Page 2 of From Rome, With Hate

“I have not,” I protest.

All three women eye me skeptically.

“What?” I ask, dodging their stares.

I glance over my shoulder, back to the flower wall. It’s only about twenty or thirty feet away from me, but his eyes are unmistakable. He’s still staring at me, forcing me to turn back to my three best friends.

“I’m perfectly fine. I look amazing and I’ve lost count on the number of glasses of champagne I’ve had since Charleigh and Asher cut the cake.”

I cross my arms beneath my chest, mostly to stop me from marching over to the other side of the wall and punching that asshole right in the face.

Selene purses her lips, twisting her mouth in thought. Not only is she my best friend, but she’s also my brand-new sister-in-law. It was only a few weeks ago that she married my brother in a whirlwind ceremony down at the courthouse. Their romancehas both happened at the speed of light, yet it’s been a long time coming. After pining and obsessing over Selene for years, Holt finally found his path to professing his love for my best friend.

I was hesitant at first, but I’ve never seen Selene this happy. Not to mention my brother. My gaze darts over to where he’s sitting at one of the tables, cradling his sleeping son in his arms. The anger inside me disappears momentarily. I wish our mother were here to see Holt slipping into his role of being a father so effortlessly. Seeing Holt love on his son reminds me that life isn’t always treacherous and chaotic. Sometimes, it can be calm and beautiful.

Turning back to Selene, I unravel my arms the moment I realize she hasn’t stopped eyeing me. I know she sees straight through me.

Or at least she thinks she does.

My heart is trapped inside a locked vault, resting at the bottom of the ocean. I’ve never truly opened it for anyone. Well, no one except…

“I think it’s funny Charleigh is tossing the bouquet when all but one of her friends are married or engaged,” London blurts out.

With her jaw dropping, Selene snaps her head toward her sister. “London!” she scolds, shifting her gaze to me in a not-so-subtle way.

Charleigh and Selene are married. London is engaged. And me? Well…

“Shit.” London’s eyebrows pull together. “I’m sorry, Jules. I didn’t mean it that way, I just…”

“It’s fine.” I pretend her comment didn’t sting.

“Hey,” Charleigh chimes in. “I have more friends than just you three, you know.”

“Sure, you do.” Selene rolls her eyes.

They continue to bicker, but I’m too distracted to pay them any more attention. Looking over my shoulder has me meeting with blue eyes again. They’re intense, staring at me relentlessly between the flowers. Of course they are. He’s probably here to claim the debt he swears he’s owed.

Asshole probably assumes he’ll get it at my best friend’s wedding, too.

I curl my fingers into fists at my sides. The sharp tips of my nails slice into my palms, and the blood in my veins boils over.

“I’ll be back,” I tell my best friends, leaving them quickly.

“What about the bouquet toss?” Charleigh shouts behind me.

“Start without me!” I shout over my shoulder.

Wedding guests eye me as I whiz past them to get to the other side of the wall. My feet can’t carry me fast enough. I steel my chest, prepared to confront him, when I find him standing on the other side of the flower wall, and my heels slam to a stop against the marble floor.

The debt I owe this man for writing an anonymous article in my brother’s magazine about him and dragging his name through the dirt has followed me around for the past nine months like a fucking storm cloud. Heavy and gray, the weight of it has kept me up at night, tossing and turning until I’m tangled in a web of sheets and those fucking blue eyes.

I will never tell him that, though.

Instead, I tell my thundering heart to calm the fuck down, but when he comes into my line of sight on the other side of the wall, it completely ignores me.

I stop for a split second and inhale a deep breath.

That black hair. His black suit.