Page 127 of Star Crossed
“I’ll be okay.” Romeo placed his other hand against her stomach. “I’ll be there for all of you.”
Jules kissed him, their tears mingling, their breathing rough from the pain they were both enduring for this moment.
“We’re gonna have babies,” she whispered against his lips, and for the first time she let herself be genuinely thrilled about it. “A real family. You gave me that.”
Romeo’s arm tightened around her. He was shaking. She knew the emotions had gotten the better of him. Words were suddenly too hard for both of them, but it was a moment that didn’t require profound expression of devotion and excitement for what they’d created together. If any man was meant to be a father, it was Romeo. Family was everything to him.
When he did finally find a way to speak, he touched her stomach once more and repeated, “I love you.”
Jules wasn’t sure if he was talking to her or the babies, but it didn’t matter. He loved all three of them, and separating from him was more than Jules could bear. Her legs were trembling. Romeo’s face showed the agony that holding her was causing even if he was doing a very good job of hiding it. Jules’s head felt like it was going to explode from all the moving around, but despite all of that she couldn’t let him go.
“I don’t wanna go.” She pouted miserably. “Across the hall feels like miles away.”
“I’ll fix it.” Romeo cupped her chin, forcing her eyes to him. “It won’t be for long.”
“No.” Jules shook her head. Her room felt so cold in comparison to this small area that pulsed with life and energy. It smelled like Romeo. She could hear his brothers talking in Italian, and that made the whole place actually sound like Romeo. This was the room bursting with all the things that filled her life with color to begin with, and she wanted to stay there. “Don’t make me leave you again.”
“You need to sit down.” Romeo rubbed her arm. “You’re shaking.”
Jules could see the pain lines etch themselves deeper into his forehead. “You are too.”
“I’m not pregnant,” Romeo reminded her, his voice catching with emotion. “You need to rest.”
“That’s all I’ve been doing,” Jules argued as she kissed him again. “I hate this!”
“I do too.” Romeo looked like the separation was killing him even if he was the one who was pushing it. “But I’m gonna fix it,” he promised her once more. “You gotta trust me.”
“I do.” Jules found herself sliding back into the wheelchair, knowing it was the nurse’s strong arms rather than her own strength that kept her from falling. She reached out and grasped Romeo’s big hand in hers, wishing they had more time, but she could see the encounter had taken its toll on him. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Yes, you will,” Romeo said to her as the nurse started wheeling her away. “I’ll make sure of it.”
* * * *
The next day they moved Jules to a big, beautiful room three floors up. It had a view of the lake and a roommate named Romeo Wellings who became decidedly less grouchy once they were together.
