Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
I tapped my pencil against my notebook, jiggling my foot even though my superstitious mom had told me a million times that it was bad luck.
Could this class period go any slower?
After five more torturous minutes, the bell finally, blissfully rang, and I jumped up so fast I banged my knee against the underside of my desk. Wincing a little, I shoved my books into my bag and joined the crush of students battling their way out the narrow doorway.
The minute they saw me, though, they parted like the Red Sea, their eyes wide as I passed by them. Their faces were a combination of awe, envy, and nervousness.
Even in my haste, I couldn’t help but suppress a laugh. They were
just so predictable. Ever since they found out I was dating the Roman Fiori, they either treated me like a goddess or like I was the wife of a mafia kingpin or something.
When I was “dating” Parker, everyone couldn’t wait to get a piece of me. They hounded me at every turn, begging me to go shopping, to attend their parties. and I even had a few people ask me for photographs and autographs. Or both.
Now, though, everyone kept a respectable distance, satisfying themselves with just staring at me. It was like they were afraid of getting too close to me in case I decided to smite them with the almighty powers I’ve gained as Roman’s girlfriend. They couldn’t even look me in the eyes, the way servants couldn’t look royalty in the eyes in medieval Europe or whatever.
I can’t say I’m not enjoying the space, though. It’s not like I wanted to talk to them.
When I reached my locker, I shoved my books into the narrow space, then ran down the hall and into the parking lot. I didn’t even break stride as I yanked open the front door of Carlo’s giant Range Rover and slid onto Roman’s lap.
Technically, that was illegal, but I couldn’t wait to get off school grounds.
“Jeez, it’s about time, My-My. I’m starving here,” Zack complained from the backseat, where he, Adriana, Parker, and Venice were squished together.
“Sorry, not everyone can come and go from their classrooms as they please,” I said, rolling my eyes. I looked at Venice. “How did you get here so quickly?”
“My class is right near the exit,” she explained, twirling a strand of red hair around her fingers.
“Oh yeah. I forgot.”
I eyed her curiously. She seemed a bit more subdued than usual, almost nervous, but I had no idea why.
“Buckle up, you two. I don’t want any accidents,” Carlo said, raising his eyebrows at me and Roman.
I smirked, pulling the seatbelt across my front so it reined both of us in. “Yes, Dad.”
He grimaced. “Please don’t call me that.”
“I’ll stop calling you that once you stop acting like that.”
Carlo gave Roman a pointed look right before he pulled out of the parking lot. “You need to control your girlfriend.”
Roman just laughed, wrapping his strong arms around my waist. I smiled, snuggling closer to him and turning my head to give him a kiss.
We kept it a close-mouthed one, not wanting to gross anyone out, but it was all I could do not to grab him and jump him right now. I’m not exactly what you call bold when it comes to stuff like this, but I can’t help it. I always felt like I would die if I couldn’t touch or kiss him.
God, I’m turning into a pervert.
As Carlo turned up the volume on the radio and everyone began singing along to “Bottoms Up,” I stared out the window, trying to ignore the delicious shiver that snaked through me as Roman caressed the bare skin below the hem of my skirt.
I loved it when he did that, not only because of my physical response, but because it kept my mind off that photo I found in his house. A photo that was currently in my bag. I could practically feel it burning into my thigh.
I studied it every opportunity I had, trying to figure out what connection Lexi had with Rico and his gang. Former gang. Whatever. Had she been part of the gang? She didn’t seem like the type, but then, people were rarely what they seem.
I was willing to bet whatever connection she had with Rico had at least something to do with who hired her to seduce my dad. I’d attempted to contact her again to get some more answers, but I realized I didn’t even know her full name. I called my dad’s company, even though she wasn’t interning there anymore, but they said that information was confidential. I knew my dad probably knew, but I hadn’t worked up the courage to ask him yet. I mean, the last thing I needed to do was remind him of his mistress.
“What’s going on in that confusing head of yours?” Roman whispered teasingly in my ear, rapping the side of my head lightly with his fingers while continuing to caress my lower thigh with his other hand.
And just like that, it was ten times easier to push all other thoughts to the back burner of my mind.
“Just thinking about how I can’t wait for winter break,” I mumbled, placing my hand on top of his and intertwining his fingers. I could feel the rise and fall of his chest on my back, which was more soothing than any day at a spa could be.
“Winter break’s going to be so much fun!”
I let out a startled squeal as Zack poked his head between the driver and passenger seats, his eyes sparkling with excitement and his face mere inches from mine.
“God, Zack, give a girl some warning next time!” My heart was still thudding against my chest at the unexpected shout.
Adriana grabbed the back of Zack’s shirt and pulled him back to his seat. “Ignore him. All his good breeding goes out the window when he’s hungry.” She gave me an amused look. “Although we can hear everything you two are saying.”
I blushed while Roman chuckled and Parker, Venice, and Zack smirked knowingly. Even Carlo’s mouth curled up into a small smile.
“Whatever. You should be focused on your own conversations and not ours,” I declared, still blushing.
“We can’t help it honeybee, you two just too cute,” Parker drawled. “I never thought I’d ever see Roman whipped.”
“I’m not whipped,” Roman snapped, twisting his head around to glare at Parker. “Besides, you shouldn’t be talking.”
Parker shrugged, a wicked glint in his eyes. “At least I’m getting some,” he sang quietly.
I gasped, Venice choked, Roman turned bright red, and Zack clapped his hands over his ears, looking grossed out. I mean, Parker is dating his sister.
The only two people who didn’t react were Carlo, who’d just pulled into Il Serrano’s parking lot, and Adriana, who was rummaging in her purse for something. I’m not even sure she heard what Parker said.
“We’re here!” I announced in an overly loud tone. The car had barely stopped moving before I unsnapped my seatbelt, flung open the door, and tumbled out, avoiding Roman’s gaze.
Ok, so we hadn’t done it yet, but we’ve only been dating for a little over three weeks. I will say, however, that our makeout sessions have gotten steamier and steamier over time. Still, it’s not like I appreciated Parker telling all of my friends about my sex life, or lack thereof.
How did he know for sure anyway? Had Roman told him? Was he getting impatient with me? I mean, I’m not sure I’m ready. Or maybe I am. I don’t know. By the time we were seated at our table in the restaurant, my head hurt from thinking so much.
We were halfway through lunch—which I could barely focus on because Roman’s leg had been pressed against mine the entire time, sending sharp tingles up and down my body—when Adriana gestured for me and Venice to follow her into the bathroom. When we were safely ensconced in the rose marble room, she got right down to business.
“So.” Adriana eyed me slyly in the mirror while she applied another coat of MAC’s Prrr lip gloss. “It’s almost your one month anniversary.”
Venice sighed, fluffing her hair with one hand. “I can’t believe it’s been so long already. It feels like just yesterday that I fainted when you told me.”
I snickered a little at the memory.
Adriana shook her head. “I don’t even want to know.” She returned her attention to me. “So have you been planning it?”
I frowned, leaning against the wall. “Planning what?”
Adriana and Venice exchanged exasperated glances. “Your anniversary night,” the blonde hinted.
“Oh, I don’t know. I just thought we’d go out for a nice dinner or something,” I said honestly.
Venice shook her head, her curls bouncing merrily. “I don’t think she gets it,” she told Adriana.
“I don’t. Can you tell me what you’re talking about?” I was so not in the mood for cryptic riddles.
Adriana tossed her lip gloss back in her bag. “Remember the reason why we went lingerie shopping when you were ‘dating’ Parker?”
I stared at her for a moment, until realization set in and turned my entire body a flaming red.
“Wh-what? We’re not talking about that now,” I stuttered. Or ever. There’s a reason why most people keep these things private, with the exception of porn stars and Paris Hilton.
Unfortunately, Adriana was not “most people.”
“We don’t have much time,” she pointed out, as an elegant, fur-clad woman swept into the bathroom without sparing us a glance. “You’ve only got a week left before your anniversary. You have to put that lingerie to good use.”
I shifted my weight, trying to ignore the woman’s now disapproving glare. “I don’t know if I’m ready,” I mumbled, wishing the floor would just open up and swallow me right then and there.
This was even worse than the last discussion they had about my sex life, because back then, I knew I wasn’t going to sleep with Parker. Now, though, the possibility of Roman and I, you know, doing it, was a lot higher—especially considering how close we’d gotten to the act lately.
Not that I was going to tell anyone that.
“So you want to wait?” Venice asked curiously.
I shrugged. “I’m not sure. I just—I don’t know. The right moment hasn’t come up yet.”
For some reason, I thought back to that night in Hawaii, when I’d been “teasing” Roman as part of Carlo’s plan. The moment the images played out in my mind, my skin warmed up so much I’m sure you could’ve fried an egg on my forehead.
Adriana raised an eyebrow as the fur-clad woman finally swished out of the bathroom, brushing past me huffily and muttering under her breath about “kids these days.”
“Well, it’s your decision, obviously,” she finally said. “Don’t let anyone pressure you, not even me.”
I cracked a smile at that.
“But if you are ready—“ Her aqua eyes were knowing. “Don’t be scared. Like I said all along, Roman’s really a good guy underneath that grumpy exterior of his, which you should know by now. If you like someone, you should take a risk. Grab the bull by its horns, so to speak.” She smirked. “Besides, Parker provided you with plenty of protection.”
I groaned. “Your boyfriend sucks. That’s so embarrassing!”
“He’s just looking out for you. Honeybee.” Adriana winked at me. “Come on, let’s get back to the boys before they think we died or something.”
I was just about to follow her out of the bathroom when I realized Venice hadn’t moved.
“V? Are you ok?” I asked, concerned. She had a pensive look on her face, but she also looked a little green, like she was nervous about something.
She nodded once. “I’m fine.” Her voice shook a little.
“Are you sure? I have some Advil—“
“No.” Venice shook her head. “I’m fine, really,” she insisted more clearly, even though she grabbed my arm for support as I led us out of the bathroom.
We walked slowly down the hall back to our table, and Venice’s grip tightened.
“Ok, you can do this, you can do this,” she muttered under her breath.
She was freaking me out. “Do what?”
But she just shook her head.
When I slid into my seat, she remained standing.
“Venice? Aren’t you going to sit?” Zack asked, blinking his big blue eyes in confusion.
She shook her head, a determined look sliding over her face. “No.” Venice lifted her chin up. “I’m not. I have—I have something to say.”
Roman shot me a questioning glance, but I just shook my head, as baffled as he was.
We all waited patiently, but it seemed as though Venice was losing her nerve. She got paler and paler with each passing, silent second.
“You wanted to tell us something?” Zack prompted, looking at her like he was afraid she was going to pass out.
It wouldn’t be the first time.
“Yes. Well—I—I—“ Venice stuttered. Then she just shook her head, mumbled something that sounded a lot like “screw it,” stormed around to the other side of the table, and, as the rest of us watched with open mouths, grabbed Zack’s face between her hands and planted a kiss right on his lips.
* * *
Roman and I were half-naked on his bed.
I’m not sure how we ended up here, actually. After Venice and Zack’s shocking kiss earlier, she’d ended up fleeing the restaurant, mortified, before anyone had a chance to say anything.
Zack just spent all of lunch sitting there like a cardboard cutout of himself, the shocked expression never leaving his face, until we had to physically haul him out of his chair and back to school.
Honestly, I wasn’t all that surprised. I always suspected Venice had a crush on Zack, and I was willing to bet his feelings for her weren’t purely platonic either.
After school, I went over to Roman’s house just to hang out. His father had apparently left for a business trip again, and while his mother was still here, he never talked to her. I knew it must be pretty lonely being all alone in that big mansion, so I usually went over to keep him company.
We ended up just talking about anything and everything we could think of, before we decided to take a little swim in his indoor pool. The little swim turned into a makeout session in the attached hot tub. The makeout session turned into…what we were doing now.
My breath caught as Roman trailed his fingers up my bare thighs, lighting every nerve ending on fire.
“You are so beautiful,” he whispered huskily, skimming his hands over my stomach, gently over my breasts and up my neck before cupping my face and pressing his lips to mine.
Sharp jabs of pleasure pricked my skin, and I moaned involuntarily into his mouth, eagerly shifting my position so I could press myself even closer to him. He was in just his swim trunks; I was still in my bikini, which I’d borrowed from a guest closet. We originally came upstairs to shower, but that had fallen quite low on the priority list.
I remember the sensations that had almost burned me with their intensity in Hawaii. What was happening right now made those look like child’s play.
It was hard to believe only a few hours had passed since my earlier conversation with Adriana. Had I really said I wasn’t sure if I was ready? Because at this moment, I was nothing if not ready.
Judging from a certain part of Roman’s anatomy, he felt the exact same way.
He pulled back, only to trail kisses down my neck, causing a series of heart palpitations that could not be good for my health. I whimpered slightly as he stopped right above the strap that held the two cups of my bikini top together, his lips just touching my skin.
Every fiber of my being ached for him, and suddenly that bikini top seemed heavy. Suffocating.
“Oh my god.” I sucked in a deep breath as Roman gently nipped at the area between my neck and shoulder.
Ok. I was going crazy here. I couldn’t even think straight. I honestly couldn’t even tell you my name right now.
Spurred on by adrenaline and certain other feelings, I pushed Roman off slightly and flipped around so he was pinned down under me.
“Whoa. Someone’s eager.” His voice was teasing, but his eyes had darkened so much they were almost black. His perfect, chiseled chest rose and fell rapidly.
I smiled seductively (I hope), trying to curb the anticipation bubbling up inside me and failing miserably. It was a completely new feeling. Roman was the only person who had ever made me feel like this. I was kind of glad we hated each other so much at the beginning. That passion had morphed into something quite useful for other...activities.
Roman groaned, an agonized look on his face, but his eyes didn’t leave mine. “It might be a good idea to stop now,” he said in a pained voice, trying to lift me off him.
I didn’t budge. “Why?” I couldn’t even believe this was me talking right now. Where did the boldness suddenly come from?
He blinked, a stunned and amazed look crossing his face. “Maya, are—“
“Shh.” I leaned down, covering his mouth with mine once again. So much heat radiated from our bodies I was surprised we didn’t set the sheets on fire. “We’re doing too much talking right now,” I murmured, nipping gently at his bottom lip.
Roman resisted for about two more seconds, before groaning and reaching around to slide his hands up my back. My stomach fluttered when I felt him stop at the ties that held my bikini top up. He gently tugged at the strings, causing a wave of warmth of crash over me. We were so close.
And then the door to his room banged open.
I immediately shot up, a surprised yelp escaping my mouth. When I turned, I was horrified to see Giselle, Roman’s mother, standing there with a bemused look on her face.
“I’m sorry, am I interrupting something?” she asked, squinting slightly. Ok, she was definitely not sober.
Hopefully that meant she won’t remember the sight of me, half-naked, straddling her son.
“What are you doing in here?” Roman’s voice was clipped and angry as he got off the bed, grabbing a towel from a nearby armchair and sliding it over my shoulders.
I smiled gratefully at him, which he returned briefly before glaring at Giselle.
“Can’t I just visit my son?” she trilled, coming towards us and stumbling a little. “I’ve barely seen you all week!” She reached out to hug Roman but he stepped away, a disgusted look on his face.
“I can’t believe you’re drunk already,” he spit out. “Though I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.”
Giselle blinked, then threw her head back and laughed. “Oh Roman, if you wanted to be alone with your girlfriend, you can just tell me. I’ll leave you two to do whatever you were doing.”
She winked at me, causing me to blush.
“Um, maybe I should come back another time,” I said quietly, sliding off the bed and reaching out to grab my clothes.
“You don’t need to leave. You can stay.” Roman’s gaze was hard. “Mom. You need to go. Now.”
Giselle looked hurt. “You never have time for your mother anymore.”
“Well, an eye for an eye, right?” Roman’s jaw worked. It seemed all of his passion from our earlier makeout had transformed into anger towards his mother. “It’s not like you ever acted much like my mother.”
“Roman!” I was appalled. I mean, I know his mom hadn’t always been there for him, and she had serious alcoholism issues, but she was still his mom.
And right now, she looked like she was about to cry.
None of us said anything for a while. We just stood there, Roman pissed, Giselle near sobbing, and me shocked and uncomfortable.
Finally, I gently guided Giselle towards the door. “Maybe you can come back to talk to him when—at another time,” I suggested. I was about to say “when you’re sober,” but caught myself just in time.
She looked back over her shoulder at Roman, who hadn’t moved. “I suppose you’re right,” she muttered. She looked at me. “Thank you, Maya. Roman needs someone like you in his life.” She actually sounded sincere, even though she was still slurring her words a bit.
My heart seized. Maybe she wasn’t as incoherent as I thought.
When the door closed, I turned back to Roman. “Hey, are you ok?” I asked, gently touching his arm.
It’s strange, how fast the mood of a room can change.
“I’m fine.” Roman sighed, pushing his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry you had to see that. I just—she pisses me off so much.” He grimaced.
I shifted, wishing I was in more than a towel and swimsuit. “She’s still your mom, though.”
“Well, if that’s what having a mom is like, I’d rather I didn’t have one.”
I gasped softly. “You don’t mean that.”
“Yes I do! Stop acting like you know so much about our relationship!”
I flinched, and Roman’s face immediately softened. He reached over, placing his hands on my shoulders. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have yelled at you. But seriously, Maya, just drop it, ok? My relationship with my parents is…complicated. And I know you have a good heart and want everyone to get along, but that’s not going to happen. So just let it go.” There was chagrin in his voice but his eyes were steely.
I clenched my jaw, wanting desperately to argue, but I don’t think that would be wise at the moment, so I merely nodded.
Roman relaxed. “Ok. How about we go grab a snack or something?”
I shook my head. “I think I should go home. I need to get some homework done.” I grabbed my clothes from the armchair. I really wanted to continue the conversation about his mom, but I figured I should give him some time to cool off.
“Oh. Right.” He sounded disappointed, but the sound of his phone ringing cut off what he was going to say after.
As I pulled on my skirt and buttoned up my blouse, I couldn’t help but be intrigued by Roman’s end of the conversation.
“Hey. No, I haven’t…wait, what? Maybe he just went somewhere for a trip or something. No. No. Do you really think so?” Roman sounded almost panicked. “Ok. Look, I’ll talk to some people. I’m sure it’ll be fine. Ok. Sure. Talk to you later.”
“What happened?” I asked, as he ended the call with a disturbed look on his face.
He just looked at me. “Rico’s missing.”