All I've Never Wanted(115)

Dinner went fairly smoothly, although Roman was still a bit tense from his earlier run-in with his parents.

To my chagrin, I found myself seated directly across from Rico, who kept shooting me suggestive looks the entire time, but he disappeared somewhere—again—in the middle of dinner. He was still gone by the time dessert was served.

I shifted in my seat, wishing I hadn’t drunk so much wine. At least I wasn’t as tipsy as Venice, whose skin color nearly matched her hair after several glasses of Bordeaux.

“Where’s the bathroom?” I whispered to Roman.

“Go out the doors, make a left, and it’s the third door on your right,” he answered quietly.

I smiled, then stood up and quickly excused myself. I followed his instructions and was about to pull open the door to the bathroom when Rico stormed out, a pissed-off look on his face. He was clutching his phone so tightly I was surprised it didn’t crack.

I let out a small squeak of terror, remembering what James said about the possibility he might have murdered someone, but for once, Rico brushed past me without even looking at me.

I stared after him, stunned, but then darted into the bathroom before he could change his mind and come back to rape me or something, even though the chances of that happening was very slim.

Call me paranoid, but I wasn’t taking any chances.

Shaking a bit, I used the facilities, washed my hands, and was drying off on one of the monogrammed guest towels when I caught sight of something on the floor, wedged between the sink counter and the wall. It looked like a…picture?

Curious, I bent down to pick it up. It was folded in half, and when I opened it, it felt as though someone had dumped a bucket load of ice down my back. My hands trembled as I stared at the photo. I couldn’t believe it.

In the photo, I saw Rico and several other boys, some of them smiling, some of them scowling. They weren’t what caught my attention though. What caught my attention was the blonde standing front and center, a small smirk on her face.

Lexi. Rico knew Lexi. Lexi knew Rico.

I sank down slowly on the closed toilet seat, my knees feeling weak. What the hell did this mean? Was Rico the one who’d hired her to seduce my dad? But why would he do something like that? I didn’t even know him! Plus, I hadn’t met him until after I caught my dad in New York.

Was it just a coincidence? That would be a pretty big coincidence.

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to breathe. Whatever was going on, I needed to figure it out, and fast. Otherwise, I had a feeling things might spiral even more out of control than they already were.

CHAPTER 26

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

I tapped my pencil against my notebook, jiggling my foot even though my superstitious mom had told me a million times that it was bad luck.

Could this class period go any slower?

After five more torturous minutes, the bell finally, blissfully rang, and I jumped up so fast I banged my knee against the underside of my desk. Wincing a little, I shoved my books into my bag and joined the crush of students battling their way out the narrow doorway.

The minute they saw me, though, they parted like the Red Sea, their eyes wide as I passed by them. Their faces were a combination of awe, envy, and nervousness.

Even in my haste, I couldn’t help but suppress a laugh. They were

just so predictable. Ever since they found out I was dating the Roman Fiori, they either treated me like a goddess or like I was the wife of a mafia kingpin or something.

When I was “dating” Parker, everyone couldn’t wait to get a piece of me. They hounded me at every turn, begging me to go shopping, to attend their parties. and I even had a few people ask me for photographs and autographs. Or both.

Now, though, everyone kept a respectable distance, satisfying themselves with just staring at me. It was like they were afraid of getting too close to me in case I decided to smite them with the almighty powers I’ve gained as Roman’s girlfriend. They couldn’t even look me in the eyes, the way servants couldn’t look royalty in the eyes in medieval Europe or whatever.

I can’t say I’m not enjoying the space, though. It’s not like I wanted to talk to them.


When I reached my locker, I shoved my books into the narrow space, then ran down the hall and into the parking lot. I didn’t even break stride as I yanked open the front door of Carlo’s giant Range Rover and slid onto Roman’s lap.

Technically, that was illegal, but I couldn’t wait to get off school grounds.

“Jeez, it’s about time, My-My. I’m starving here,” Zack complained from the backseat, where he, Adriana, Parker, and Venice were squished together.

“Sorry, not everyone can come and go from their classrooms as they please,” I said, rolling my eyes. I looked at Venice. “How did you get here so quickly?”

“My class is right near the exit,” she explained, twirling a strand of red hair around her fingers.

“Oh yeah. I forgot.”

I eyed her curiously. She seemed a bit more subdued than usual, almost nervous, but I had no idea why.

“Buckle up, you two. I don’t want any accidents,” Carlo said, raising his eyebrows at me and Roman.

I smirked, pulling the seatbelt across my front so it reined both of us in. “Yes, Dad.”

He grimaced. “Please don’t call me that.”

“I’ll stop calling you that once you stop acting like that.”