Chapter 34 Julianna
THIRTY-FOUR
JULIANNA
Four Months Later
I still haven’t gotten over it, and I’m not certain I ever will.
Honestly, I should have known all along.
I try not to let the guilt eat away at me for never suspecting my father would stoop as low as to kill Rome Montgomery, but every now and then, it ebbs its way into my chest, under flesh and bone.
Thankfully, my father took a guilty plea, saving us from a brutal trial. He claimed he did it for me, to save me and Holt further embarrassment.
At least, that’s what his letter said.
I still haven’t brought myself to write back. Maybe one day, I will.
For now, though, I plan on living my life. The life I always dreamed of having.
My heels click down the long hallway. Skin hot and sticky, I slip out of my black, feathered coat and drape it over my arm. The pulsating music vibrates through the floor and walls.
I’m nearly at Rome’s office when Marcus’s mouth stretches into a face-splitting grin at the sight of me. “Mrs. Montgomery.”
“Hi, Marcus.” I smile back.
He steps aside, tilting his head. “He’s expecting you.”
“Of course he is.” I grab the handle of Rome’s office door and stop before entering. “You should enjoy yourself every now and then, Marcus. There’s a whole party going on out there.”
He glances down the hall, small flickers of strobe lights flashing across his face. “It’s Club Verona. There’s a party every night. And don’t worry, Mrs. Montgomery. I’m perfectly happy with the life I lead. Plus, I get plenty of entertainment beating you at poker.”
I snort loudly. “Right, you keep telling yourself that.”
Marcus chuckles, the corners of his eyes creasing.
I push the door open then allow it to close behind me.
The sound of it shutting causes Rome to spin around in his large, leather chair. When he sees me, he sits back and rests his elbow on the arm and raises his fist to his mouth, stifling his groan. He doesn’t do a very good job at hiding it. The hunger is evident in his eye.
He’s dripping with power and desire. This is where he was meant to be all along, free from his father, blazing his own trail. Seeing him this way makes me want my dream life with Rome. We have the houses and the love, but I want more. Children and freedom. All of it.
“Fuck, Mrs. Montgomery.” His eyes rake over my body, taking in my bright red sparkly dress. I toss my feather coat onto the leather sofa along the wall and close the gap between us. I lean over the edge of his, pressing my hands to the top, leveling Rome with a heated stare.
His gaze drops to my chest before lifting back up.
“Yes?” I ask him, lowly.
“You’d better be glad I was back here in my office, because if I’d see you dressed like that, walking through my club, every man who even so much as glanced in your direction would be dead on my floor.”
“Really?” I slide my hands farther along his desk. My dress rides up the back of my thighs, and I’m already dripping wet for him. “Then what would you have done?”
His eyes darken as he stands and moves around his desk, dragging his fingers across the surface. Stopping beside me, he hooks his fingers under my chin, forcing me to look up. “Is Marcus still outside my office?”
“Yes.” I swallow, clenching my thighs. “But has that ever mattered before?”
“No.” He smirks, chuckling under his breath. “I guess it hasn’t.”
I twist until I’m facing the opposite direction. I lean back on my hands, raising my chest. It heaves as I lower my hand and drag it across the front of my thigh before lifting the hem of my dress.
Rome’s gaze doesn’t break from mine. I’m stunned at his self-control.
“Better make it quick, Mr. Montgomery.”
Never breaking his focus, he lowers his hand and slips it between my thighs. His fingers plunge deep inside me, and his thumb lands on my clit. I toss my head back, gasping.
“I’m not very good at making it quick with you. I like to savor every touch and every breath. Every scream out of that pretty mouth of yours.”
I’m panting, losing myself in the way his hands expertly work me. “We’re meeting everyone at the cabin tonight for a catered dinner, remember? I don’t want to be late.”
“It’s our place.” His use of the word our does something to my insides. “We can show up whenever we want. We have forever.”
My eyes snap open, and I find his, realizing how different things are now that we can live and love freely, out in the open.
My entire friend group is spending an evening with us at our cabin. Not Rome’s.
Ours.
Forever.
“Okay,” I pant, dragging my tongue across my lips as he buries his face in my neck. “But let’s not use the jet to get there. Such a waste of time.”
He hums against me, sending shivers down my spine.
I pull back slightly. “Deal?”
His eyes spark, and my heart grows a million times over for the man I vowed to spend the rest of eternity with years ago.
“Deal.” He growls, pressing his whole hand against me. “Now, stop talking, Lark, and sing for me and only me.”
And I do.