Bad Romeo (Starcrossed #1)(57)
Author: Leisa Rayven

He may as well have hired a skywriter to say, “Sort out your shit with Holt and stop ruining my play.”

Even though I turned down his invitation to have Holt replaced, I’m still having trouble being completely open. So I vowed to try harder as I stayed with Ethan and drank.

When Holt offered to walk me home, I figured it might help us bond.

My mistake was letting him walk me up to my apartment. He’d practically put his neck out trying to see inside when I opened the door, and when he flat-out asked to come inside, I was unable to say no.

So now, here we are—him wandering around my living room, and me watching like he’s an exhibit in a zoo.

He examines my book collection and smiles as his fingers settle on my dilapidated copy of The Outsiders.

“I haven’t read this in a while,” he says, and pulls it out, then leafs through it. “I’ve missed it.”

“I thought you read it every year.”

He gives me a smile before placing it back in its slot. “Yeah … well … I gave my copy to some chick. Haven’t gotten around to getting a new one yet.”

The day he gave me that book, he was so proud. A birthday present I’d never forget, given to me by a perfect boyfriend.

Pity the boy who gave it to me didn’t really exist.

I hear the front door lock click open, and Tristan’s booming voice calls down the hallway.

“Cass? You here? I’m taking you out tonight, and ‘no’ isn’t a word I’m accepting. Get out that hot black dress with the low back. I want to show you off.”

The hallway closet slams as he puts away his yoga mat, and the look on Holt’s face screams, “You didn’t tell me you lived with someone. Especially not a man.”

Tristan walks into the room and freezes when he sees Holt. Just like dogs in the street, the two men size each other up.

“Hello,” Tristan says coldly before giving me a dark look. I shrug as he turns to assess Holt with narrowed eyes. “From the pictures Cassie showed me right before she burned them, I’m guessing you’re Ethan Holt.”

Holt bristles, but with more grace than I’ve ever seen from him, he composes his face and holds out his hand. “That’s right. And you are?”

I roll my eyes as Tristan steps forward to face off with Ethan. He’s only an inch taller, but the black tank he always wears to yoga class shows off his stupidly ripped physique.

He ignores Holt’s hand and says, “I’m Tristan Takei. I live here. With her.”

“I see,” Holt says and drops his hand. “Nice to meet you, Tristan. Cassie didn’t tell me she lived with someone.”

“Maybe she thought it wasn’t any of your business.”

Testosterone is thick in the air, but before I can explain I don’t have a live-in lover, Tristan grabs my arm and hisses, “Cassie? I need to speak to you in the kitchen,” and drags me out of the room.

When we get into the kitchen he turns to me, fury on his face. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Tris, calm down.”

“I’m calm.”

“No, you’re not. Your chakras are flying around like fireworks.”

“You don’t believe in chakras.”

“Yeah, well, if I did, that’s what they’d be doing. Chill.”

He glares at me for a few seconds before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Then he lets it out slowly and sighs. “Okay. I’m calm … ish. Now, answer the question.”

“I’m not doing anything. We were hanging out.”

“Hanging out doesn’t involve bringing him back here. You know very well that when you bring a man home, it’s for one reason, and if you think you’re going to jump back into bed with him—”

“I don’t! I’m not. I was a little tipsy. He walked me home.”

“You’ve been drinking, and you let him in here?! For the love of Krishna! It’s a wonder I didn’t find you giving him a damn lap dance! You know that if you’re within twenty feet of an attractive man when you’re drunk, they’re likely to be stripped naked and humped in record time! Let alone your handsome ex who you’ve never really gotten over!”

“Dammit, Tris, would you please keep your voice down?!”

He exhales again. Nothing ruins his equilibrium faster than the idea of me regressing to my old ways.

I touch his arm. “Do you honestly believe that a couple of weeks of him being decent is going to convince me he’s no longer an emotionally defective asshole? Even I’m not that naive.”

“I’m not saying you are, but that man is your Achilles’ heel. If he asked you to sleep with him right now, would you even be capable of saying no?”

My whole body blushes. “Tristan, God … that’s not what he wants.”

“Bull. I see how he looks at you. If you gave the word, that boy would sex you up ten ways from Sunday.”

I run my fingers through my hair. “Tris…”

He sighs and puts his hands on my shoulders. “Look, sweet girl, I know this whole thing is difficult to navigate, but you have to remember everything we’ve talked about. Boundaries. Respect. Honesty. Emotional availability.”

“Are you referring to him or me?”

“Both. Don’t be blinded by your hormones. I can’t watch you go through all that heartache again.”

He pulls me into a hug, and I sigh. “Thanks, Tris.”

“You’re very welcome.” He pulls back. “But I just have to do one more thing before I can leave you two alone. You might want to look away, because this will be embarrassing.”

Before I can stop him, he steps around me and strides back into the living room. Holt is sitting on the edge of the couch, but he stands when Tristan enters.

“Okay, you,” Tristan says, pointing at Holt’s face. “I’m going to say this once, so listen up. I spend a good portion of my waking hours trying to find calm in this world and be at one with my serenity, but I love this woman more than pretty much anyone else on the planet, so if you hurt her, in any way, I swear by mighty and powerful Buddha that I will not hesitate in ending you. Do you understand me?”

Holt glances at me before nodding, and I’m surprised to see that his face shows not fear but steely determination.

“Yeah, I understand you, Tristan. But just so you know, hurting her is the furthest thing from my mind. I know I’ve been an idiot in the past, and I have a lot to make up for, but I intend to see this through to the end. Whatever that may be. So you’d best get used to seeing me around, because I’m not going anywhere this time. Do you understand?”