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The poor woman is trying so hard to do what’s right for me and our PR mission, so my own first priority must be her comfort. I hate that she was upset last night. I clearly underestimated how interested people would be in my personal life, but I’ll make it up to her. Show her that she can trust me.

When I pick her up, she's wearing another outfit assembled from the clothes I sent. This time she's wearing a pleated skirt that drops just past her knees, and blue and purple striped socks that peek out a few inches above her sturdy boots.

"Good morning." Our hug starts out friendly, then I sense a shift. Keeping her close, I cuddle her in my arms. "Still hanging in?"

A shudder runs through her. "I made the mistake of looking online this morning."

"Photos from yesterday?"

"Yeah." She sighs heavily into my chest. “I can't believe that #mysterygirlinblue and #samsnewgirl are actually trending."

I’m secretly thrilled that the world knows Julia is so important to me, but I bet this is unexpected pressure for her. "Have I mentioned lately how grateful I am that you're doing this?"

She laughs as we get into the car. "You're welcome. Plus, Natalie's right – this is helping me see the other side of the whole PR thing."

As we approach downtown, Julia begins looking around carefully every time we stop at a red light.

"Today I won't be leaving your side." Reaching out, I trail my fingertips along her hand, then the inside of her wrist. "Unless you insist. Or, you know…ladies’ room."

Her lovely eyes glow. "I'll be okay,” she grins. “Today I won't be caught by surprise. I hope."

"You know, except for those women at the gallery last night, I have to confess this is a blast for me." I glance over at her. "Honestly, I haven't dated very much. Going through this list and picking places for us to go… I'm having an amazing time with you."

She laughs. "If we could just erase the crowds, this would be even more fun."

"Then that's our mission today. Be seen while avoiding crowds. I bet we can do it."

We have a quick lunch at the café in Brody's Books, where a server with blue and green streaks in her hair insists that we get chocolate mint fudge cookies for dessert as a charm to ward off the rain. People give us some stares, but no one approaches us at the café until we're leaving. A few girls want to get pics with me, and Julia happily grabs their phones to act as photographer.

When we're finished with that, I take Julia's arm and stroll into the bookstore section, heading straight to the magazine rack. "I've already picked up some books for reading at the cabin," I explain. "But I always grab a couple of women's magazines too."

Julia looks at me, amused. "Because you need to know…" She skims the covers. "The seven earliest signs of menopause? How to get your kids to eat vegetables without complaining? How to make your eyes pop with only three products?"

I chuckle, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her to my chest. I love that she’s still funny and light even when she’s a bit on edge from us being in public. "Yes, I do. I need to know what modern women are thinking about."

She leans into me, her cheek pressing against my shoulder. She feels so good right here close against me. Where I can smell her hair, sense her breathing, and know that she's comfortable.

"This is not what women are truly thinking about," she says. "This is what marketers want us to think about."

“Fair. But I'm always trying to learn more about women in general, and these can trigger ideas." My lips nuzzle her ear. "But there is one specific woman…I always want to know what she’s thinking. But I think we can do that over long conversations, yeah? Forget the magazines."

Her breath catches and she looks up at me with an expression I can't quite read.

"Could you please pick three magazines for me?"

"Sure." She selects a variety of titles that cover a wide range of topics. "You don't mind that one of those is aimed at mothers?" she asks as I swipe my card.

"I need to know about women. Moms are women."

I smile at the cashier as she hands me our bag. On the way back to the car, Julia asks, "This is none of my business, but do you see yourself having kids?"

Stopping in the middle of the sidewalk, I lean down to nuzzle her cheek. "Yeah. I do."

"How many?" she whispers.

"Ideally? Two. But I know someone whose second pregnancy was twins, so…"

I toss the bag into the car, then we walk a few blocks to the outdoor sculpture museum. "Why do you ask? Do I not strike you as the kind of guy who wants kids?"