“You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to do that,” I commented with a breathy chuckle.

“Yeah, yeah. Me too.” She nodded her head eagerly, the ‘after sex’ glow evident on her face.

“I mean, that was a first for me too,” I admitted almost shyly, reaching out to take a few strands of her hair between my fingers.

“What do you mean?”

Letting out a puff of air from my nostrils, I whispered, “I’ve never made love before.”

After experiencing such incredibleness I had no idea how I’d ever turn back.

Chapter 29

I made love to the girl—err, woman now—that I’d loved ever since I could remember. Not only that, I was also her first. Her first!

Nope, not gonna count that whole tip shit drama into the equation. I was one hundred percent the man who helped her cross that milestone. I possessed her. I made her mine.

Not Ethan.

So why weren’t things all rosy afterwards?

For one, I made the big mistake of leaving the room after we consummated our…well, whatever the hell we had going. It wasn’t as if I regretted doing it—hell to the no! However, I did need some room to think.

“Okay…”

I blew air through my lips, making a raspberry type noise. Wincing, I glanced over to the closed door of my bedroom hoping I didn’t wake her. Holding my breath, I listened intently and was relieved to hear nothing but silence.

“So we’re together…I think. What’s next? Do I move back? No, I can’t possibly…” I closed my eyes and cringed, imagining a future in Bethel Falls. The town was nothing but a curse to my kind and I couldn’t possibly imagine starting any sort of future with Rocky there. “Does she move here?”

I immediately began glancing around my dim living room. It was a bachelor pad to the fullest, but I couldn’t help but feel a slight jump of my heart, imagining feminine décor littering some space.

“What the fuck are you doing, Jesse?” I threw back my head and let out a silent laugh. As usual I found myself making Rocky’s decisions for her.

But as my dad always said, old habits die hard.

Chapter 30

There was no way Rocky could move to Charleston.

The realization hit me hard as I drove her back to Bethel Falls—her home. There was no way I could ask her to do something so rash. Where did I get off thinking that she’d pick up and leave after I deserted her all along? To make matters worse, Ethan was waiting for her when we came back. Feeling like an idiot for thinking that one night together would change a lifetime of wrongs, I quickly left as soon as we pulled up to Rossi’s, leaving Rocky in the parking lot gaping after me.

“Guess I made a habit of leaving too.” I laughed out loud, though I knew it was no laughing matter. Sneaking a peek at my mirror I crumbled when I spotted Rocky’s face. She was definitely wearing the mask of grief.

I was an asshole.

“You’re better than this, Jesse. What are you doing? You have to talk to her one last time.” I took a deep breath and tore my gaze away. “Guess you’re going back to work tomorrow.”

***

Well, maybe going back to Rossi’s Novelties was not one of my finest ideas. If Rocky’s anger wasn’t hard to bear, then certainly her parents’ surprise return was even worse!

“We leave for less than a week and you turn this family store into a sex shop?” I cringed at the sound of Mr. Rossi’s voice, which sounded no louder than a sonic boom. The tips of his ears reddened, and I was almost afraid that the plump man was going to explode at any second.

Rocky’s eyes darted back and forth. She was obviously freaking out beyond belief, and though I wanted nothing more than to come back to her defense, I knew how this story would play out—the same exact way it ended years ago.

Her voice was hoarse. “Dad, I…”

Then just like that, Mr. Rossi’s attention turned on me. I took an involuntary step back, taken by surprise by the fury in his eyes. Though I towered over him, I didn’t doubt that he’d do everything in his power to reach up for my neck and choke me to death. “You! I knew I shouldn’t have hired you. That good boy act you’ve been pulling—you’re just like your no-good mom!”

“Dad!” Rocky yelped. “Jesse had nothing to do with it! Mom, please. You have to believe me.”

“Did you even work while we were gone?” Mrs. Rossi was always the level-headed one, but at that moment I feared she was even worse than her husband. Her face was like stone, smooth and hardened, her eyes narrowed slits, calculating and brutal.

“Yes! Check the books.”

My face immediately paled. Rocky mentioned she sold some of the penis shaped straws I put out on the shelf as a joke. I hoped to God her parents wouldn’t find any of those records in their books.

“I’ll do just that,” Mr. Rossi replied.

Great. I swallowed nervously, watching the plump man flip through the gigantic black binder mercilessly.

His caterpillar-like eyebrows rose when he spotted something in black and white. “Miscellaneous? What is this? We don’t sell anything marked ‘miscellaneous.’”

“I…uh…don’t remember,” Rocky stammered.

I shut my eyes. Rocky was always the worst liar imaginable.

Her dad scratched his head in ferocity, and for a moment I worried he’d cut right through his skin. “Did you sell a…a…what are they called?”

“A dildo, honey,” Mrs. Rossi answered with a surprisingly calm tone before scampering away.

Rocky winced and shook her head. “Um, no…they were straws.”

“Why were they marked miscellaneous?”

“I…uh…the barcode was scratched and I was too busy to grab another one to scan.”

Wow, maybe she wasn’t such a bad liar after all.

Just when I thought Mr. Rossi was about to buy it, the sound of his wife’s screams filled the store. Simultaneously, the three of us jerked up and quickly ran toward the source of the commotion. I skidded to a stop in front of a pair of painted purple footprints.

Crap! How could forget I painted the floor to the store? No wonder Rocky hated me.

“What is this?” Mrs. Rossi exclaimed, on the verge of hyperventilation. She licked one of her fingers and frantically tried wiping my “artwork” off to no avail. Face scrunched in anger, she gazed at her daughter with a look of pure ferocity.

That was it. I could no longer hold out any longer and let Rocky fight my battles for me. Repeating history or not, I had to take the blame again.

“Enough! Enough of this,” I growled.

“Jesse! Be quiet,” Rocky hissed in warning.

Ignoring her, I pressed on. “It was my idea. All of it. Our stores in Charleston do well by selling those toys. They also put glittered prints around their stores as a gimmick. Rocky didn’t want to do it at first. But as usual I was able to convince her.”

And with a snap of a finger I was once again kicked out of the Rossis’ homestead, banished from seeing their daughter. I couldn’t blame them for hating me. It was true; I did need to leave Raquel alone for good. Dad was right, we were a bad combination. As much as I tried to fight it, we definitely brought out the worst in each other.

“Shut up, Jesse,” I muttered, starting my car up. “You’re the only thing bad in this combination. Better walk away again before you screw things up even more for her. That’s what you are, aren’t you? Just a screw up…” I rubbed my eyes and took a few breaths to steady my heart, which was still beating erratically. Once I finally calmed myself to think rationally, I shook my head in disgust. “I can’t cut her out of my life again. I’m not strong enough anymore…so what do I do now?”

The answer to my question was simple. It wasn’t up to me. It never was up to me. It was time that Rocky took the lead, just as she wanted. It was time for her to step it up.