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“So, we’re at the edge of this cliff. And I say cliff because that’s how I remember it, but King swears it wasn’t that dangerous. Anyway, King and I are at the top, and we’re trying to pull Nix up from below us. He’s screaming and crying and flailing. Nix grabs King’s shirt, pulls him over the edge, and the two of them go skidding down the cliffside screaming the whole way. Kinda like that slide scene in Goonies, only with a lot more mud and fear of death. They landed in a mudpuddle at the bottom, and it’s pure silence for a minute. I seriously thought for a second that they were dead. Right up until I heard them both crack up laughing.”
I smiled at his memory. And honestly felt special that he was willing to share so much of himself with me. Especially since he never did with anyone else. This was the real Rome Grier, not the movie star pretending to be someone important. “I take it you never found your buried treasure?”
“Nope. They weren’t going to climb up the cliff again, and there was only one way down for me.”
“No.”
“Yeah, only onmyslide down the cliff I got gouged by a rock and ended up having to go to urgent care and getting eight stitches in my calf. I still have a scar.”
“Aww, poor baby. How old were you again?”
“Twelve.”
“I bet you were the coolest middle schooler in your town after that.”
“Before that.” Rome laughed. “Nah, I’m kidding. I was a little shit most of my childhood. Me and my brothers tore our town up, running wild. Our parents were divorced and busy getting back at each by dating everyone in town, so my brothers and I had a lot of time to get into trouble together.”
I could hear the pain in his voice when he talked about his parents. I’d known they were divorced, but I never thought about the impact that no doubt had on Rome and his brothers when they were little. Despite that pain, it sounded like an almost idyllic childhood—him and his brothers against the world. And so far from what mine was like. “It’s nice that you three are so close. I didn’t have those kind of childhood memories with my brother. The age difference was too big for us to really bond like that.”
“Wewerethat close. Now, things with Nix are screwed up. He’s screwed them up. There’s only so many times I can tell him to get help. And only so many times I’ll let him screw me over.”
I’d gathered as much after our little run-in with his younger brother. That kind of dysfunction was, sadly, right in my wheelhouse. “Yeah, that sounds familiar. My brother was the biggest narc. He used to get me to confide in him, then run to my mom and tell her everything I’d said. It didn’t take long for me to figure him out. Then I started feeding him fake information.”
Rome laughed. “How’d that go down? Did he get into trouble for lying?”
“Nah.” I shook my head and looked out the dark window at the emptying parking lot. “She took everything he said as gold. I quickly realized it was impossible to prove a negative.”
“That sucks. What about your dad? Was he around?”
“Yeah. I love my dad. He gets me. He’s a high school English teacher. He’s where I got my love of writing. Anytime I’d get really mad or frustrated, he’d give me a journal and tell me to go write all my feelings out. I started journaling then I might’ve written a few revenge stories. It helped me deal with all those big emotions.”
“And a career was born.” Rome smiled, and it did things inside me.
I felt all flustered. I had all his attention and I didn’t know what to do with it. So I did what I always did, I deflected. “That’s the dream anyhow. Um, shouldn’t we be heading out? The parking lot is all empty. They might lock us in.”
“They won’t, but sure.” Rome grabbed his phone and his fingers flew across the screen as he texted someone. “You ready for the next part?”
“I’m guessing dinner?” I asked as I scrambled to get out of the back of the SUV.
“Of course dinner. I’m not planning on starving you.”
Rome slid out the back and helped me down, his cell in one hand, my hand in his other. My whole body tingled at the contact. I wanted to act on the feelings but with us out in the open, I was hesitant. Rome gave me his sexy smile and tugged me toward the front passenger door. He held the door open for me and I was still feeling a little bashful. I avoided his eyes as I hopped inside the SUV. He closed the door behind me, and I held my breath as he walked around to the driver’s side. He climbed in then grabbed his seat belt.
I fumbled with mine. “Are the bodyguards or security or whatever not coming along?”
“They’re in that black SUV behind us. Hanging back to give us privacy but still there if we need them.”
I nodded like I was comfortable with his explanation when really it was still so crazy to me. I was dating someone who needed security. Would that ever feel normal?
Uncomfortable with the turn of my thoughts, I asked, “So where are we going?”
“You’re really not good with surprises, are you?”
“No, I’m not.” I laughed, relaxing a little with his gentle teasing. “Do I at least get a clue? A hint? A genre of food even?”
“A genre of food?” Rome’s rumbly laughter gave me a warm feeling. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard that one before.”
I rolled my eyes. “That’s not an answer.”
