Cousins (Cousins #2) (25 page)

"Boyfriend!"

"I didn't stutter."

"You must be smoking meth or something. I am
so
not your girlfriend. I'm not even your friend right now."

"Why did you leave your little party?"

"To get some gum."

"By yourself in the middle of the night? Maybe you're the one who's on drugs. Or are you really out here looking for your other little boyfriend?"

"Were you watching me in there?"

"Yep."

"How long this time?"

"Long enough."

So he saw me with Thomas. No wonder he's angry. My eyes shift anxiously.

"I saw you dancing. Flirting. Letting that prick touch you in this piece of a dress, which you look hot as shit in by the way. And guess what? I didn't sucker punch him like I should have. Like I could have. Like you'd expect me to."

All right maybe I deserved that. The Ethan comment I made the other day was a low blow. But that's besides the point.

"Did you see him leave?"

"Are you seriously still looking for
him
in the middle of our conversation?"

"What did you do Roman?"

A bone chilling smile spreads across Roman's face.

"What do you think I did?"

"I don't know. What did you do? Where's Thomas?"

"Thomas huh?"

Roman backs me up against the driver's side door of the Rover and the crazy Neanderthal has the nerve to be hard as a rock. I refuse to let that distract me though. Thomas could be lying in an alley somewhere gasping for his next breath, and I would be partly responsible.

"Get in the fucking car Elizabeth."

"No!"

I reach in my purse for my phone. I'm going to text Sloan to come out and get me.

"I swear to fucking God if you text someone sitting in that club right now, I'm going to strap you to my bed for a week."

"You don't use straps you fake ass Dom!"

"There's a lot I haven't shown you yet Elizabeth, but best believe I will when the time is right."

I start breathing heavily as Roman weighs his massive body heavily against me, leaning his forehead against mine.

"I missed the shit out of you, Duchess."
 

I close my eyes as Roman slides his right hand around the back of my thigh and hitches it up. My dress sliding up with it.

"I saw you in this dress and I wanted to kill every motherfucker in that place. They were all staring at you. Plotting on what's mine."

"Masterson." I say reverently.

"Did you miss me?" Roman's voice cracks just slightly, and I smell the chocolate on his breath. He's been eating M&M's.

He missed me.

I wrap my arms around Roman's neck and palm the back of his head like I do when we make love. I whisper softly on his lips, "Yes."

And I feel a smile spread across his.

"Happy birthday, Duchess."

I just notice that it's a few minutes past midnight.

"Thank you, Masterson."

"Let's go back to my place and bring that shit in right."

"I have to be back at the house tomorrow by no later than five." I warn.

"Whatever you want baby. I just need to be inside you in the worst fucking way. I don't care how long you give me."

I kiss him after that.
 

Long, slow and deep the way he likes it.

He picks up my other leg and is holding me up against the car with one hand while never breaking the kiss. With the other hand, he smoothly unlocks the door, and before I know what's happening he’s walked around the car and slides me inside the passenger seat.
 

Then he breaks the kiss.
 

"Text the glamazon and tell her you've gone home."

"All right." I say still a bit dazed from the kiss.

"Elizabeth."

"Yes?"

"I didn't hurt your boy Thomas. I just strongly suggested that he never dance with you again. He's the one that decided to leave the club."

I exhale a sigh of relief. "He's just a friend."

"Elizabeth."

"Yes, Roman?"

"Are we finished fighting about the money?"

"Do you understand why I was so angry?"

"I do but you also need to realize your worth. You are worth so much more than twenty-five thousand dollars, Elizabeth. You should never argue that point with me or anyone else."

I'm quiet after that.
 

He just schooled me and complimented me in one breath. We ride home to Roman's penthouse in heavy charged silence.
 

It's a ride filled with anticipation and sparks of electricity as I gaze outside of the car window, delightedly humming happy birthday to myself. My whole outlook has completely done an entire one-eighty.
 

It's going to be a good birthday.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

ELIZABETH

Juliette is on speed ten.

She's been flitting around the house all morning like a housewife on Ritalin. Dancing to old house music, yapping on her phone, baking all sorts of yummy smelling desserts, and running errand after errand. She has got to be more excited about my own birthday than I am. That and the fact that I think she may be a little anxious about my father coming to visit. I think her jumpiness is starting to piss my uncle off though.

"Would you please calm down." He says to her while he places one of his palms on her cheek in a loving way.

"I am calm."

"I'd tell you to drink a glass of wine, but it's only one in the afternoon. I don't know why you're acting like the Pope is coming to dinner."

Juliette glares at my uncle with a little hurt in her eyes.

"My brother and his wife are coming for their only daughter's birthday. I haven't seen them in ages. I just want everything to be perfect. Do you have a problem with that Joseph Michael Masterson?"

"Oh so you're using my middle name now?" He chuckles. "I better watch it."

"That's right you better!" She says as she gives him a quick kiss on the lips. A gesture that seems to placate my uncle, because he gives her a quick swat on the ass in return and then walks back into his office with a smile.

They're so adorable.

"I think you have Uncle Joseph wrapped around your little finger." I acknowledge respectfully, because I can't figure out for the life of me how she does it.
 

How do you control a Masterson man? Or maybe I'm dealing with the younger, wilder version of Uncle Joseph. Perhaps Roman will calm down in about twenty years.

I laugh to myself.
 

Probably not.

"We've been together a long time sweetie. Each of us is wrapped around the other's finger," she says while wiping down the kitchen counters.

"Was it always like that between you two or was it something that grew?"

Juliette drops the antibacterial wipe she was using in the trashcan and turns towards me.

"It's your birthday, Elizabeth, so you can't lie. Are you asking me about Joseph or are you asking me about Roman?"

I'm not sure where my crazy aunt gets these rules of hers; of course I can lie on my own frackin' birthday.

"Obviously I'm talking about Uncle Joseph." I respond with a look of feigned mortification.

She grins. "You came in pretty early this morning."

"Birthday celebration." I respond a little too quickly.

"What did you do?"

"Hung out with some of Sloan's work friends."

"Oh? I've never heard you mention anyone really but Sloan and that other girl. The one who's a little on the chunky side."

"That's Tiny."

"Interesting name."

"Yeah." I giggle.

My heart jumps at the double knock coming from the front door. Juliette's checking on some sort of pie in the oven, so I offer to grab the door.

"I'll get it."

"Thanks honey."

I open the door to a grinning Roman.

"Happy birthday, Duchess."

Seeing him standing there in all his badass glory just makes me relive the last twelve hours, and I can't help but smile in response.

"Thank you, Roman."

"Roman is it now?" He asks in an amused tone while walking through the threshold.

I roll my eyes back at him playfully.

I think I may have called out his last name about a hundred times last night. That's how unbelievable the sex was between us. That's how passionate it always is. And I know I don't have much past experience to pull from, but something tells me that this isn't common or typical. Not if I go by some of the stories Sloan tells me about her sexcapades. Sure, she has a lot of fun, but there's never been a man that's ruined her for all the others.

That is what Roman is to me. Someone who's ruined the possibility for any others to come after him.

"I'm here to take you out for the day."

"I can't." I respond looking confused. Didn't Juliette tell him?

"Why?"

"My parents are coming for dinner. Juliette's been baking all morning. Didn't she tell you?"

"What time?"

"Seven."

"I'll have you back way before then."

"Roman, is that you?" Juliette calls from the kitchen.

"Yes gorgeous."

"I swear I don't understand why you never use your key."

"Just trying to be respectful of your privacy. Never know what you and the old man could be doing in here." He jests.

I knock him on the shoulder with my fist.

"You're so gross," I say.

"Yeah, Roman, you're so gross." My uncle rumbles suddenly as he enters the room.

"Whatever Joseph. Listen I'm taking the birthday girl out for an hour or so."

"Is that right? Juliette come out here please."

Juliette walks in the living room while wiping her hands on a kitchen cloth.

"What is it?"

"I'm taking Elizabeth out for a few hours. I'll bring her back in time for your
little family
dinner." Roman emphasizes the words little and family with disdain.

A look of shame crosses my aunt's face then irritation.

"Joseph, honey, didn't you invite Roman to the dinner tonight?"

"Did you tell me to?"

"I thought it was understood." She says curtly. "You talk to him every other day about business, I thought you'd mention it in passing."

"Oh, I thought you would have texted him or something. Roman and I don't talk about personal stuff when we're meeting about business. But you're more than welcome to join us, Roman. Elizabeth's parents will be here for the night. Should be lots of fun."
 

There's no mistaking from the tone of his voice that he’d rather pull splinters from underneath his fingernails than break bread with my father.

"Well he doesn't have to–" I start saying to give Roman an out. I don't know if I want him here to witness the carnage that may take place over dinner. Not after I made such a stink the other night about all the Masterson dysfunction.

"What time should we be back for dinner?" He asks with a steely look in his eyes.

"Dinner starts at seven, but my brother is always early, so maybe you two should be back here by no later then six." Juliette says.

"No problem. We'll be here. You ready Elizabeth?"

"Um … where are we going?"

"It's a surprise."

"Do I need to change?"
 

All I have on is a crisp white v-neck T-shirt and a pair of my favorite jeans. Luckily I did make sure to style my hair and put on a little make-up.

"Nope. You're fine."

"All right." I look at Juliette and Joseph. I can't read their faces right now, but I don't think it's good. "I'll be back on time. I swear." I assure them.

"Mm-hmm." My uncle mutters.

"You better." Juliette says right after that.

***

"Why is Mr. Tibbs in the car?"

"He missed you."

"Seriously? He hates me. I think he wants to eat me."

"No I want to eat you," he teases. "Unbutton those jeans right now."

"What!"

"I need to do a spot check."

"You are ridiculous and in front of Mr. Tibbs no less." I complain as I actually do the ridiculous and unbutton my jeans in the middle of broad daylight in his Range Rover.
 

"He likes to watch."

Roman is parked a few cars away from the house, so even if Juliette peeked out the window, she wouldn't see us, but plenty of her neighbors definitely would. Neighbors that she's quite friendly with.