Uncle Jared and Aunt Susan hadn’t acknowledged my birthday in years.

  Jared grunted at the explanation.

  “I’m going to wait around so I can say hi to Susan,” Dex said, leaving no room for discussion.

  My uncle slammed the door open and stomped into the house without answering.

  Shaking his head, Dex dropped into the chair next to me. “He seems angrier than ever.”

  I shrugged. Uncle Jared had always been unpleasant. That was nothing new.

  Chapter Twelve

  Roman

  The next morning when I got off the van in front of the school, there was a Harley parked at the curb.

  I recognized the owner right away and wasn’t one bit surprised.

  “Hi, Dex,” I said, approaching him first. Guess it was time to prepare for the “Stay away from Juliet” speech. Too bad I had no intention of staying away from her.

  “Morning, Roman.” He reached out and shook my hand.

  Maybe he wasn’t here to tell me to back off.

  I crossed my arms over my chest and waited. “You looking for Juliet?” I asked when he didn’t start the conversation.

  “Nope. Looking for you.”

  “Well, you found me.” I glanced at the school. “I need to be inside.”

  He cocked his head. “It’s ass-crack early in the morning.”

  “Yeah, well, I don’t exactly get a lot of freedom.”

  He nodded. “You like Juliet?”

  “Yeah, I like her a lot,” I said, deciding to forgo cockiness in favor of honesty.

  “You got a job?”

  Okay, didn’t expect that question.

  “Haven’t been here long enough to look for one.”

  “I might be able to hook you up with something.”

  No one did favors for free. “And why would you do that?”

  He blew out a breath and glanced away before answering. “Because if you’re gonna be hanging around Juliet, I don’t want her dating a bum.”

  “You don’t have a problem with me dating her?”

  He shook his head. “I ain’t her fuckin’ dad. I’m not even really her uncle. But I care about her. Known her since she was little. Figure you’re teenagers. Gonna do whatever the fuck you wanna do anyway. Least I should do is make sure you can take her out and shit.”

  I wasn’t quite sure I believed that explanation.

  “Although, if you ever hurt her, I will fucking kill you.” The casual way he tossed out the threat made me believe he meant every word.

  “I’d never hurt her.”

  “Sometimes we can’t help hurting the ones we love the most,” he said in a low voice I barely made out over the noise in the parking lot.

  “Don’t get ahead of yourself, Dex. Juliet and I just met.”

  “Doesn’t matter. Sometimes you just know when you meet the right person.”

  An uncomfortable sensation rolled through my chest. Juliet was the one for me. Knew it the second I met her. Our souls connected. My rational brain knew that was absurd, but the rest of me didn’t care.

  Dex saw it too and didn’t think I was crazy?

  He handed over a card with a name and address.

  “What’s Crystal Ball?” The address was way the fuck down in the city of Empire. Not sure how he expected me to find my way there.

  “Club owned by my MC. Come down and see me. I’ll find you some work.”

  “Uh…” I hesitated and considered handing the card back. “Whatever the job is, it has to be legal and I have to get it approved by my caseworker. Plus, I have no way to get there.”

  He stared at me for a second. “You always such a rule-follower, Roman?”

  “No, but I’m not really in a position to do anything about it, unless I want to get moved to another home, which I’d rather avoid.” I glanced at the low brick building behind us. “I like it here.”

  He nodded as if he approved of my answer. “You’re awfully level-headed for your age.”

  “Sometimes.”

  “Give me some time to come up with another lead. In the meantime, do me a favor.”

  Finally, the reason he came to see me. I lifted my chin and waited for him to continue.

  “Look out for Juliet. Her uncle’s nastier than ever. Make sure everything’s okay there. If it’s not, let me know and I’ll handle him.”

  “I noticed he’s a prick. You think he’d hurt her?”

  “Don’t know. Not sure she’d tell me if he did.”

  “But you think she’ll tell me?”

  “If she trusts you.”

  He picked his helmet up off the seat of his bike and strapped it on.

  “Wait,” I said. “When’s her birthday?” It had been bugging me all night that I didn’t know.

  Dex smirked and gave me the date which was three weeks from today. That made her younger than me by about eight months.

  “My cell’s on the back of that card,” he said. “Call me if she needs anything.”

  As if he just thought of it, he reached into the pocket of his leather vest and pulled out a silver flip phone. “It’s nothing fancy, but if you need to get a hold of me, or if she needs to reach you, use it.”

  Phones, or any electronics besides small MP3 players, were strictly forbidden. Plenty of kids at the home had contraband phones. I’d considered it myself once or twice, except who the fuck was I gonna call? I had no brothers or sisters I wanted to keep in touch with. No parents. The risk of getting in trouble seemed pointless. But now I had Juliet, and Dex was right. If she needed me, I wanted her to be able to call. I didn’t enjoy taking charity from anyone, but it would be stupid to turn it down.

  “Thanks. Appreciate it.”

  He shook my hand again before taking off. I made sure the phone was turned off and slipped it in my bag before going inside.

  “Morning, stranger,” Juliet greeted me at our locker. A teasing smile played over her lips. She was wearing the jacket Dex gave her yesterday and a pair of brown leather boots.

  “Dex give you a ride?” I asked.

  She blinked. “How’d you know?”

  I nodded at her jacket. “The outfit. And the fact that he was outside waiting to talk to me.”

  “He what?”

  “It’s cool. He said he might be able to help me find a job.”

  “Why? So you’re too busy to spend time with me?”

  I snorted and emptied my backpack into our locker, pulling out the books and notebook I’d need for first period. “I think he just doesn’t want you dating a bum.”

  I was staring right at her when I said it, so I didn’t miss the way her jaw dropped and her eyes widened. Or the way her cheeks turned an even deeper shade of pink. “Are we dating?” she whispered.

  The air in my lungs vanished and my stomach bottomed out. Did I move too fast?

  I closed the locker door with a quiet metallic click and braced my hand against the cool metal, considering all the possible answers.

  “Roman?” she prodded.

  Finally I met her troubled blue eyes and let it all out. “I don’t have anything to offer you, Juliet. Not a penny to my name to give you the things you deserve. My time’s regulated more than an inmate. Can’t spend hours online with you or even call you without someone listening in on our conversation. Got no car or way to take you out—”

  “Stop.”

  “Don’t have a family to introduce you to,” I continued.

  “Roman, I don’t care.”

  “You deserve more.”

  “So do you.”

  Do I?

  I hated dwelling on it but living in the system for so long left me bitter, jaded, and full of anger. I hadn’t done anything wrong to be placed in foster care, but I’d been treated like a criminal since I was seven years old. Eventually you started to believe you deserved your shitty life and weren’t worthy of a better one.

  Our eyes locked and to my utter shock, she placed her hand on my chest, over my heart. Blood thundered through my veins. My heart was literally in the palm of her hand. Could she feel it throbbing and ready to jump out of my chest?

  Looking up at me through her lashes, she raised up on her tiptoes and gently pressed her lips against mine.

  Sweet, beautiful mercy she was so soft and shy. It took everything I had not to grab her and devour her completely. She trembled as she opened her mouth, running her tongue over my bottom lip. She tasted like cinnamon and crisp spring air.

  I snapped. The attraction that had been building between us for days flared like a lit match. I captured her lips with mine and swept my tongue inside her mouth. Tasting and teasing her. She moaned, the soft vibration firing me up even more.

  “Roman.” Either she whispered my name or thought it. We were so entwined I wasn’t sure where I ended and she began.

  My cock jerked against my zipper so hard, it shook me from head to toe. I framed her face with my hands, holding her still for more kisses. She fell into me, pushing her perfect tits tight against my chest. Fuck, I burned with the need to sneak my hand under her shirt and run my thumb over her nipple.

  She smelled so damn good. I wanted her scent embedded in my clothes and skin so everyone knew I was hers.

  “Yeah, dawg. Get some!” a kid shouted.

  As quickly as it blazed, our kiss fizzled. I pulled back enough to lean my forehead against hers and whispered, “I want to do that again, Juliet. Soon. And often. But not here.”

  She closed her eyes tightly, her lips curving up with happiness, relief, or satisfaction, I wasn’t sure.

  That short, searing kiss was a cataclysmic shift in our relationship. We were no longer locker buddies or new friends getting to know each other.

  We were soul mates.

  Deep, deep down, my heart twisted with anguish. Nothing good had ever come from caring for someone before. I wasn’t sure I even knew how. And even if I learned how to love someone...

  I always lost them anyway.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Juliet

  Who knew one little kiss could devastate and electrify you at the same time?

  For the rest of the day, I floated through school on a cloud.

  Nerves consumed me after our last class. I jittered all the way to our locker, my thoughts bouncing around like a bunny in the forest. Roman said he wanted to kiss me again. And often. Did he mean right now? At school? Where else could we go to have some privacy?

  “Hey,” he greeted me.

  “Hey.” For the first time since we met, I felt shy and unsure around him. I ended up staring at his feet.

  “Juliet? Is everything okay?” The concern laced into his question drew my attention to his face. The confusion and uncertainty swirling inside me seemed to be reflected in his eyes.

  “I’m fine.”

  “Ready to head home?”

  Not really. I wanted to go somewhere I could be alone with him, but I wasn’t sure how to float the idea.

  “Can we walk through the park?” The path through the park would take us half a mile out of our way, giving us time together.

  “Planning to do some bird-watching?” he teased.

  “Not really.” A nervous smile twitched over my lips.

  “Sure. Let’s go.”

  The grounds behind the school backed right into the park and we took the well-worn trail up over the first small hill separating the two places. Lots of kids headed this way after the final bell. Usually to hide and sneak cigarettes. Or ambush other kids. I never went home this way because it didn’t seem safe. But with Roman I felt completely protected.

  As we entered the deep grove of trees surrounding the park, Roman slipped his warm, rough fingers around mine.

  A dizzying rush of heat spread through me. The contact was so simple but felt so right.

  “How was your day?” he asked quietly as we kept walking.

  “Not as good as my morning.”

  He stopped, turned, and stared at me. “Juliet.” So much longing colored his voice, I leaned closer and pressed my hand against his chest.

  His eyes closed briefly, then he seemed to make a decision. He gently nudged me off the path, into a cluster of trees. Bright, afternoon sunlight beamed through the canopy of leaves, turning the hidden spot into a magical chamber. Our bags hit the ground with thuds muted by layers of leaves and pine needles.

  I looped my arms around his neck and his hands threaded into my hair. Our lips met and fire raced over my skin.

  A groan ripped out of him and he lifted me, moving us until I was trapped between a tree at my back and his hard chest against mine.

  “Roman.” Without thinking, I teased my hands under the hem of his T-shirt.

  “I love the way you touch me and say my name,” he whispered against my lips.

  “Roman,” I said again. My fingers tugged at his shirt. I had no idea what I was doing, I just moved on instinct, want, and need. To be closer to him. Skin on skin.

  He stripped off his shirt and my breath caught. He was beautiful. Muscular, strong, but scarred. “What happened?” I asked, tracing my fingers over faded white and red lines.

  “Nothing I want to talk about.” He glanced down as if seeing the scars for the first time in ages. “One day I want to cover them up with some ink.”

  I easily pictured a tapestry of vivid, bold colors splashed over his skin. “What kind of tattoos do you want?”

  “Haven’t decided yet. I’m sure I’ll find inspiration when the time is right.” He bent down to kiss me again and I tipped my head back, offering myself.

  He kissed and nipped at my neck all the way to a spot behind my ear that made me dizzy with desire. His thumbs brushed against my sides, under my jacket and shirt. The urge to have his hands on my bare skin made me reckless. Pinned between him and the tree, I struggled for leverage to take my jacket off, then tugged my shirt up over my head.

  Roman stared at me with awe in his wide, green eyes.

  I hesitated and crossed my arms over my chest. Did he think I was moving too fast? How far did I want this to go?

  Then his lips were on mine again and I stopped questioning the moment.

  Slowly, almost reverently, he skimmed his palms up my sides, over my back, and finally stopped to gently tug my arms away from my chest.

  He stared.

  Heat crawled over my skin.

  I didn’t own any fancy underwear like Vienna or the other girls in my gym class. But by the hungry look in Roman’s eyes, I don’t think he minded the plain, white cotton bra one bit. He reverently cupped my breasts, his thumbs brushing over my bra where my nipples pushed against the fabric. A zap of electricity shot straight to my center. My head fell back, lazily rolling to the side.

  I’d never felt this way before. Wild and desperate. Yet, safe in Roman’s arms.

  “Juliet?” he whispered.

  I opened my eyes and watched as he dipped his head low, kissing the swell of my breast peeking over the top of my too-small bra. Any lingering embarrassment over my basic undergarments evaporated. His tongue gently teased over my nipple straining against the cotton.

  “Roman.” My hands dug into his hair. I wanted so much more. He answered my desperate grip by moving to my other breast, gently biting at my nipple.

  “Oh my God.” Tingles of pleasure flooded my body from that simple nip.

  With great reluctance, he slowly dragged himself away from my breasts and stood straighter, peering down at me.

  He opened his mouth to say something and since I sensed it was something I didn’t want to hear, I hooked my hand behind his neck and pulled him toward me for another kiss.

  I wasn’t ready for our magical moment to end.

  Roman

  Gone. My brain had switched to feral mode. The need to claim Juliet right this second beat through my blood. I lifted her, marveling at how light but solid she felt in my arms. This wasn’t a dream. She was real. Her thighs hugged my hips, her ankles hooked behind me, drawing me closer.

  She kissed me with the same determined passion. I rolled my hips, and my painfully hard cock nudged the warmth straight between her legs.

  Heaven.

  I was convinced it was behind that denim.

  The wind rustled through the leaves and a few splatters of water from the earlier storm rained down. A cooler breeze swirled around us, whispering that we couldn’t continue down this path.

  “We have to stop,” I rasped.

  She tightened her legs around my waist and I groaned. I was two seconds from shredding her jeans and discovering all her hidden spots.

  I cupped her cheeks and kissed her lips one last time before pulling back for good.

  “We can’t,” I whispered. “Not now.”

  For one thing, even though our current spot was secluded, we were still in a public park where anyone could stumble on us. I didn’t want to take that chance.

  There was also the fact that I didn’t have a condom. I’d encountered enough pregnant girls in foster care to know I didn’t want to be the kind of asshole who knocked up his high school girlfriend. Especially since I had no way to provide for Juliet.

  Yeah, I was thinking that far ahead.

  At a couple of the group homes I’d been in, the counselors would hand out condoms on the sly. Others preached abstinence only. You can guess which ones had the higher rates of teen pregnancies. I had been at mine long enough to think of at least two counselors who might help me out.

  Fuck, I was harder than a damn rock.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

  “Why are you sorry?” Please tell me she doesn’t regret this already.

  Pink bloomed over her skin, creeping up her neck. She lowered her feet to the ground. My gaze dropped to her chest. The innocent, white cotton bra she filled out so nicely didn’t look as wholesome now that I’d left two wet circles over her nipples. My mouth watered, eager to discover the taste of her skin.

  She leaned over to grab her T-shirt, snapping me out of my trance. “I don’t know what came over me.” She ducked her head and slipped into the shirt. “I don’t usually…I’ve never done this before.”

  She peeked up at me, searching for a reaction, and I tried not to beat my chest like a proud gorilla.