Romeo (Blood Brothers) (12 page)

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Romeo was awakened by a loud groan. He squinted his eyes against the sunlight filtering through the pastel-colored curtains. He glanced to his left and saw Christine clutching her head, a look of utter agony on her face. Tears ran from the corners of her eyes.

Panic tore through him. “Christine, what’s wrong?”

“Pills,” she moaned.

“Headache?”

“Yes. Please get my tablets in the top drawer to your right. There’s a bottle with a prescription label on it.”

Romeo had never experienced a headache before but he knew of them, they could be agonizing and the one Christine seemed to be experiencing was particularly excruciating. He grabbed the pills, clumsy fingers prying open the bottle and fed her a pill. “Let me get you some water, too.” He ran to the bathroom and grabbed a cup, filling it with water from the tap before hurrying back to her. He pressed the cup of water against her lips until she gulped most of it down.

“One more, please,” she whispered.

He did as she asked, then held her in his arms while she cried. He’d never felt this helpless in his life. “Migraines?” He asked softly.

Christine nodded.

“Here. Let me help you. Your pills will take a while to work. I have something better.” Romeo let his pinky extend to a sharpened point, then he pricked the pad of his forefinger on his opposite hand, letting a drop of blood bead on the flesh. “Open your mouth.”

“No,” she moaned, apparently not wanting to taste his blood.

“It will help you with the pain. I can’t stand to see you like this. Please, sweetheart, just a little taste. It won’t hurt you, merely take away the pain.” He coaxed her lips apart and squeezed some droplets on her tongue. “Swallow,” he instructed.

Christine finally gave in, albeit reluctantly, before resting her head against his shoulders. Romeo rocked her in his arms while planting kisses on her forehead.

It was several minutes before she spoke. “Romeo?”

“Yes, sweetheart?”

“The pain is gone.”

He smiled, feeling quite smug. “I knew it would.”

“Thank you. It was worse than ever this time.”

“I didn’t know you suffered from migraines. How long?”

She stiffened. “What?”

“Umm, your migraines. How long have you been suffering from them?”

“About a year or so.”

“Is there nothing else that can be done besides taking pills?”

“No. There’s no magic fix for my condition.”

He noticed she wouldn’t look him in the eye when she spoke. Romeo had the distinct impression that she wasn’t being completely honest with him but it wasn’t something he wanted to challenge in this moment. He wished he could read her mind but something was blocking him from doing so. He was still pretty sure she was human, so what was so different about her? This brought to mind another concern he had which brought to mind something else. “How did you meet your friend, Nya?”

Christine finally lifted her head to look at him with questioning eyes. “Why?”

“Humor me.”

“She saved my life. I was attacked by some men who tried to rob and rape me. She came from out of nowhere and took care of them. I’d never seen anyone handle themselves like her before. She was amazing and I will forever be in her debt for what she’s done.”

Romeo frowned. He briefly wondered if it was a convenient coincidence that Nya had come to Christine’s rescue that night or was there something more sinister behind it. From his observation of the femme, she seemed to have a genuine affection for Christine. Maybe there really was a true friendship between the two of them but he didn’t trust Nya. Not after what happened to him in Montreal. She was possibly helping one of the most dangerous rogues in the immortal world. “How well do you know this woman?”

“To be honest, Nya doesn’t really talk about herself that much. But even though she doesn’t say a lot, she always seems interested in my life and she gives good advice. Nya has been a good friend to me.”

“Has she ever mentioned what she does when the two of you aren’t together?”

Christine forehead wrinkled. “Why are you asking all these questions about her?”

Romeo grinned, picking up on the possessiveness in her tone. “Are you jealous?”

She smacked him on his shoulder. “No.”

“Liar.”

Christine gave him a sheepish grin. “Maybe a little. She’s gorgeous.”

“But she’s not you.” Her answers reassured him that she knew nothing of her friend’s activities, but he still didn’t want her mixed up with anything dangerous.

“You really need to be careful with her.”

“I trust Nya completely. I know this sounds odd, but she kind of has the soul of a child.”

“More likely, the soul of a lioness.”

“No, seriously. She’s suffered.”

“How do you know if she hasn’t told you a lot about herself?”

“That’s just it. It’s not what she’s told me, it’s what she hasn’t told me. I’ve read between the lines and I know she hasn’t had a happy life. Why do you suddenly want know so much about her?”

This was not the time to get into his family history. Romeo just wanted to enjoy Christine’s company. “It doesn’t matter. I was just curious how a vampire and human had become friends.” He decided to change the subject. “What would you like to do today? Do you need to go into your office?”

“No. It’s Saturday, silly.”

“Oh, yes. I sometimes lose track of the days.”

“I can’t afford to do that. What do you do for money?”

“When I was younger, my brother invested some for me and it’s grown substantially over time. If I’m bored, I find odd jobs, mainly construction because I like working with my hands, but the family business usually keeps me busy.”

“What’s the family business?

What exactly could he tell her without giving too much away? Thinking quickly, he said, “Uh, it’s an agency of sorts. Enough about me, you never answered my question. What do you want to do today?”

“Other than make love?” She grinned cheekily.

“I like how you think, sweetheart.”

“Well, I promised my friends I’d visit today.”

“Tell them you can’t make it.”

“No. Not with these two. They’d be very disappointed if I didn’t show up. Besides, I made a promise to them.”

“Don’t you want to spend time with me?” He kissed the corner of her mouth.

“I would love to, but I don’t want to let them down. Why don’t you come with me?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Please.” She stuck out her bottom lip in an enticing pout. The compelling look in her eyes made it difficult for him to say no.

“Okay, but I don’t want to stay long. I want you all to myself.”

“Trust me. You’ll like my friends.”

“If you say so,” he conceded, wondering what he was getting into.

Chapter Fourteen

“What is this place?” Romeo asked Christine when they pulled up to a large Victorian-style home on the outskirts of the city.

“This is where my friends live.”

“You’ve been very close-mouthed about them,” he said as he got out of Christine’s car. Why was she being so secretive? Instinct told him that he had no reason to suspect her of any foul play, but if the last months had taught him anything, it was definitely that he needed to be cautious.

Christine moved around the car and took his hand. When she smiled at him, Romeo knew that he could deny her nothing. He wanted to take her into his arms, press her against the car and fuck her senseless. He was now well and truly under her spell and didn’t think it was necessarily a bad thing.

They walked to the door hand in hand. When Christine knocked on the door, she turned to him, smile still intact. “You’ll like my friends. Don’t be nervous.”

“Who’s nervous?”

A glow of excitement radiated from her and Christine’s face lit up when she talked about these mysterious friends of hers. Apparently, she thought a lot of them and if they were important to her, Romeo wanted to make a good impression. It was laughable when he thought about it. Days ago, he couldn’t imagine wanting to impress a woman as much he wanted to for Christine.

Usually, he didn’t give a damn about what other people thought of him but here he was, jittery as a chicken in a fox’s den. This need for approval made him uneasy and Romeo wasn’t sure how to handle it.

The door was opened by a large redhead, a huge grin on her cheerful face. “Christine! They’ve been waiting for you. I see you’ve brought a friend with you this time,” the woman finished with a wink.

“Hi, Marla. This is Romeo.”

Marla looked him up and down, appreciation gleaming in her green eyes. Holding out her hand, Marla’s gaze locked on his. “Well, how do you do, Mr. Romeo? Is that really your name?”

Romeo shook the hand offered to him and grinned. He instantly liked this woman. “Are you asking is it really my name or if I live up to it?”

Marla raised a brow in surprise, probably wondering how he’d read her mind. His smile widened. “If there was any doubt before, there’s none now. Romeo, I hope you’re not trying to flirt because I’m old enough to be your mother.” She wagged her finger at him.

Romeo brought her hand to his lips. “You’d be surprised.”

She chuckled, pulling her hand away. “Real smooth, lover boy. Come on in.”

“Are they upstairs?” Christine asked, looking around.

“No, they’re in the playroom doing crafts.”

“Okay. Thanks.” Christine took Romeo’s hand again and dragged him past a grinning Marla. She led him down a corridor to a room in the back of the house before she stopped and turned around to face him. “They’re not really used to strangers, so if they don’t take to you, it’s nothing personal.”

Romeo wondered what that meant but decided not to question her because he’d soon find out. He shrugged and followed her inside.

To his utter surprise, he saw two small children, a boy and a girl, drawing pictures at a little table in the middle of a room full of toys. So these were Christine’s friends. Romeo was more nervous than ever because of his lack of experience with children. The little boy lifted his head and hazel eyes lit up in a caramel face when he spotted Christine. “Miss Christine!” He jumped up and raced over to where she stood, then stopped just shy of her when he noticed Romeo.

The little girl, who couldn’t be older than two, just stared at him with large, dark eyes in a milk-chocolate face, her head full of braids and colorful hair twists. She was quite adorable. The boy would have been a cute kid if there wasn’t a nasty glare on his face.

The boy looked Romeo up and down as though sizing up an opponent. “Who is this?” The kid jerked his thumb in Romeo’s direction with narrowed eyes.

“This is my friend, Mr. Grimaldi.”

The child crossed his arms over his chest. “I don’t like him,” came the rude reply.

“Jaxson, that’s not very nice. You don’t even know him,” Christine scolded gently.

“So?”

“So you can’t judge someone without getting to know them first.”

Defiance flashed within the depths of the child’s hazel eyes. His lips pursed mutinously.

Romeo didn’t know why but he kind of liked this kid. He could tell this little boy was a pistol and more than likely would tell someone exactly what he thought of them in a heartbeat. Kind of like him. He wanted to reach out to the child, but decided to let him make the first move, as this was Jaxson’s territory.

“Jaxson, don’t you remember what you told me about the little boy at your school who didn’t like you because of the way you look?” When he didn’t answer right away, Christine prompted him. “Jaxson?”

The boy gave an exaggerated sigh. “I didn’t like it,” he finally answered.

“And seeing as how you know what it’s like to be judged without a fair chance, don’t you think you should give Mr. Grimaldi one?”

“I guess. Okay, Mr. Grimbody, what are your intentions with Miss Christine?” Jaxson asked, staring him square in the eyes.

Romeo looked at Christine, who covered her mouth, obviously to stifle a laugh. Just how old was this kid anyway? “I beg your pardon?”

The little boy rolled his eyes and sighed as though he were talking to someone who really wasn’t all that bright. “I said—”

“I know what you said but what exactly do you mean by asking me that?”

“You don’t watch a lot of TV, do you?” Jaxson shook his head in obvious disgust.

“I try not to.”

“Well, when a woman brings her boyfriend over for a visit, I’m supposed to ask what your intentions are.”

“Christine, perhaps you should have a word with whoever is in charge of these two about their television program choices.”

She giggled. “Duly noted.

Romeo returned his attention to the boy. This was obviously no child. It was a forty-year-old man trapped in a little boy’s body. What
were
his intentions with Christine? After being with her last night, he’d be a fool to continue thinking it was just sex. When he wasn’t with her, he felt like he was only half alive. His dreams were filled with her and the thought of her being with other men drove him to the brink of madness.

This had to be the love that had Marco and Nico acting like a couple of nuts. If they felt half of what Romeo felt when he was with Christine, he could see why they never wanted to leave their mates’ sides.

Romeo looked over at Christine’s lovely face and felt his heart swell.

Shit.

He was in love, all right.

Romeo shifted on his feet uncomfortably and looked back down at the little inquisitor. “Well, I really do... lo—like her.”

“Are you going to marry her?”

“Jaxson!” Christine’s sharp rejoinder saved him from answering a question he didn’t know the answer to.

The child batted innocent eyes in Christine’s direction. “What?”

“You’re being a little rude.”

“I’m sorry, Miss Christine. I just thought you would come alone like you always do.” Jaxson shot Romeo a look full of resentment. Because this kid was obviously so important to Christine he wanted to win him over.

He knelt down in front of Jaxson. “I can understand why you would want to have Miss Christine all to yourself. She is very special, isn’t she?”

The boy remained sullenly silent, even though he looked like he wanted to agree with Romeo. Finally, with a nod of his small head, he turned his back on Romeo and returned to the table.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know he would react like this. For some reason... I don’t know why, but I thought you would get along.”

“It’s okay. How old is he?” Romeo’s voice dropped to a whisper so that the children wouldn’t be able to hear.

“Jaxson is six and Adrienne is three.”

Romeo frowned. “The little girl is three? I don’t know a lot about kids but isn’t she a bit on the small side?”

The child in question continued to stare at him with wide, questioning eyes. She stuffed her thumb in her mouth while twirling a barrette.

“It’s a long story. They’ve had a tough life.”

“What is this place?”

“It’s a state-run home for children who can’t be fostered out.”

“What’s wrong with them? They seem like perfectly good children.”

“Well, you see how Jaxson reacted to you. It took him a while before he warmed up to me. And poor Adrienne can’t stand to be parted from her brother. She gets hysterical when she’s away from him, but under the circumstances, that’s understandable.”

“What’s happened to them?”

The tale Christine unfolded filled him with revulsion and sadness. How could anyone do that to ones so young and innocent? If he ever came across a child abuser, they wouldn’t live to see another day. “And what happened to the people who had these two in their care?”

“The aunt got probation but no jail time. I believe the uncle is in jail, but serving time for an entirely different offense.”

A look of melancholy entered Christine’s eyes. Romeo had lived enough years to know that the world was full of monsters and they weren’t necessarily creatures like vampires. “They mean a lot to you, don’t they?”

“Very much.”

Adrienne climbed off her chair and toddled over to them, stopping in front of Romeo.

To his surprise and, judging by her gasp, Christine’s as well, the girl silently held her arms up to him. Without hesitation, Romeo scooped her off her feet. She weighed so little, he was almost afraid that he’d break her but Adrienne, obviously, didn’t share his fear.