Star-Crossed (33 page)

* * * *

The need to hide from life must have put Romeo out almost instantly, but something woke him up. Now he had that heavy feeling of sleeping just long enough to feel worse than he had before he closed his eyes. He blinked into the darkness, his body still vibrating with exhaustion when someone curled up next to him in the bed.

Tino, smelling like soap, with his hair still wet from a shower, had crawled into Romeo’s bed like he had when he was little. The tears Romeo had fought earlier sprang up as if he’d never had the reprieve of sleep. He wrapped his arms around his baby brother, holding him tight.

“I’m proud of you too,” he whispered.

“Yeah?” Tino asked, clearly choked with emotion, making it obvious he saw what Nova was readily ignoring.

“Oh yeah,” Romeo said quickly. “But I want you to promise me you’ll get out.

Win every fight. Make something you can be proud of.”

“Why the fuck do you think I’m here? It’s not for the nightlife.” Romeo gave a broken laugh. “I love you.”

“Love you too.” Tino sighed. “Are you gonna wait till morning to leave?”

“Probably not.”

“I wanna go with you.” Tino’s voice quivered. “But what would it do to Nova if we both left?”

“Win a UFC championship belt instead.” Romeo squeezed him tighter. “Do what I never got a chance to do, okay?”

268

“Okay.” Tino huffed, his body tight as he obviously fought with the tears. “You know Jules came to the hospital while you were in X-ray. Nova told her to fuck off, but I think she held her own against him. He doesn’t know country girls are hard-core.” Romeo couldn’t help but laugh despite the heartache. “That’s very true.”

“Maybe she’ll go with you. That way you won’t be alone.”

“She’s got a life here, Valentino. A real life.”

“I’m just saying. You should at least say good-bye. Maybe she’ll—” Romeo cut him off by leaning his forehead against Tino’s shoulder. He knew Tino could feel his tears, but what did he care? It felt like his heart was being ripped out of his chest. This was a thousand times harder than going to prison. That time he knew he’d come back…this time he wasn’t so sure.

“I’m gonna miss you,” Tino whispered in a broken, childlike voice, making it obvious he was crying harder than Romeo. “I hate this. This whole thing fucking blows.

Unfair.”

One of the things Romeo’d always loved about Tino was his ability to speak a truth no one else had the ability to give voice to, and this time was no different.

“It is unfair,” Romeo agreed. “We gotta ask God to deal us a new hand.”

“You think he listens to guys like us?”

Romeo sighed. “I sure hope so.”

* * * *

Jules had a headache that wouldn’t quit. It throbbed at her temples, and for some unexplained reason she couldn’t locate anything to help. She or Wyatt was always nursing some minor sporting injury, and they usually had a surplus of ibuprofen, especially since that had been Clay’s pain reliever of choice when he’d lived with them.

It appeared the drug fairy had visited and eaten every last one of them, because she couldn’t find a single bottle. Frustrated and stressed, she took a long shower instead, willing the hot water to wash away the horrors of the day.

269

She was still in the dark over Romeo’s injuries, but Clay had assured her they were more than survivable. Serious enough to take him out of the fight with Lipton, but nothing a seasoned MMA fighter couldn’t recover from. Somehow that didn’t make her feel better.

Clean and still bursting with nervous energy, Jules brushed her wet hair and then donned a thin, white nightgown. Not seeing Romeo was driving her crazy. She was kicking herself for overreacting and pushing him away before she could get real answers.

Damned hormones.

What if he was in trouble? What if he needed help? Had she mentioned to Romeo that one of her greatest strengths in life was her ability to stay collected in a crisis? If he needed someone who thought fast on their feet, Jules was his girl, but maybe he didn’t know that. Maybe he didn’t care.

Jules thought back on all the terrible things she’d said to him and bit her lip to fight a fresh surge of tears. All he’d wanted was to marry her, and what had she done to repay something that was actually very sweet and romantic if not rash to the point of insanity? She’d called him a criminal.

It was possible Jules overestimated her ability to keep cool in the face of adversity—she was coming apart at the seams.

Refusing to cry one more time today, Jules decided to use all her nervous energy for good. After doing the dishes and cleaning her own room, she ended up in her father’s old room. Most of the room was exactly as it’d been the day he’d died, all the way down to the sheets on the bed and the glass on the nightstand.

She dusted and kept it clean, but she knew after so many years it was something that needed to be changed. Out with the old; her daddy wouldn’t have wanted this. He wouldn’t have wanted Jules and Wyatt to grow old with only each other for company either.

270

She picked up the picture of her mother on his nightstand, studying the young, beautiful blonde in her prime. This woman was a stranger, but seeing her never failed to make Jules hurt. Not for herself—she’d done just fine—but for her father who had never stopped loving and missing her.

Like Wyatt, who’d never faltered in his loyalty to Tabitha, her father had lived most of his life devoid of a partner because she’d been snatched from him too early.

How unfair was that?

Jules looked up at the sound of wheels against the gravel in the driveway and placed the picture back on the nightstand, being careful to face it toward the bed the way she’d found it. She went to the curtains covering the sliding glass door to the balcony. The headlights helped to illuminate Romeo’s black Ferrari, and she opened the door and rushed out.

Jules leaned against the edge of the railing just as Romeo got out. He wore a simple T-shirt and jeans, but to Jules he looked amazing, especially considering the heart-stopping worry she’d been battling all day.

“Romeo!” she called out to him.

He paused and looked up, seeming stunned to see her there. He walked around the car, coming to stand under the balcony. It was a full moon, and the light of it illuminated his bemused smile as he said, “Hey, Juliet.”

“I’m coming down.”

Jules rushed back into her father’s room, leaving the glass door wide open, the curtains blowing in the breeze as she brushed past them. She sprinted down the long hallway and rushed down the stairs before she unlocked the front door.

Romeo was standing on the other side, and Jules leaped at him. He gasped but caught her. She tangled her fingers in his hair and wrapped her legs around his waist.

She kissed him before they could discuss all the hurt, drowning out two horrible days of worry and heartache. It was the best way she knew how to soothe the painful wounds and remind herself why she’d fallen so hard for him to begin with.

271

He kissed her back, pushing his tongue past her parted lips as his big arms tightened around her. Then he gave a grunt of pain and pulled away. A deep crease of discomfort was etched into his forehead, but still he smiled. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too.” Jules stroked his hair and studied the bruising from Wyatt.

She ran her fingers over the white tape used to close a cut over his eye, and then moved up to the pain lines still making his handsome face seem tense. “I’m sorry…for everything.”

“I’m sorry too.” Romeo brushed strands of long, wet hair off Jules’s neck as he gave another pained wince. “You’re worth suffering through a concussion and two bruised ribs for. I’d do it all over again.”

“Bruised ribs?”

Jules gaped before she untangled herself from him and jumped down, realizing that was Romeo’s not so subtle hint to get off him. Jules couldn’t stop looking at him.

She was desperate to ensure he was okay. His left eye was swollen; his jaw was badly bruised. She’d seen worse, but there was a deeper hurt shining in his eyes. It pulsed off him so strongly it was tangible.

Rather than press him, she grabbed his hand and pulled him past the front door.

“Come in.”

“Where’s your brother?”

“He’ll be off work at two.” Jules looked to the clock on the mantel, seeing it was already past one. She turned back to Romeo with wide eyes when she realized how late it was. “What’s wrong?”

“Why do you ask?”

“You just showed up at my house at one in the morning.” Jules gave him a look of disbelief. “Something’s wrong. You didn’t even know Wyatt was gone. You thought he was here, didn’t ya?”

272

“I was hoping he wasn’t,” Romeo said with a bitter laugh and then gripped his ribs.

“Please don’t play with me, Romeo. Tell me what’s going on. I’m a big girl; I can handle just ’bout anything.”

He tilted his head, his emerald gaze running over Jules for several heart-stopping seconds before he sighed. “I came to say good-bye.”

“You can’t leave,” Jules said frantically, realizing she could handle anything but that. “Wyatt was just having a moment. I’ll personally make sure he apologizes and—”

“It’s not about Wyatt.” Romeo reached out, brushing at her hair once more before he cupped her chin, his thumb running over her bottom lip, still tingling from his kiss.

“I need to go, but I wanted to see you one more time before I did.”

“This is over the fight with Lipton. I know you got to forfeit, and I know it wasn’t Clay’s fight Tino was talking ’bout throwing.” Jules heart clenched in fear. “You’re in trouble.”

Romeo looked away. “I just gotta get lost for a while.”

“A while?” Jules repeated in horror. “How long?”

Romeo shrugged. “I dunno.”

“Forever?” Jules whispered the word, terrified of the answer.

The silence stretched out between them before Romeo’s shoulders slumped, and he admitted in a choked voice, “Maybe.”

Jules thought of the picture of a beautiful blonde woman on her father’s nightstand. He’d talked to that picture every night before he’d gone to sleep, desperately reaching out to his lost mate. She thought of Wyatt, who toted around a worn book that he’d reread a million times in a vain hope to reconnect with what he’d lost. Then she thought about herself and the future she’d expected before Romeo showed up.

“I’m coming with you.”

273

“Juliet, no.” Romeo’s raw fierceness nearly pulled Jules up short as he looked down at her with narrowed eyes, his big frame practically vibrating. “I’m not risking you.”

“Listen to me,” Jules said evenly, her brain kicking into lawyer gear as a defense mechanism. “You’ve got a concussion. You shouldn’t be driving.”

“I think it’s the lesser of two evils,” Romeo said with grim confidence. “I’ll be fine.”

“I could drive you where you need to go,” Jules went on. “There’s nothing stopping you from dropping me at the nearest airport once you get to feeling better.

The responsible thing to do is to take me until you’re healed. You look like a strong wind might knock you over, and I’ve had a concussion before. You can’t tell me your thinking ain’t fogged to hell and back.”

Romeo shook his head in denial. “Juliet—”

“I’m coming,” Jules announced, this time more firmly because it occurred to her they didn’t have time to argue about it.

“No.”

Jules stepped closer to him and tilted her head back, making her eyes soft on purpose. “It’ll give us more time.”

Romeo took a shuddering breath, his gaze running over her features before it dropped to the dip in her nightgown. “I want that, but not at the risk off you getting hurt. Nothing’s worth that.”

“You can’t make me fall in love with you and then leave forever,” Jules whispered, suddenly fighting tears when she realized she was at risk of ending up like the rest of the Conners. “That ain’t fair.”

“It’s not.” Romeo sighed. “But—”

274

“All I’m asking for is a few days.” She ran a hand over Romeo’s chest, feeling his heartbeat strong and steady through the thin material of his shirt. “Please don’t make me let go yet, Romeo. I’m not ready.”

Romeo’s chest rose and fell, the war within him noticeable before he wrapped one arm around her back, pulling her closer. He leaned down, his breath warm against her ear as he gave a huff of defeat. “I’m not ready either. Come with me.” Jules took a shuddering breath and lifted her head, studying his face, seeing tears shining in his beautiful eyes. She wrapped her arms around his neck, being careful of his ribs this time as she pressed her lips to his in a chaste kiss.

“Just gimme a few moments to gather everything,” she said after a second. “It won’t take long.”

Jules turned and rushed up the stairs, already making a mental list of all the things she needed. She went for the essentials and filled her carry-on efficiently. Then she changed her clothes and headed for the gun safe. She had a handgun in her nightstand, but she wanted her new Colt Commander. Once she had it open, she eyed the rest of their extensive collection. She considered grabbing the mini fourteen assault rifle she’d given Wyatt, but she didn’t have the heart. She grabbed an older model shotgun, and one of Wyatt’s favorite handguns, knowing it’d fit Romeo’s big grip.

Then she packed them carefully, feeling Romeo’s eyes on her when he showed up at the doorway to her bedroom. “How many guns do you own?” Jules lifted her head, unable to help the guilty smirk. “A few.”

“And you know how to use them?”

“Would I carry them if I didn’t?” Jules asked as if it were obvious. “Do
you
know how to use a gun?”

“I go to the range with Tino and Nova all the time.”

“Good deal.” Jules nodded in appreciation, glad they weren’t going to have to go through gun safety 101. “One less thing on my to-do list.

275

“You’re unique,” Romeo said with a soft, broken laugh. “You really are.”

“You ain’t exactly ordinary,” Jules assured him as she tossed her bag over her shoulder. “Are you ready?”

“Yeah,” Romeo said as he grabbed the gun bag. “We’re not going to have much room in my car. I packed twice as much as you.”

“That ain’t a problem,” Jules said dismissively as she brushed past him and walked down the hallway. “We’re leaving the Ferrari. My car’s got plenty of trunk space.”

“You expect me to leave behind my brothers
and
my car?”

“What’d you think is less conspicuous?” Jules asked. “You’re six-six, two-hundred-seventy pounds, and a famous UFC fighter. You don’t exactly blend, and a Ferrari sure ain’t gonna help.”

“And you think I’m gonna leave my car in your driveway?” Romeo asked incredulously. “At your brother’s mercy?”

Jules turned and smirked at him on the stairs. “I think it’ll be okay.”

“He’s gonna come home and find you gone. He’s gonna know it’s my fault. My Ferrari is in no way okay.”

“I don’t think he’s capable of criminal property damage.” Romeo gave her a look that said he thought Wyatt was more than capable of criminal property damage. “We’ll drive it back to Tino. He was gonna have to bum a ride off Chuito tomorrow to the car dealership and buy something. This’ll save him time and cash.”

“Does he know ’bout your dash for freedom?”

“He helped me pack.”

“That works. I’ll follow you to the lake house; then we’ll leave together in my car.

Course you still shouldn’t be driving, but I guess it can’t be helped.” 276

Jules walked over to the desk in the corner of the living room. She grabbed a pen and worked on writing Wyatt a note. She put thought into it, making sure he knew she was leaving of her own free will. He’d be one to put out an APB on them in a heartbeat if he suspected otherwise. She signed the note
Ju Ju Bean
just so he’d know she was being sincere, because no one except Clay was aware they still used the nicknames that’d carried over from toddlerhood. She wouldn’t sign it like that if she was being kidnapped, and he knew that.