When You Were Mine
Everyone always thinks Romeo and Juliet were so helpless to fate
, that they were at the mercy of their love for each other. Not true. Juliet wasn’t some sweet, innocent girl torn apart by destiny. She knew exactly what she was doing. The problem was, Shakespeare didn’t.
Romeo didn’t belong with Juliet;
he belonged with me.
It was supposed to be us together forever
, and it would have been if she hadn’t come along and stolen him away. Maybe then all of this could have been avoided.
Maybe then they’d still be alive.
rebeccaserle.com
“
What’s in a name, Shakespeare? I’ll tell you: everything.
”
ROSALINE KNOWS THAT SHE AND ROB ARE destined to be together. Rose has been waiting for years for Rob to kiss her—and when he finally does, it’s perfect. But then Juliet moves back to town. Juliet, who used to be Rose’s best friend. Juliet, who now inexplicably hates her. Juliet, who is gorgeous, vindictive, and a little bit crazy . . . and who has set her sights on Rob. He doesn’t even stand a chance.
Rose is devastated over losing Rob to Juliet. This is not how the story was supposed to go. And when rumors start swirling about Juliet’s instability, her neediness, and her threats of suicide, Rose starts to fear not only for Rob’s heart, but also for his life. Because Shakespeare may have gotten the story wrong, but we all still know how it ends.
REBECCA SERLE
is a full-time writer, which means she gets to wear pajamas to work. She went to the University of Southern California, then got her MFA from the New School in NYC. (She likes New York much more than LA, but don’t tell anyone that.) Rebecca loves shiny hair, coffee, yoga, and pretending to be British. She, too, experienced heartbreak once. It worked out okay, though, because she turned the experience into this book.
When You Were Mine
is her first novel. Find out more at
rebeccaserle.com
.
Jacket designed by Russell Gordon
Jacket photograph copyright © 2012 by Masterfile
Author photograph by Chellise Michael Photography
simon pulse
SIMON & SCHUSTER, NEW YORK
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Praise for
When You Were Mine
“I swooned. I cried. I loved, loved, loved this delicious novel.”
—Sarah Mlynowski, author of
Ten Things We Did
(
and Probably Shouldn’t Have
) and
Gimme a Call
“By turns heart-stoppingly romantic and heart-poundingly exciting,
When You Were Mine
is a book you’ll want to make yours.”
—Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus, bestselling authors of
The Nanny Diaries
“
When You Were Mine
is one of those wonderful books that makes you feel like you’re spending time with friends. A sweet, fun, and utterly irresistible read.”
—Deb Caletti, author of
The Story of Us
and National Book Award Finalist
Honey, Baby, Sweetheart
“A powerful story about the thrill of first love and the devastation of first heartbreak.”
—Leila Sales, author of
Mostly Good Girls
and
Past Perfect
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
SIMON PULSE
An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com
First Simon Pulse hardcover edition May 2012
Copyright © 2012 by Rebecca Serle
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
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.
Designed by Mike Rosamilia
The text of this book was set in Adobe Garamond Pro.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Serle, Rebecca.
When you were mine / Rebecca Serle. — 1st Simon Pulse hardcover ed. p. cm.
Summary: Seniors Rosaline Caplet and Rob Monteg, neighbors and best friends, have finally become a couple at their Southern California high school. But when Rosie’s estranged cousin Juliet moves back into town and pursues Rob in an unstable, needy, and vindictive manner, Rosie starts to worry not just about Rob’s emotions, but about his very life.
ISBN 978-1-4424-3313-7 (hardcover : alk. paper)
[1. Dating (Social customs)—Fiction. 2. High schools—Fiction. 3. Schools—Fiction. 4. Family problems—Fiction. 5. Emotional problems—Fiction.] I. Title.
PZ7.S4827Wh 2012
[Fic]—dc23
2011032734
ISBN 978-1-4424-3315-1 (eBook)
For Ron and Ranjana Serle,
with limitless love
She’ll not be hit
With Cupid’s arrow. She hath Dian’s wit,
And, in strong proof of chastity well armed,
From Love’s weak childish bow she lives unharmed.
She will not stay the siege of loving terms,
Nor bide th’ encounter of assailing eyes,
Nor ope her lap to saint-seducing gold.
O, she is rich in beauty; only poor
That when she dies, with beauty dies her store.
—Romeo, from
The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet
, Act 1, Scene 1