Page 121 of His Juliet

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I restedmy chin on Romeo’s shoulder, meeting his gaze in the bathroom mirror. Maybe a normal couple would have waited until the morning for a haircut, but Romeo and I thrived at night.

“Do you want the same style cut?” I asked.

He tilted his head, pressing his cheek against mine. “You can dowhateveryou want to me.”

I pursed my lips. “Only you could make a haircut sound sexual.”

He reached behind him, running his hand up my bare thigh. “Get going, pretty girl, so I can get to thanking you.”

A lightness filled me as I started on his haircut with the shears I’d found in the bathroom. It had been a long time since I’d done a male cut, so I took my time.

“Where did you learn to cut hair?” he asked.

“Breanna taught me.” For the first time since she died, thinking about those hours we spent together practicing on all the kids who lived with us in the group home didn’t fill me with despair or self-loathing. “She was always good at it. She was almost done with cosmetology school when she died.”

I tilted Romeo’s head forward so I could trim his neck. “When we were teens, we used to charge the kids in our group home one dollar for haircuts.”

“What a bargain.”

“You might not say that if you saw some of the cuts we gave,” I said with a laugh.

“Should I be worried?”

“Nah. I’m charging you way more than a dollar for this.” I kissed his neck before circling to the front, carefully checking to make sure everything looked even. Romeo’s hold on my hips tightened and he let out a sound suspiciously close to a growl when I pressed my boobs close to his face. “I need a bit more practice, but it’s way better than you hacking away at it.” I played a bit with the styling, maybe running my fingers through his hair a little longer than strictly necessary, before stepping aside so he could check it out in the mirror.

He turned his head to the right and left. “Best haircut I’ve ever had.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.” I rolled my eyes, but I had to admit, it looked good.

He ran his hands under my shirt and palmed my bare ass cheeks. “Whatever can I give you in return?”

I gasped when his finger dipped inside me. “I think you’ll figure it out.”

His eyes darkened as he stood, his finger still inside me. “Mmm, I think I will.”

58

JULIET

I clearedour breakfast plates and coffee mugs, putting them in the sink. Romeo and I had slept in, but he had to leave soon for work.

He crowded me against the sink, kissing a line down my neck and shoulder.

“I won’t be back until late again, so I want you to stay at Sofiya and Matteo’s today.”

My heart ached. I was already missing him and he hadn’t even left yet. “I’ll be fine here.”

“I don’t want you on your own all day.”

He turned me to face him, but I kept my eyes fixed on the subtle white lines running through the black countertop, tracing them with my fingers.

A firm grip forced me to lift my chin. “What’s the matter?”

I opened my mouth to deny anything was wrong, but his hold tightened.

“Don’t lie to me, Juliet.”

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