deal?”
Jared clapped his hands. “Deal.”
Julianne giggled. “Okay. Now, put your headphones
back on, sweetie.”
“K, Mommy. I love you,”
“Love you too,”
River stared at her for a moment and only spoke when
he was sure that Jared had his headphones back on.
“Okay, why the hell did you not correct Jin Starck with
his wrong notions of you?”
Julianne breathed. “What difference would it make?
It’s not like I want him to change his mind about me so we
could get back together. We have no future together. So why
should I bother explaining myself?”
“People could talk down on you, think less of you.

You’re okay with that?”
“People will think whatever they want to think about
you. Only the thoughts of those who matter to you should
count. I don’t want to waste my energy convincing people to
change their opinions of me.”
“Sweetheart, with all due respect, Jin Starck is not like
other people,” River said. “He’s… well, you know. And it’s important that he sees you for who you really are! And you
are not a harlot like what you’ve made him believe.”
“Why does he need to know that?”
“So, he won’t use that false information against you
when… you know… that time comes,” River replied,
carefully choosing his words.
“Adrienne would never let him do that,” Julianne said.

“I’m sure there would be people who would back me up
when he goes down that road.”
“But still… you’re okay with anyone belittling you?”
She shrugged. “My own parents thought nothing of
me. Why would other people’s opinion matter more?”
River sighed. “Well, now, I know where this is coming
from. Your father.”
Julianne shrugged. “Come on, let’s not talk about Jin
Starck or my father. I plan to enjoy this day. Leave my
troubles behind.”
“Sure. But the day is long. I’ll get you to talk about
them eventually,” River grinned at her.
As she looked out the window, she had no doubt about
what he said. River Jefferson was either a shrink or a
psychic. He would psychoan-lyze her before the day is over.