Sweet Home

by Tillie Cole

  His words hit me harder than a granite boulder to the chest, and I almost cried for him.

  “What do you want me for, Mol? I’m tryin’ to work it out.”

  I scooted closer and kissed his hand wrapped in mine. “I just want you.”

  “That’s what I don’t get. Why would you want me for just me? No one ever has before. I’m pissed twenty-four-seven. I’m possessive and not good with attachments—where’s the attraction?”

  “Then I’m the first, because I want you without anything in return. Why does any human want anyone? My body recognises you as something that’s good for me. My mind recognises you as someone who’s right for me, and my soul recognises you as someone who is meant for me.”

  A bashful smile ghosted his lips and his tense shoulders relaxed. “We’re in fuckin’ deep, aren’t we, Shakespeare?” he said in hushed tone, his body radiating a peaceful happiness.

  A feeling of contentment settled over us both.

  “I think that’s an understatement.”

  “C’mere.” He wrapped his arm around my shoulder, kissing me softly as the city lights dashed by.

  * * *

  Rome dropped me off at the front door of the sorority house and I darted up the stairs, glad it was quiet and the door to the TV room was firmly shut.

  I took a long, hot shower and tipped my head back, letting the hard water pound at my hair and skin. I felt different. I couldn’t describe how. Just… changed on a molecular level. My hand drifted to my stomach as I remembered the feel of his hand within me, and I stifled a groan. He’d been so stern and strong, conducting the music of our movements, creating a symphony with our cries and moans. I’d never felt anything like it before.

  I stepped out of the cubicle before my legs gave way at the memory. I dried, changing into a purple nightdress, and settled into bed.

  Within minutes, the tapping began.

  I threw my covers back and ran to the balcony, looking down. Romeo gave me a wide smile and scaled the trellis, almost jumping into my arms, appreciatively smirking at my choice of nightwear.

  “I got back to the frat house and I immediately wondered what you were doin’. I decided to stop wonderin’ and just come find out.”

  “You just want to stay again, don’t you? You planning on making this a regular thing?”

  “Oh, you can count on that, baby. After today, I’m now entitled to certain privileges.”

  “Really and what are they?”

  “You’ll find out in due course, Shakespeare. Now move that fine ass, get into bed and into my arms.”

  I moved into the room and coyly glanced over my shoulder. “I don’t remember Romeo being this pushy with Juliet!”

  He arched his eyebrows meaningfully. “And look at how that worked out for them. My way is better—less death, more orgasms.”

  I tried to feign shock, but I couldn’t help but laugh.

  “You. Bed. Now.” He pointed as he rid himself of his clothes, leaving only his black boxer briefs hanging low on his toned body.

  I was still chuckling following his instruction as he jumped behind me. I immediately swapped the giggle for low moans as his fingers ran straight underneath my nightdress and stroked against my core.

  “Now about those privileges…”

  11

  I woke, stretching my hands above my head, flexing the kinks out of my tight back. I reached out beside me for Romeo. Nothing. He was gone. Out of habit, I made a grab for my glasses off my bedside table, forgetting they were no longer needed.

  I sat up and frowned at Romeo’s absence—he never left me without a good-bye. The bed sheets were cold and messy from where he’d slept, but resting on the pillow was a note. I snatched it in my hands and began to read:

  Had early morning practice.

  Didn’t want to wake you—you looked so beautiful.

  Your Romeo x

  I buried my head in the pillow, smiling, when a knock sounded at my door. I opened it to Ally, who had her arms crossed, a “don’t mess with me” expression on her face, and an impressively raised eyebrow.

  She barged past me, shutting the door, and sat down on the edge of my unmade bed. “So… wanna tell me why I saw Rome creepin’ off your balcony this mornin’?” Her voice was deceptively calm.

  I walked towards her, fiddling with my hands, and when I reached the bed, I dropped down beside her, staring unseeing at my white walls. “He stayed the night with me.”

  “I assumed so. So how long has this been goin’ on?”

  “What? Staying the night or seeing each other?”

  She shook her head in surprise. “Well, things have definitely progressed further than what I’d assumed. I guessed somethin’ was happening by the way he’s always starin’ at you and you’re always blushing back, and of course, the kisses. Is it serious?”

  I nodded, chewing on my thumbnail in nerves.

  “So are you officially together?”

  “Yes.”

  She smiled widely, brown eyes bright, and nudged my shoulder. “My cousin in an honest-to-God relationship! Never thought I’d ever see the day, but I’m so glad.” Ally tapped my knee, then tilted her head, regarding me. “Where’s your glasses, darlin’?”

  I tucked my hair behind my ear. “I have contact lenses now.”

  Her face lit up. “Rome’s doing? So Shelly can’t rip on you again?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well, I never. Rome showin’ affection and compassion to a girl!” She laughed in disbelief.

  I lowered my head in embarrassment. “He’s been very sweet to me.”

  At my words, her eyes bugged out of their sockets. “My cousin and the word sweet don’t belong in the same sentence, but then, he’s been totally different with you since day one. It freaked me out at first, but now I love it! You’re good for him, girl.”

  Ally stood and headed to the door, but just before she left, she turned to fix me with a serious expression. “Molls, you have to understand that Rome can be quite a complex guy. He’s had to put up with a lot from his folks over the years and it has hit him real hard. You need to give him time and forgive him if he gets too pushy. I see how he is around you, and I can tell that, to him, you’re different. I think if you both keep going with this relationship, you’re exactly the person who could break him altogether if things go wrong. Be patient with him, care for him, treasure him… He deserves it.”

  She left without another word.

  * * *

  The day turned out to be a hot one, so for lunch, Cass, Lexi, Ally, Jimmy-Don, and I decided to sit on the grass in the expansive grounds of the quad. It seemed like everyone else had that idea too; the place was packed.

  “So Jimmy-Don, tell me about yourself,” I urged, as we lazed in a makeshift circle on the recently cut lawn. I loved the smell of cut grass. It reminded me of early summer mornings when I was young and I would wake to my father mowing our tiny patch of a garden. I smiled to myself. It was one of the few happy memories I had from my youth.

  “Well, I’m a Texan from Houston and play offensive tackle for the Tide. I’m twenty-one, and when I graduate, with a degree in environmental sciences, I’ll go back to Houston and work on my daddy’s cattle ranch.”

  “You don’t want to play football professionally too?”

  “Would love to, but I won’t be drafted by the NFL, and that’s okay. I’ll get to go back home, get me some livestock, and hopefully this little filly will be around too,” he said as he cuddled into Cass, kissing her cheek.

  Ally tapped my arm and when I looked up, Rome was heading our way dressed in jeans, brown boots, a red sleeveless T-shirt, and Ray-Ban mirrored aviator glasses. To his left was a tall, dark, heavily tattooed guy, dressed in black baggy clothes with chains hanging in large hoops from his studded belt—handsome if not a bit scary in his appearance. To his right, the polar opposite, an all-American boy with platinum blond hair, blue eyes, tanned skin—completely preppy. I scoured around and watched as girls
openly checked out Rome as he walked by. He could certainly catch a girl’s eye.

  “Hey, Bullet, Austin, Reece. What you doin’ over here with us?” Jimmy-Don asked as he looked up to Rome, slapping all the guys’ hands one by one in greeting.

  Romeo fixed his eyes on me and smiled. “Just seein’ my girl.”

  Everyone froze.

  Rome stepped around to me and sat down, pulling me across his lap, and moved in for a kiss—not just a peck, a kiss that told the world I was his. He owned me with that kiss and I submitted whole-heartedly.

  After thoroughly kissing me senseless. Romeo broke away, leaving his thumb to caress my bottom lip. “How are you today, baby?”

  I struggled to catch my breath. “I’m good. Great, actually.”

  “Well, I guess that answers my question of whether he likes you,” Cass said, pulling me from my Romeo-induced haze. “Yesterday at the cafeteria, I thought somethin’ wasn’t quite addin’ up. We all know Bullet don’t do relationships, so I thought he was just being weirdly nice. But the contact lenses, Molls going missing for hours… totally makes sense now!”

  Romeo brushed a kiss across my forehead and answered, “This is different. We’re together, a couple, right, Shakespeare?” He cracked a small smirk my way. I guessed keeping us quiet was no longer an option according to my boyfriend, and he looked in no way repentant about his impromptu “outing” of our relationship.

  “Yeah. We’re together,” I announced quietly. I shifted in his lap, sitting between his legs, and he wrapped his arms around my waist.

  I viewed our little group of friends who were all staring at the two of us, unsure if they were seeing things.

  Rome pointed to his friends one by one. “Everyone, this is Austin and Reece.”

  “Austin Carrilo, first-string wide receiver, and Reece Todd, second-string QB—no need for introductions, guys. Tide players’ reputations speak for themselves.” Cass beamed, getting a little excited by the new additions to our group.

  Lexi, who’d been gawking at Austin, raised her pixie hand firmly in the air. “Erm… Not that I’m unhappy, but when the hell did this happen and why haven’t y’all said a damn word about it?” She glared at me angrily.

  I grimaced at her pissed-off expression. “Over the last couple of weeks. I just wanted to keep it quiet for a while.”

  “I can’t believe y’all are together! Not that there’s anything wrong with it, but I just can’t believe it. Molly, the timid, super brain, with the Tide’s first-string QB—stranger things have happened, I s’pose!”

  “Well, believe it. She’s all mine, includin’ her big brain,” Romeo stated proudly with a mirthful arch of his brows and a tap to my head, causing his teammates to shake their heads in shock at his odd behaviour.

  “Hells yeah! I think its friggin’ awesome, honey!” Cass tooted.

  “Thanks, Cass.”

  Our little happy circle chatted for the better part of an hour, our friends growing accustomed to Rome and me as an honest-to-God couple.

  Rome and I attempted to block out the stares and jibes from the rest of the student body as we sat wrapped in each other’s arms—Rome’s threatening glares and reputation keeping most of the snide comments clearly out of our earshot.

  We’d successfully ignored the incessant murmurs from passers-by; at least we were succeeding, until a member of the basketball team walked by with his buddies, snickering at us together. Rome immediately tensed, bracing for confrontation.

  The tall, lanky, brown-haired basketballer stopped before us, a closed fist to his mouth, stopping his laughter. “Fuck, Bullet, I don’t believe my fuckin’ eyes! You gave up all the pussy on campus for that? Tell me, does she at least suck your cock good?”

  Before I’d even had a chance to feel offence at his slander, Romeo jumped to his feet and tackled the guy to the ground, our friends frantically rushing in his direction. Students hurried to where they were rolling on the ground, creating a loose circle around Romeo and the basketballer to watch the commotion up close.

  Jimmy-Don, on seeing me launch to my feet, held tight onto my arm as I tried to run to Rome. “Leave ‘em to it, darlin’. Let him get it outta his system.”

  I wrenched back my arm. “No! I don’t want him to fight. Stop him.” I turned to Austin and Reece. “Stop him!”

  “You wanna be with Rome, darlin’, then get used to this.” Jimmy-Don gestured to the two of them scuffling. “It happens all the time.”

  I stared at Jimmy-Don and Reece in astonishment. Austin had joined the growing crowd. “He’s your friend. STOP HIM before he gets hurt!”

  Reece put his hand on my shoulder. “Bullet won’t be the one that’s hurt, Molly. It’s not like he hasn’t fought before. And no offense, but I’m not getting near Bullet when he’s like that. I like my head firmly on my shoulders, thanks!”

  “Ugh! Fine! I’ll do it myself!” I pushed through the circle and broke through to the front. Romeo was straddled above the basketball player, clearly untouched, holding the collar of the guy’s shirt in his hand, pinning him to the ground.

  “Don’t you fuckin’ dare talk about Mol like that again. You get me, asshole?”

  The guy beneath him smiled, blood dripping from his lip and a burgeoning bruise forming on his cheek. He was enjoying goading Rome.

  “The geek ain’t shit to look at, but she clearly fucks good if she’s tamed your ass. Does she? Does she fuck like a seasoned whore?”

  Romeo growled menacingly under his breath as he turned a bright shade of red, his berserk rage taking hold, and he drew back his fist. The basketball player’s friend tried to jump in to throw Rome off, but Austin dived forward, wrestling him back, wrapping his arms in a tight lock behind his back. At least one of his friends was trying to help him.

  As Rome’s fist paused, suspended in the air, I grabbed hold of his wrist and his head snapped around to me, his dark eyes wild. The crowd cautiously stepped back.

  “Romeo, don’t,” I pleaded.

  He tried to push me away. “Get the fuck back, Mol.”

  “Molly! What the hell?!” Cass was behind me, trying to yank me out of harm’s way, Lexi and Ally standing close by with pleading expressions.

  I met Romeo’s gaze again, shaking Cass’s hand off my arm. “Romeo, stop. Now. You’re better than this!”

  “Yeah, Romeo, stop. Listen to your girl.”

  I groaned at the stupidity of the guy on the floor; he obviously had a death wish.

  Gritting his teeth, Romeo leaned down to his ear, hissing, “You’re lucky I don’t cave your fuckin’ skull in, but I won’t do it in front of my girl.”

  Romeo stood abruptly and wrapped me in his arms, his heartbeat pounding like a drum in his chest. I gripped onto his shirt with one hand, the other rubbing the tension from his back.

  I felt Rome turn and he shouted over my shoulder, “Fuck off, Michaels, and get outta my sight before I change my fuckin’ mind and end you!”

  Michael’s buddies picked him up off the floor, dragging him away, the circle of spectators breaking up with disappointed faces now the show had come to an anti-climax.

  Rome kissed the top of my head, sighing. “I should’ve beaten him good after what he said.”

  I leaned back, gripping his throbbing biceps. “No, you shouldn’t have. What would’ve been the point? We both knew that you being in an ‘official’ relationship was going to cause some talk.”

  “Yeah, but he’s had it comin’ for a long time, babe. He fuckin’ deserves a good beat down.”

  “Why was he so hostile towards you in the first place?”

  Romeo stilled and I tipped my chin to meet his apprehensive gaze. His worried expression caused me to frown. “What?”

  “I… I—”

  “You what?” I pushed as Romeo stared at me with an anxious expression, obviously debating whether or not to be honest.

  “Just spit it out, Rome.”

  “I fucked his girl a few months back.”

>   My stomach curled and I stepped back out of his embrace.

  “Now you’re pissed at me. I’m totally kickin’ his ass now!” He turned to run after a retreating Michaels.

  I kept a tight hold of his hand. “Leave him.”

  He regarded me warily. “You’re pissed, aren’t you?”

  I slammed my hands on my hips. “Well, I’m not exactly doing backflips on hearing that you shagged his girlfriend, am I?”

  Romeo tilted his head in warning at my tone. “I’ll let that go since you’re clearly annoyed, and I suppose justifiably.” His dark mood caused me to smirk and I shook my head in exasperation. I used to find his attitude intimidating; now I found his stubborn moodiness amusing… and really kind of cute.

  “Did you hear what he said about you?” Rome continued, ignoring my amusement.

  “Yes, but I don’t care, never have cared what others thought of me.”

  He dropped his head, trying in earnest to simmer down his temper.

  “Come on, sit down with me a while longer,” I said, tugging on his hand.

  Romeo rubbed his hand down his face. “Mol. Let me just sort the fucker once and for all. It’ll send a message to everyone else to leave us be. There’s a lotta assholes who I’ve pissed off that’ll enjoy raggin’ on us bein’ together.”

  I shook my head curtly, showing him I didn’t care.

  With a curl of his lip, he hooked his arm around my neck, dropping a kiss on my head. “Fuck, Mol, I’ll be gettin’ a new rep—Rome Prince, newest member of Pussy Whipped-R-Us!”

  Our friends had returned to their usual spot on the grass, but Rome and I sat under a tree a few yards to their left, sheltered away from the attention of the rest of the students. We chatted about frivolous things and eventually, Rome cooled his temper, holding me tightly in his arms.

  We stood to leave for Philosophy class when a shadow cast over our relaxed place beneath the trees, like a storm ruining a bright and sunny day. Queen-bitch Shelly herself had stopped by to offer her regards, towering above us all with a face full of fury.

  “What the hell is this?”