Andie usually got involved with men who had retirement funds and corporate haircuts. Julia wasn’t sure why her friend was drawn to that type. Was it a yearning for stability? Andie’s parents had a great relationship. Julia and Kat had often discussed how they envied their friend and the kind of household she grew up in—with parents who loved and respected each other. She knew that appearances weren’t everything, but as far as she could tell, Andie’s parents’ marriage was as happy and real as it seemed.

True, Andie’s dad was several years older than her mother, and she did have two much older stepbrothers … Julia blinked. For the first time, it finally clicked. Consciously or unconsciously, Andie was following in her mother’s footsteps and choosing to date men like her father. How had Julia never made that connection before? It wasn’t a bad thing, necessarily, but it did cut Andie off from playing the field a bit more, from seeing what else was out there.

Here, in the safety of the rom-com fantasy bubble, Andie had allowed herself to be open to new possibilities—and in doing so had opened her heart. If Julia needed proof that Notting Hill could provide the experience people who love romantic comedies wished for, her friend’s budding opposites-attract relationship was a prime example.

Mentally sidestepping dissecting her own budding relationship—one that had been nipped in the bud before it could fully blossom—Julia’s thoughts turned to Kat. She wondered how things were going with Zach. His unexpected appearance tonight had been wildly romantic, if a tad cheesy. Besides, Julia had already discovered she had a penchant for romances with extra cheese.

As if her thoughts had conjured her friend, Kat came running up the stone steps of the terrace. Julia took one look at Kat’s tear-streaked face and knew whatever had happened, those were not happy tears. She shifted away from her spot at the ledge and met Kat at the top of the stairs, holding out her arms for a hug.

Upstairs in the Princess Suite, after commandeering a bottle of that chardonnay from the bar, Julia poured them each a glass while Kat shared what happened with Zach after their dramatic exit from the stage.

“I knew he was an actor. That part didn’t bother me. I was perfectly happy to let him shower me in attention for a week.” Kat took a gulp of her wine. “Oh, wow, that’s good.” She sniffed and downed the rest.

“Easy there,” Julia warned. “I had two glasses earlier, and it’s good, but it’s also strong.” She refilled Kat’s glass, asking gently, “So what went wrong?”