I Promise You: Stand-Alone College Sports Romance(31)

“He moved! Serena, quit scaring him!” comes from my sister. “That was months ago! I haven’t done it since then! I swear!”

“Or I haven’t caught you!”

The Harley roars into the driveway and parks behind Nana’s faded brown Avalon. Julian’s six-three frame eases off the bike, all muscled thighs and carefully leashed power as he whips off his helmet and stretches. He’s wearing faded jeans, a black wife beater, and dirty motorcycle boots. Roses and gold daggers decorate his upper left shoulder. A gold python starts at his right bicep and wraps all the way down to his wrist. I laugh under my breath.

Liam sputters and darts his gaze back at me. “Look, uh, we were just studying and it got late—”

My arms cross. “On a Saturday night? How conscientious of you…”

Red flushes up his face.

I poke him in the chest. “Now, here’s how it’s going to go. You’re on my blacklist, which means the next time you want to see Romy, you have to trudge over to my place above the garage…” I tilt my head back toward my apartment. “You knock on my door and ask real polite if you can knock on Nana’s and see Romy. Then, if I say it’s okay, if you have a shirt on, you come over here and be polite to my grandmother, maybe take out her trash, help her cook dinner, and for sure you help her wash dishes, and then you can sit in the den and watch TV or study with Romy. You leave through the front door at her curfew, which is midnight. Under no circumstances do you go to her room. It’s disrespectful to Nana and to Romy. I’d prefer you abstain from sex, but if you are having sex, well, I can’t stop you, but don’t do it in the house. Also, please use a condom. Venereal disease, simply put, will rot your penis, and teen pregnancy—”

“Serena, for the love of… Don’t make me cuss!” Romy calls.

“—is no joke,” I continue. “Seven hundred and fifty thousand teen girls get pregnant every year. Do you want to be a dad right now?”

“No,” he whispers.

“Don’t let the sex muddle your brain, and don’t think her being on the pill is enough. Even condoms are not completely safe.” Been there, done that.

He pales. “You can get pregnant with condoms?”

“Yes, Liam, I see you’re catching on. Nothing is impossible, and sex is a big responsibility. Think you’re ready for it?”

He sways on his feet.

“Should we discuss venereal disease?”

“No,” he whispers. “Please.”

“I’m going to jump out of this window if you give him the sex talk!” Romy yells.

“No, you won’t!” I call back to her, eyes still on Liam. I clear my throat. “First, and most people don’t realize this, there are more than twenty-five different venereal diseases, and some of those you can get even with a condom. Look it up—it’s true. Some, such as chlamydia and gonorrhea, have no symptoms but can be deadly if left untreated. I won’t go into what happens to the female, but for the male, well, it begins as a disgusting penile discharge and mild pain when urinating that becomes more severe. Then it progresses to epididymitis, an inflammation of the tube-like structure that stores and transports sperm…” I pause. “You look a bit green, Liam. Should I tell you about the rectal issues?”

“No.”

“Problem, sis?” Julian murmurs as he steps up next to me.

“Is there a problem?” I ask Liam.

He sucks in a breath and looks up at Romy, back at me, and then lands on Julian as he licks his lips. He comes back to me, a pleading look in his eyes. “I understand completely, ma’am. I’m so sorry.”

Ma’am. I laugh. “Good. Now, I’d love for you to meet my big brother. He bench-presses two hundred and fifty pounds. How much do you weigh, Liam?”

“One forty.”

“Julian’s a decorated state trooper and a former Navy SEAL. Wanna know what he did in the Navy? Sniper. My brother can kill a man from a thousand yards. He’s very protective of his baby sister. How do you think it makes him feel when a guy climbs out of her window?”

“Pissed off,” Julian mutters.

Liam flinches. “Won’t happen again, I swear. I’ll come see you first, before I see Romy.”

His body is pointed to the street, and I sigh. “You may go,” I say, and he pauses for half a second then takes off in a run down the street toward a bright yellow Chevelle. He cranks it and drives past us very, very slowly.

“Call me!” Romy yells at him.

“Navy SEAL? Damn, I sound good.” Julian chuckles.

“I improvised. I’m pissed at Romy, but catching him coming down the tree—now that was just fortuitous fun.”

“You’re crazy! I hate both of you!” Romy yells before slamming her window shut.

Oh, the bliss of mentoring a teenager. Technically, Nana has guardianship of her, but I’m the one she gravitates to. There’s only seven years between us, so it makes sense. Did I do crazy stuff when I was a teenager? Um, yeah, hello, tattoo and vodka. I used to sneak out of my bedroom on the weekends. I gave my virginity to a bad boy in high school who dropped me afterward. I just want Romy to make better decisions than I did.

Julian throws an arm around me as we walk to the front door. “You mentioned the gun?”