His Juliet: An Age Gap Hurt Comfort Mafia Romance (Empire of Royals Book 2)

I stared at the dark red blood staining my underwear.

Shit.

Of course my period, which was notoriously unpredictable, would decide to show up today.

I froze on the toilet when I realized I didn’t have any pads or tampons with me. I’d run out at the end of my last period and had been waiting for my next paycheck to buy more.

I cleaned myself up the best I could, got a fresh pair of underwear, and layered about half a roll of toilet paper in them. My period was always heavy the first few days, so this wouldn’t hold me for long.

I stared at my phone, trying to figure out what to do. I didn’t want to interrupt Romeo. What did I expect him to do—leave work to bring me period products? Sienna lived in the other apartment on this floor. She had seemed nice when I briefly met her in the bookstore. She might have supplies I could borrow, but I didn’t have her number, meaning I’d have to leave the apartment to see if she was home.

I clutched my phone as if it could offer me some sort of moral support as I walked to the door. This wasn’t a big deal. I just had to walk into the hallway and knock on the other door. It was fewer steps than walking to the bagel shop.

But the bagel shop is safe.

The hallway is unsafe.

Romeo’s apartment felt safe because it belonged to Romeo. It smelled like him, felt like him, and my mind and body had decided that anything Romeo meant safety. But especially with everything that had happened the past few days, my body was very sure that nothing else was safe. As I stood by the front door, my hand resting on the doorknob, the familiar sensation of panic rose in my chest. My armpits pricked with sweat, dizziness washed over me, and my chest grew tight.

“Come on. Just open the door and walk into the hallway. It’s not that hard to do.” My words to myself were angry, but they didn’t make a difference. My ragged breaths filled the air, and I sank down to the floor.

Time became distorted, racing and crawling by at the same time as I remained frozen on the floor. Do something, Juliet. Get up. Go down the hall. Text Romeo. Just something. But I couldn’t manage it, trapped in my fractured mind and body.

Ringing jolted me back to reality. I was lying on the floor with no memory of how I got there. My limbs felt stiff and cold as I slowly stretched out my arm to reach for the phone in front of me.

Romeo’s name flashed on the screen, and I answered it without thinking.

“Hi.”

There was a beat of silence and then⁠—

“What’s wrong?”

I squeezed my eyes shut. How did he read me so easily?

“Juliet. What is wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“Don’t lie to me, angel.”

“It’s not worth bothering you with. I know you’re busy.”

“I’m never too busy for you.” I could tell he was working hard to soften his voice. “Did you hurt yourself?”

My heart broke at the question, and his lack of trust in me. I understood it, but it still made me ache.

“No, I promise. You’re going to think I’m stupid.”

“I won’t.”

I let out a slow breath. “I started my period.” I choked on a sob as tears appeared from nowhere and poured down my cheeks. I hated how fragile my hormones made me feel.

“Oh, sweetheart. What do you need?”

“I don’t have any supplies with me, and I thought maybe Sienna would have some. I was going to knock on her door, but I had a panic attack.” I sniffled pitifully, still too wrung out to push myself up to a seated position.

“I’m on my way back. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

“Romeo, no. You have⁠—”

“If the next words out of your mouth are more important things to do, I’m going to stop you right there.”

“But—”

“No. You’ve been put through absolute hell this past week, and I’m not about to leave you alone when you need me.”

A tiny thread of warmth wrapped itself around my chest. “You sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure. I was actually calling to see what you wanted for lunch so I could have it delivered, but now I get to eat lunch with you. I’m only a few minutes away from the apartment. What are you in the mood to eat?”

Guilt was a sick pit in my stomach at how much I was inconveniencing him. “Whatever you want,” I said hoarsely.

“I can’t wait for you to trust me and start demanding shit.”

“I do trust you.” I trusted Romeo more than anyone in my life.

“Not completely, but that’s okay, angel. Make me earn it.”

It wasn’t that I didn’t trust him… it was more that I didn’t trust myself enough to deserve him. I didn’t trust the universe to let me have him.

“I’m in the elevator now. Just a few more seconds.”

Oh god, I needed to get off the floor. I pushed myself up on shaking arms to a seated position just in time for the front door to open.

Romeo didn’t say anything as he went to his knees and gathered me in his arms. “You’re safe. I’ve got you.”

My fingers twisted into his shirt—he was wearing a black suit with a white shirt, unbuttoned at his throat. I wrapped my arms around his neck as he stood and carried me to the couch.

He settled me in his lap and I jolted, pushing at his chest. “Wait, stop.”

He cradled my face. “Stop what?”

My cheeks flamed red. “I can’t sit in your lap.” I shut my eyes in embarrassment. “I might stain your pants.”

He tightened his arms around my waist. “As if I fucking care. Now, what do you need for your period? And did you decide on lunch?”

“No, I have to move.” The idea of staining his pants was mortifying.

Romeo sighed, continuing to hold me close. “I haven’t told you much about my work because I don’t want you to freak the fuck out. But I can at least say with confidence that a little bit of blood isn’t going to scare me.”

I wasn’t quite sure how to process that information. Romeo was so gentle with me, so playful, that I couldn’t imagine him being violent.

“Do you hurt people?” I kept my eyes fixed on my hands.

“Sometimes.” His fingers trailed down the side of my face. “Does that upset you?”

“Do you hurt normal people?”

“No, sweetheart. I don’t hurt innocent people.”

“The people who are after me… what do they want?”

“The Albanian Mafia has been trying to gain a foothold in New York so they can bring in sex trafficking. Matteo doesn’t allow any trafficking in his territory.”

My throat was tight and my skin itchy. “Wait, what? The people who are after me are sex traffickers?”

He gripped my chin so I was forced to meet his gaze. “I won’t let them touch you.” The intensity in his voice made me shiver. “What’s going on in that head of yours?”

I wrapped my arms around his neck and relaxed my head on his shoulder. “It should bother me, right? That you hurt people.”

“But it doesn’t?”

I shrugged. “Not as much as it should.”

He let out a shuddering sigh, his shoulders relaxing. Had he been worried about my response?

“You’re too good for me, Juliet. But I’m a selfish bastard and I’m not going to let you go.”

“I don’t want to let you go.”

His lips crashed against mine. My lips parted on a gasp and he pressed his tongue into my mouth, dragging it against mine in a way that made me whimper. He palmed my ass, squeezing tight, and I arched against him, desperate for friction.

“You’re perfect. So fucking perfect.” He punctuated each word with a kiss before pulling away with a groan. “Before we go further, what do you need?”

An orgasm.

Wait… what was he talking about?

“Oh.” I blinked to clear my lust-filled daze. “Um, just pads and tampons.” My cheeks burned and I couldn’t meet his eye.

He pulled out his phone. “What kind?”

“I just get whatever’s cheapest or on sale.”

Romeo scowled. “Fuck that.” He typed furiously on his phone, sending off a series of messages to someone before putting it down. “We’ll have stuff here in a minute. What about snacks? Painkillers? Heating pad?”

“No, I’ll be okay. You should get back to work.”

He looked affronted. “I found you curled up on the floor after having a panic attack, and you just started your period. Why would I leave you right now?”

His tone was all anger, but his touch was achingly gentle as he guided my head to his chest.

“I’ve dealt with this my entire life. It’s nothing out of the norm for me,” I said.

“Well, that stops now. You’re mine, which means you don’t deal with this shit alone anymore.”

“I’m yours?”

Romeo let out an exasperated sound. “Yes, Juliet. You’re living in my home, have taken up residence in my fucking soul. Of course you’re mine.”

My lips twisted as I tried to hide my smile. “Does that mean…” I took a deep breath, steeling myself. “Does that mean you’re mine?”

His eyes softened. “Yes, baby. I belong completely to you.”

“Exclusively?” This time, I was brave enough to meet his gaze.

“As if I’d ever want anyone else.”

I couldn’t stop my smile now. “Okay.”

He huffed. “Okay.” He pressed a kiss to the crown of my head. “So, what else do you need?”

“I guess a heating pad would be nice if it’s not too much work.” Growing up in foster homes, I’d gotten used to being told the things I wanted were too expensive and that I was selfish for even asking.

“How does Thai food sound?” he asked.

I smiled in relief that I didn’t have to decide. “That sounds good.”

We’d just finished ordering food when there was a knock at the door. Romeo moved me to the couch while he went to the door, but I leapt up quickly. I wasn’t about to get blood on the most comfortable couch in the world.

Romeo grabbed multiple large shopping bags from someone and then shut the door. “Alright, angel. Take whatever you need.”noveldrama

I raised my eyebrows as I looked into the bags. The first one was filled with every variety of pad and tampon I could imagine. The second one contained tons of sugary snacks. And the last one had fuzzy socks, slippers, a soft throw blanket, and a heating pad.

I tilted my head up to look at Romeo. He arched an eyebrow. This was too much, but if I was honest with myself, I loved being spoiled.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

He grinned and patted my butt. “Good girl. Take whatever you need. Our food will be here soon.”

I sheepishly grabbed a pack of tampons and pads—organic, which I didn’t realize was a thing—and went to the bathroom to take care of things. When I stepped back out, Romeo was there, holding out a pair of sweatpants to me.

“In case you want to wear something more comfortable.”

I took them and realized they were a pair of his sweatpants. I looked back at him and swore I saw a blush on his cheeks. Did he like seeing me in his clothes as much as I liked wearing them? I slipped back into the bathroom to put them on. When I emerged a second time, he was ready with a sweatshirt to pull over my head before he gathered me up in his arms.

“Come on. Let’s get you settled.”

He led me over to the couch and knelt down in front of me to pull on my new fuzzy socks. He stayed on his knees while he arranged the heating pad on my stomach. “All good?” He pressed a kiss to my knee and I melted. When had I ever felt this cherished?

“Yeah.”

“Good.” He kissed me on the forehead before pushing up off the floor.