Juliet Immortal

heat, his smell, his energy threading into mine.
    Shouldn’t. Shouldn’t. Shouldn’t
. I’m breaking all the rules, even the ones I’ve sworn never to break. Whether he’s readyto admit it or not, Ben is in love with Gemma. But that doesn’t mean he can’t find another girl tempting, the same way countless women have been tempted from their true loves by Romeo. With a look. A touch. A soft word.
    No, you’re … good
.
    Panic floods through me, burning away the rush I felt at Ben’s touch. I duck my head, setting my cup on the edge of the vat as I slip away just in time, just seconds before another silhouette appears in the darkness behind Gemma.
    “Ooo, I love secrets.” Romeo ambles out into the light. I brace myself, waiting for Gemma to ask him what the hell he’s doing here, to demand that he leave. Instead, she reaches into her bag, grabs a chip, and pops it into her mouth.
    “Dylan snuck through the gate again,” she says around a mouthful, as if this isn’t a big deal, as if she didn’t spend the entire car ride yesterday telling me that Dylan should be avoided at all costs. “Since he was already lurking by the door like a freak, I told him he might as well get a drink.”
    Romeo smiles and I feel Ben prickle beside me in response. “That’s me. A freak for wine and secrets.” His eyes shift to Ben, and when he speaks there’s a challenge in his voice. “So come on, Benjamin. Tell all.
¡Cuéntame todo el chisme!
”
    “Since when do you speak Spanish?” Gemma turns to Dylan, lifting an eyebrow.
    “Since when are you two friends?” I ask, unable to help myself. This can’t be happening. Gemma hates Dylan, and that’s the way it should stay!
    “We’re not. He just comes over on the rare occasion when I don’t want to drink alone.” Gemma’s eyes meet mine, but the girl I sang and danced with last night, the girl I’ve laughedwith all afternoon, is gone. She’s cold, guarded, and obviously angry.
    Probably because she saw that loaded moment between Ben and me.
    But that moment doesn’t change the fact that she’s lied to me—to Ariel—about her relationship with Dylan. Or the fact that she’s invited him to join us when she knows my date with him was a horrible experience. She’s thoughtless at best, mean-spirited and selfish at worst, and I want so much better for Ben. I want a generous, funny, sensitive girl who will treasure his love as her most priceless possession.
    But I have Gemma. And I have to make this work or Romeo will win and someone will die.
    But how to fix this?
How?
When Ben doesn’t think he’s in love, Gemma is angry and welcoming Romeo in her front door, and I’ve done nothing but put temptation in Ben’s path that never should have been there. How to reverse the damage I’ve done? How to—
    “That’s Ariel’s cup,” Ben says as Romeo reaches the wine tank and grabs my discarded pink monster.
    “That’s okay. I’ve already got Ariel’s germs.” Romeo winks at me and takes a long, slow pull from the glass and I have my answer.
    If Ariel is with Dylan, Ben will turn his attention back to Gemma where it belongs. And if Romeo is busy with me—working on that spell he’s so desperate to cast—he won’t have time to spend with Gemma, to get her drunk and spin tales of how wonderful immortality can be if she’ll only sacrifice Ben to the Mercenary cause.
    The decision is made, even though the thought of what I’mabout to do makes my flesh crawl. “Yeah. You probably do have my germs.” I cross to Romeo, stopping only inches from where he’s slouched against the wine tank. “But let’s make sure. Just in case.”
    For a second, Romeo is thrown, his unshakable confidence wavering in the wake of my unexpected response. I try to enjoy that small victory as I wrap my fingers around the back of his neck and pull him to me, meeting his cold lips with mine. His mouth curves into a smile for a moment before he tosses his cup to the floor, wraps his arms tight around my waist, and kisses me like the world is ending and this is the last, breathless magic either of us will ever know.
    His hands roam over the curve of my hip and his tongue slips between my teeth. I do my best not to gag, to pretend I’m enjoying this, to ignore the fact that being this close to Romeo makes me want to scream. To ignore the fact that Ben is watching, and that his soft sound of disgust makes me want to cry. For me. For him. For what can never, ever