Renegade Path

His shoulders dropped and he took a deep breath before turning around. “Sorry, butterfly.” He reached out and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “Bad night. Bad morning. There’s a new weekend counselor who has made it his mission to make our lives miserable.”

“Oh no.” Damn. Things had been going so well for him. This was the last thing he needed. “Just the weekends, though, right?”

“So far.”

“You all right, son?” Ulfric’s big voice boomed over the parking lot. He came up next to Roman and clapped him on the back.

“I’m sorry about getting here late, sir. The house—”

“I got your message. No worries.” He nodded toward the lawn. “Grass ain’t goin’ anywhere.”

“Thanks, I appreciate it.”

“I feel for you, kid. Living under someone’s thumb ain’t right. Been avoiding it my whole life.”

Ulfric frequently broke into long rambles about the “outlaw life” and “riding the wind.” His were more colorful versions of the stories Uncle Dex gave when anyone asked him why he didn’t work a regular nine-to-five.

When I’d asked Roman why Ulfric ran a business if he hated rules so much, he’d explained that most likely Ulfric used the drive-in theater and ice cream shop to launder money since they were cash-based businesses. All those “jobs” Uncle Dex had Roman help him with began to take a different shape in my mind after that conversation.

The throaty engine of a car pulling into the gravel parking lot signaled that I had a customer. I waved to Roman and Ulfric before taking off.

A few hours and what felt like a thousand sticky ice cream cones later, Roman snuck up behind me. His strong arms wrapped around my middle and anchored me to his chest. He buried his face against my neck. “Sorry I was a prick earlier,” he murmured against my ear.

“It’s okay.”

He turned me around. “No it’s not. You’re the only good thing in my life.”

“I’m always here for you, Roman. I wish I could do…something.”

“Just knowing you love me gets me through, Juliet.”

Tears pricked my eyelids. For someone so hard on the outside, he said the sweetest things.

“Do you mind leaving a few minutes early tonight?” he asked. “This clown busted me for being five minutes late last night. I don’t wanna put up with his bullshit again.”

“Of course.” Damn, if we hadn’t stopped to fool around last night, he would’ve been home on time.

Without meaning to, I’d gotten him into trouble.

He didn’t send me the usual home safe text that night and I lay awake worrying until morning.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Roman

The first week of school was finally here and the home was utter chaos.

I marveled at the fact that I’d be starting the new school year at the same school that I’d ended the last one with. It had to be a first for me. Maybe I’d make it all the way through to graduation.

Maybe wasn’t an option. There was no way I’d leave Juliet.

Pip couldn’t contain his excitement. He couldn’t wait to finally start high school. He’d found a navy blue polo and a pair of tan pants that looked like a Catholic school uniform. I shook my head and handed him his new backpack.

Jackass Jason—as all the kids in the house now called him—had picked up more shifts in the house. He drove us to school on the first day.

Pip was unusually quiet on the way to school. Maybe the reality of attending a school where more assholes like Sam Squire probably roamed the halls was finally sinking in.

I leaned over and spoke against his ear. Low enough that only he would hear what I had to say. “I got your back, kid. You’re gonna be fine.”

Finally, he smiled and seemed to relax.

Juliet waited for me at our usual table in the back of the cafeteria. I kissed her senseless before setting her down and introducing her to Pip.

He blinked up at her, completely in awe.

“I’m so happy to finally meet you, Phillip,” she gushed. She reached out, pulling him into a sisterly hug which Pip surprisingly accepted.

“All right, that’s enough of that,” I said, breaking them up.

She snorted at me and returned to her seat. I took the chair next to her. Under the cover of the table, I put my hand on her leg, running it beneath the loose dress she was wearing until I gripped her thigh. Her body automatically responded to my touch. Her legs inched apart and I dared to brush my knuckles against her core.

Her entire body quivered and she took in a shuddering breath. “Roman,” she warned in a low voice. “Don’t.”

“What are you doing?” Pip asked, ducking under the table.

“Get out of there.” I reached over and tapped him on the back.

Juliet covered her mouth and laughed.

“I need you. Soon,” I whispered in her ear.

Her lashes fluttered.

The magnetic pull to her never lessened. I’d spent the entire summer mapping the contours of her body, knowing her in the most intimate ways possible. Still, my desire for her never went away. It was always there, crackling under my skin when she was near.