His Juliet: An Age Gap Hurt Comfort Mafia Romance (Empire of Royals Book 2)

It was two in the morning and I couldn’t sleep.

The bed was too big without Romeo. I buried my face into his pillow, inhaling his scent like a desperate, lonely weirdo.

The minutes ticked by and I was still wide awake. I finally grabbed my phone with a huff. If sleep wasn’t coming, I needed a new book to pass the time.

I opened my search app and got caught up scrolling through the recommended news stories. There was usually some sort of article with book recommendations. I scrolled for a bit and was about to give up when something caught my eye.

My heart started pounding before I fully realized what I was looking at. The cover photo of the article featured a gorgeous redhead staring at the camera, all beauty and seduction. Her hand was wrapped around a man’s bicep.

Romeo’s bicep.

I couldn’t fully see his face because he was looking down at her.

Nausea churned in my stomach as I numbly clicked on the article.

There was another photo of Romeo and Leona dancing. I stared at it so long my eyes glazed over. I finally came to my senses and threw my phone to the side.

Romeo hadn’t told me he was going to Boston, but I hadn’t asked what he was doing tonight, either. Maybe he was making a business deal with this woman.

That doesn’t explain why they’re dancing.

See how he looks at her? How perfect she looks beside him?

Romeo loved me. He’d told me so over text just hours ago.

So why didn’t he tell you about Leona?

I squeezed my eyes shut. I wanted that horrible voice to go away, but I couldn’t stop myself from listening to it. Was Romeo getting bored with me?

You’ll never be able to attend a gala with him.

You think he’ll be happy hanging out on the couch every night with you?

She looks like she belongs with him. Beautiful, thin, and sexy. All the things you’ll never be.

My eyes burned with tears, and for the first time since moving in with Romeo, I had the urge to cut. The skin on my thighs itched, dangling the possibility of tantalizing relief from my emotions. But I had promised him I wouldn’t… and even more important, I’d promised myself.

I rolled over in bed and wrapped myself around his pillow. I wasn’t going to let my insecurities ruin our relationship. I was sure there was a perfectly innocent explanation for the photos. Tonight, I would let myself cry, but then I would pull myself together and stay calm until I could ask Romeo about it in person.

Romeo

I won’t be back again tonight, angel

Juliet

What are you doing?

Romeo

Getting a business deal done, but it’s taking longer than expected

Juliet

Oh ok

Romeo

I wish I was there with you

Juliet

Could we talk on the phone tonight?

Romeo

I’m so sorry but I’ll be out. I would much rather be talking with you. Actually, I just want to be wrapped around you

How are you doing? You can always sleep at Sofiya or Sienna’s if you get lonely

Juliet

I’m ok. But I’m going to be really good at Mario Kart at this rate

Romeo

You’ll crush all the opposition, including me

I’ve got to run. Love you, stellina

Juliet

Love you

The third night Romeo was gone, I found myself sitting on the couch in the dark. The sun had set hours ago and the silence of the apartment was suffocating. I should have turned on some music, watched a TV show, read a book, done something. But I was frozen.

The apartment felt too big. The lamps cast looming shadows on the walls that played tricks with my mind.

I’d woken up alone and spent the day alone.

Just like yesterday and the day before.

Romeo’s just busy. He hasn’t forgotten you. He’s not tired of you.

No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t shake the dark thoughts.

I stayed on the couch, staring at the front door for the entire night.

And when the morning sunlight streamed in through the windows and I still didn’t have a single text from Romeo, I could almost hear my heart break.noveldrama

I slowly opened my apartment door, bracing myself for an alarm to go off.

I was being ridiculous. No one had told me I couldn’t leave my apartment—in fact, Sofiya had invited me over multiple times—but I still felt like I would get in trouble.

Dante, the bodyguard posted in the hallway, lifted his chin. “You good, Juliet?”

I nodded and took a few tentative steps towards him. “Um, I thought I’d see if Sienna was home. If that’s okay?”

He furrowed his brow. “Of course.”

I bit my lip and knocked before I lost my nerve.

Romeo had been gone for four days.

Four long days alone in the apartment with only my dark thoughts to keep me company.

I missed working at the bookstore. It had given me a sense of purpose. All I’d done the past few days was wander around the apartment, try (and fail) to read, and imagine all the horrifying things Romeo was doing with Leona.

I wouldn’t have thought it possible that my world could shrink even smaller, that I could grow even more pathetic than I had been these past few years, but here I was.

I was also a little scared of what I might do if I stayed isolated any longer.

The door opened, revealing Sienna wearing silk pajamas and wrapped in a thick blanket.

“Juliet! Oh my gosh, come in.”

I followed as she shuffled over to her dark green velvet couch.

“It’s so good to see you. Here, sit down. Can I get you anything?”

I shook my head and perched on the edge of the sofa. “I’m fine, thanks.”

Sienna plopped down. “Help yourself to some candy.” Multiple bowls were set out on the coffee table in front of her, containing peanut M&Ms, nerd clusters, and chocolate-covered pretzels.

“How have you been?” she asked. “I’m sorry I’ve been so MIA. I’ve been wanting to hang out, but I’ve been absolutely swamped with work.”

I cocked my head. I didn’t realize Sienna had a job. “Am I interrupting you?” It was eight o’clock at night, but her laptop was open beside her.

“Not at all. It’s good for me to take a break. Talk to another human.”

“What do you do?”

“I’m a hacker. Matteo has finally enlisted me to help him.”

I raised my eyebrows. “A hacker? That’s so cool.”

“I think so, too. My brother hasn’t wanted me involved in Family business until now, so I’m trying to make sure I impress him so he can’t fire me.”

I settled back on the couch. “What changed?”

Her face fell a little. “He suspects his hacker, Franco, might have betrayed him.” Her fingers drummed against her laptop. “But I don’t think he did. I really like Franco, and he’s a solid hacker. It’s just that the Butcher is better.”

“The Butcher?”

“The head of the Albanian Mob. Or clan? I never get the terminology right. Somehow, the Butcher and his soldiers have been getting around the city without being detected. We have our men and Bratva soldiers stationed in every borough, and we’re monitoring our own cameras as well as the city and police cameras we’ve hacked into. Despite that, the Albanians are still ghosts.”

Knowing that the Albanians were sex traffickers made me feel sick.

“Are you supposed to be telling me all of this?” I asked.

Sienna looked up from her laptop. “What do you mean? You’re part of the Family now.”

I shrugged. “Romeo doesn’t really tell me these things. I don’t even know what he does all day.” Fuck, I sounded like I was whining.

Sienna leaned over and squeezed my hand. “It has nothing to do with you. It’s these Mafia men—they’re overprotective by nature. I’ve been begging Matteo to involve me for years, and he’s only letting me do it now as a last resort.”

That made sense, but I couldn’t shake the sick feeling deep inside me. “I’m worried Romeo doesn’t want me anymore,” I blurted out.

Sienna’s jaw dropped and she snapped her laptop shut. “This conversation demands wine. Or margaritas. Scotch? I don’t know, pick your poison.”

When I didn’t respond, she waved her hand as she headed into the kitchen. “Let’s do margaritas. Scotch is too boring.”

A blender sounded in the kitchen, and I couldn’t stop myself from checking my phone again. Still no texts from Romeo. I hadn’t heard from him since yesterday.

That doesn’t mean anything. He’s just busy. No one wants a needy girlfriend.

“Here you go.” Sienna sat back down on the couch and held out a glass. I took it, trailing my finger against the salt on the rim.

“Thanks.”

“Now, tell me why you think Romeo doesn’t want you anymore, and I’ll tell you why you’re wrong.”

A smile tugged at the corner of my lips. “I’m probably just being silly. I haven’t heard from him much the past few days.” I took a sip of the margarita and was reminded of the last time I drank alcohol—that first night with Romeo in the bookstore.

“That has nothing to do with you.” Sienna’s voice was gentle. “He got roped into some work with Leona.”

I kept my face blank, not wanting to give away that I’d seen the article about them. “Who’s Leona?”

“Oh, she’s the top assassin in the Irish Mob.”

I blinked. “What?” I apparently needed to confront my prejudices because I would never have looked at Leona and thought she was an assassin.

“She’s also a spy and thief. That’s what her and Romeo are working on now. I don’t have the details, just that Matteo wants Leona to help them find the Butcher, and part of the agreement was that Romeo would help her with a job she’s doing for Ronan—the head of the Irish Mob.”

“Oh, okay.”

Romeo had spent the past four days with a gorgeous assassin-spy-thief? No wonder he wasn’t dying to come home or even talk with me on the phone.

I must not have sounded convincing, because a small crease formed between Sienna’s eyes. “There’s nothing going on between him and Leona, I promise. He used to be a bit of a playboy, but he’s always been one of the most loyal people I know. I’ve never seen him this obsessed with anyone, or this happy. He’s all in with you, Juliet.”

I tried to let her words sink in, but after a life of abandonment, they just bounced off me.

I plastered a smile on my face and hung out with Sienna for another thirty minutes before I lied and told her I was heading to bed.

Back in the apartment, I tried to find something to distract myself from my dark thoughts. From the first moment we met, I’d known I didn’t fit with Romeo. He was sexy and dangerous. Seeing him beside Leona just made sense. Why would he ever be interested in me when he could have a woman like that?