19. Roman
ROMAN
F uck.
The look on Juliette’s face destroys me. Her lip trembles slightly and even though I keep trying to catch her eyes, to try and express…I don’t know… something , she avoids my gaze.
But she’s not my problem.
She can’t be my problem.
I’m not here for her.
I bite down hard, my tongue pressed so tight to my molars I taste blood.
Placating Juliette isn’t the marching order I’ve been given by my father.
It’s about Craig Calloway.
And the way his face is void of color and he looks frozen, I think the message was well received.
I watch his reaction closely, trying to decipher if what my father told me is true. If it really was Craig trying to take me out all those years ago.
If so…
My mother grew dependent on pills because of that crash. Lost her job. Her passion. Her livelihood. In return, I lost her, and my sister lost stability.
Fresh anger burns through me, even though my heart speeds in my chest and my hands are clammy.
It’s not really high on my list of things to do; being in the same area as a man who everyone implies wants to kill me.
“Surprise,” I say to him, waving my fingers in the air. “You all right? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
Juliette flinches at my words, like the venom in my tone is burning her . Her skin’s gone pale, her jaw is slack, and her whole body is tight like a pinched wire.
I never wanted her to feel like this. Never wanted to make her feel like this.
My stomach twists violently.
I focus back on Craig. “Heard there was a celebration going on, so I figured I’d stop by and give you something worth celebrating.”
Juliette visibly stumbles back, her hand rubbing her chest. One of her brothers, the same one who gripped her arm earlier, reaches for her again. This time, she doesn’t fight it, allowing him to pull her away.
He turns and pushes her gently toward the blond man who came with their father. Without missing a beat, he wraps an arm around her shoulders and guides her away.
There’s a flare of something hot inside me when he does, but I don’t spend too much time focusing on it.
I can’t .
Juliette Calloway isn’t my problem.
Maybe if I repeat it a hundred times, it will sink into my head, and this strange pull demanding I follow her will cease to exist.
“You’re trespassing,” Craig responds, his eyes like a knife. “I suggest you get off my property before I have you forcibly removed.”
He nods toward the security guards manning the gate.
I suck on my teeth and tilt my head. “So interesting, your choice of words. Forcibly removed. People love doing that around here, huh?”
He lifts his chin, nostrils flaring the slightest amount.
Guilty.
Craig sniffs. “Get off my property and don’t come back, or you won’t like the consequences. Tell your father I don’t appreciate surprises, and I don’t appreciate being lied to.”
I smirk.
His eyes narrow. “I hope you understand that your father has no real power here anymore. It’s pathetic, really, how he clings onto that tiny little hill on the west side of town.
Tell me, has he told you just how much he’s given up to us over the years?
How difficult we can make his life if he wants to keep playing these games? ”
Benjamin scoffs beside me.
“Did he warn you how difficult I could make your life?”
My heart kicks against my ribs, my spine stiffening.
“Are you threatening him?” Benjamin spits, stepping forward.
Merrick slips between us, both of his hands raised. “Now, now, kids, let’s all play nice.”
“I have no reason to go after you, Roman,” Craig continues. “If you want to come back from the dead and play like the Montgomery name still means something in this town, then by all means. But a word of advice: stay away from my family, and don’t get in my way.”
He stares at me like I’m a bug that needs to be squashed, and then he turns on his heel and walks away, snapping at the others with him to follow.
They all do, dutifully, except for the tall and bulky one up front. Lance, I think his name is.
He tilts his head, staring at me with his arms crossed. “How do you know my sister?”
The question stings like a papercut. I force the smirk to stay on my face, but it isn’t genuine.
“I don’t.”
He lifts his chin, jaw tensing. “Let’s keep it that way.”
I give a quick jerk of my chin.
And then he turns and walks away, too, until there’s empty space where they all were standing. Quickly, the security guards who were off to the side during the entire exchange take their place.
I throw up my hands. “We’re gone, boys. No need to get excited.”
Spinning around, I give a look to Benjamin, and we move down the drive.
Merrick jogs until he’s next to me, throwing his arm around my shoulder, laughing loud enough that it carries through the sky and over the trees. “God damn , you’re about to make things more fun around here.”
I give him a small grin, although I’m not really feeling anything close to happy on the inside.
He watches me, his dark eyes flickering.
We reach the car, and Benjamin pats me on the back, nodding his approval. “Villain looks good on you, my guy. Your dad’s gonna eat it up.”
I look at him, trying not to be offended at how easily he wraps an insult in a compliment. “How do you know that?”
Benjamin shrugs. “He’s family. I know him as well as I know myself.”
If he intended that to be a knife to the chest, he succeeded. I light the joint I’ve been holding, my anxiety crawling around my spine like spiders.
Merrick leans against the door of the passenger side of his car. “Nobody cares about how far up Marcus’s asshole you are, Benny. I want to know the gossip.” He watches me, curiosity brimming in his gaze. “How do you know Juliette Calloway?”
I blow out a cloud of smoke and smirk. “I don’t kiss and tell, Merrick.”
“Ah,” he says, nodding like my non-answer gave him everything he needed to know. “Is it young love?”
Rosalie lets out a sardonic laugh. “Please, Juliette wouldn’t know love if it hit her upside the head. She’d have to let people get close to her for that to happen, and she’s always been a frigid bitch.”
My gaze snaps to her, wondering how she knows Juliette and simultaneously wanting to throttle her for calling her a bitch. The intense reaction catches me off guard, because what the hell is my problem?
When I look back to Merrick, he’s grinning at me like he can read my mind.
I shift uncomfortably.
He straightens, spinning around with his arms out at his sides like they’re wings. “If she’s the girl you want, then we’ll take Cupid’s wings and we’ll fly high. Rosebrook Falls is the place love goes to die, after all. Might as well tempt fate while you can.”
A short laugh escapes me, and I shake my head. “What the fuck are you even talking about?”
Benjamin wraps his arms around the waist of Rosalie, smirking at his friend. “Merrick’s always talking out of his ass; don’t listen to anything he says.”
Merrick stops spinning and points at him. “ You should show me some respect, Benny. If it weren’t for me, we wouldn’t have even had an audience with the Calloways just now.”
Rosalie huffs. “Uh, hello? I’m right here. It was my invitation.”
Benjamin looks at her. “You didn’t get us in , though, so your point’s a little moot.”
Rosalie peers up at him. “None of you said you wanted to sneak into the party. You should have just asked me how.”
“Okay, how?” Benjamin asks.
“There’s a spot on the east side of the gate that has a small hole under the brush. If you use it and keep to the perimeter of the property, it’s a blind spot in their security, and it leads straight to Juliette’s balcony.”
I blow out a cloud of smoke. “How do you know that?”
She looks at me, her face brightening as she steps away from Benjamin’s hold. “My brother used to brag about how they’d sneak out, him and Lance. They’d use Juliette’s balcony because it faces the pool and has the most blind spots in their security.”
“And who’s your brother?” I ask.
She scowls. “Tyler. The one who brought out my uncle.”
I blink at her.
“Tyler is Juliette’s cousin. Rosalie is Juliette’s cousin.” Benjamin fills in the blanks.
My brows shoot up. “But you’re hanging out with us?”
Her gaze shoots to the ground, and she shrugs. “I’ve picked my side.”
Benjamin turns to her with an incredulous look. “You could have told us how to sneak in a little earlier, you know?”
“Like I said, you didn’t ask.”
I glance back at the mansion, a new kind of fire sparking inside of me.
The need to explain my actions to Juliette snuffs out anything else that I was feeling.
I don’t know why it bothers me so much to think of her hating me or thinking I played her on purpose, but it does, and despite me repeating to myself like a mantra that I don’t care about her… I do.
She’s suddenly all I can think about.
I focus back on my group as Merrick walks around to the driver’s side of the car and slips in.
“You coming?” he asks, leaning toward the rolled-down passenger window.
I shake my head, my hands in my pockets. “It’s a nice night. I think I’ll walk around for a bit.”
Merrick’s eyes flash, like he knows what I’m about to do, but he nods and then jerks his head at Rosalie and Benjamin, who slide into the car.
“Call me later if you want to kick it,” Merrick says. “You’ll need friends around here…ones you can trust.”
I jerk my chin, and then they’re off, and my heart starts pounding against my chest as I flip around to stare at the Calloway estate.
Keep to the perimeter…and it leads straight to Juliette’s balcony.