“Why didn’t you?” Juno asked, his eyes narrowed as he crossed his arms.
Was he…offended? What?
“Because I’m not in this for Marco or for making connections,” Rome said.
“You don’t think we’re serious enough for me to do that for you?”
Rome blinked at Juno.
“From what I’ve heard, you don’t even do serious,” Rome said.
Juno’s expression turned thunderous. He uncrossed his arms and glared at Rome.
“Well fuck me if the one time I do want to get serious, I pick the one guy who would fucking complain about it,” Juno hissed and walked out of the room.
Rome was left speechless as he watched Juno leave. He was pretty sure he’d fucked that up.
Juno
One second, they were exclusive, the next, they weren’t serious. The fuck was he supposed to do with that?
The worst part was that Rome was right; he never got serious with anyone. So why Rome? Why the one guy he couldn’t really be with? Well, maybe that was it? He couldn’t get hurt if he knew from the start that it could never become more between them. It wasn’t that he was too afraid of getting hurt or didn’t want love and a relationship. He’d just never… needed it. He’d been good without it. At least, until Rome.
He walked into the bedroom just in time to see Rome pulling on his shoulder harness. Damn. Why did he have to look so hot? If he got turned on by seeing Rome carrying a gun, what did that say about him?
“What the fuck are we doing?” Juno blurted out.
Rome turned around, confusion covering his face.
“What do you mean?”
Juno dropped his head back with a sigh. Fuck. He didn’t even know himself.
Rome walking up in front of him had him looking up to meet those steely brown eyes. Rome cupped Juno’s cheeks in his big hands and everything inside Juno settled.
“I don’t have time right now, il mio re, but we’ll talk when I get back,” Rome said, his voice soft.
Juno swallowed hard, then grabbed Rome’s hands to pull them down.
“Where are you going?”
“To meet Marco.”
“And do something else stupid?” Juno snapped.
Rome narrowed his eyes for a second before his expression softened and he wrapped his arms around Juno’s waist, pulling him closer.
“I came home to you last night, didn’t I?”
He glared at Rome, making the man sigh.
“Juno…”
“Stay,” Juno said.
Rome leaned back. “I can’t.”
“You’d never put me, put us, first. Would you?” Juno asked as it dawned on him.
“Juno…”
Juno shook his head and pulled out of Rome’s arms.
“You’d always put him first. Even before yourself,” Juno said.
“And you wouldn’t put the Kings first?” Rome retorted.
Juno met Rome’s gaze, feeling entirely too vulnerable as he said, “Maybe I wouldn’t. For you.”
The surprise in Rome’s eyes told him more than enough. They would never be more than what they were now, which was what? Lovers? Fuckbuddies? Who the fuck knew? He sure as shit didn’t.
“Juno—”
“You needed to leave, right? Then you should go.”
Chapter Eleven
Rome
HE WAS pissed. Frustrated. Confused. Hell, everything about this whole thing confused him. He kinda got where Juno was coming from. Marco was his boss. His to obey and protect. Marco came first. Always. Rome had never even put himself before Marco. How was he supposed to suddenly put Juno first? He couldn’t. Plain and simple, he just couldn’t.
Yes, he wanted to be exclusive with Juno. Yes, he wanted more with him. He just… didn’t know how. Didn’t know why he was feeling this way. Didn’t know what it was about Juno that both made him weak in the knees and set him off like no other. He was sure Juno felt much the same. He just hoped Juno still wanted him around. One way or the other, he was bound to find out later. Right then, he needed to concentrate on doing his job.
He pulled into nearly the only free parking spot in front of the address Marco had sent him and got out of the car to find the right building. Once he found it, he walked up to the front door which buzzed open before he could even do anything. The spook probably had a camera set up somewhere covering the entrance area.
He opted out of the elevator and made his way up the stairs to the third floor. Marco was waiting in the doorway to the apartment, his eyes narrowed on Rome as he neared.
“I’m still a bit pissed at you,” Marco said.
Rome ignored him and pushed past him to get into the apartment. He continued down the hallway, Marco right behind him.
“I mean, really? Seeing a King? You know how many doors that could open for me? For us?”
“None,” Rome said with a tone that left no room for arguing.
Marco sighed but stopped talking. Rome walked into a huge living room with two couches in front of a gas fireplace and a pool table off to one side. A bit further away was another sitting area and in the opposite direction was a dining table that could seat at least ten people. The place had a lot of high-end finishes and he wasn’t even sure which of the two men had picked it. He wouldn’t think a place like this was usually something the CIA would use, but he knew from experience that Neil had expensive taste in pretty much everything. Marco, on the other hand, had the kind of money needed to pay for this place.
Neil came walking out from the kitchen, carrying a mug of something steaming.
“Rome,” Neil said and walked to one of the couches where he sat down.
“Neil,” Rome said with a sigh.
He wasn’t a fan of leaving Marco’s safety in the spook’s hands,
