Star-Crossed(105)

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.