Julianna

My phone screamed in my ear. I groped around, struggling to scramble my way out of the mire of sleep. I caught the source of my unfriendly awakening. As I answered, the clock on my phone read three-oh-seven a.m.

"Sorry to call so early, Capi." It was Espo. Which meant only one thing. Another body.

"It's fine, I…" I sat up, blinking in the dark. I was hit with the realization that the shadows around me were unfamiliar. I was naked, the sheets tangled around my legs, but I was not in my bedroom.

Roman. I had stayed the night at Roman's secret apartment. I hadn't intended to but…the glorious hour I'd spent with him turned to two, three… I must have fallen asleep.

I glanced to my right. Roman's side of the bed was empty, the moonlight filtering across the bare crumpled sheets. Did he leave?

"We got a body on the outskirts of Verona. I'll pick you up in ten."

"No!" Shit. There was no way I could get dressed and rush home in time to pretend that I had been in my apartment all along. "I can meet you there. Text me the address."

"Seriously, Capi. Your apartment is on my way anyway."

I cringed. "I'm, um, not at my apartment."

There was a pause. Then Espo's voice came on with a chuckle. "You sly dog, you. Capi's gettin' laid," he sang.

"Okay. That's enough from you." I slid out of bed, grabbing my clothes flung about the room, my cheeks burning when I remembered how they all got there.

"Tell me where you are and I'll pick you up from there."

"No, it's fine. I'll catch a cab."

"Seriously. It's no big deal."

"I'm not on your way."

Espo sniffed. "You don't want me to meet this mysterious new man of yours."

If only he knew how close to the truth he was. "Don't be silly, Espo," I hissed. "It's faster if I just meet you there. Text me the address." I hung up and threw the phone on the bed. Dammit. I didn't have a change of clothes with me. I'd have to wear the same ones from yesterday. My underwear, where was my underwear?

I didn't have time to search for it. I cringed as I tugged on my pencil skirt sans panties and tucked in my button-up shirt as best as I could in the dark. I'd have to buy a new pair on my break.

"Roman?" I slipped through the apartment, following the muffled rhythmic sound of slapping. I located the source of noise behind a closed door, a thin stream of light showing the underside. I opened the door and poked my head in.

It was a bedroom converted into a small gym. Roman was bouncing around a boxing bag wearing only low-hanging shorts and a pair of black boxing wraps. His glorious chest and arms were on display, pumped up from exertion and glistening with sweat. Desire warmed my lower belly. I found myself licking my lips at I stared.

Roman caught my eye. He stopped punching and clung to the bag to stop it from swaying. "Sorry, did I wake you?"

I shook my head. "What are you doing up?"

He looked away, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. "I couldn't sleep."

I knew him well enough to know that this wasn't the whole story. Something was bothering him.

"Something on your mind?" I walked into the room towards him, drawn in by his pure masculinity and the intoxicating smell of his sweat mixed with his signature cologne.

He ignored my question, his brows furrowing as he eyed me fully dressed. "Where are you going?" He glanced over to the clock on the wall. "At three in the morning?"

"I got a call from work. They've found a body."

I moved in to kiss him but he avoided my grasp. "I'm sweaty."

I didn't care. He obviously did. I frowned at him, my fingers itching to touch him but feeling like for some reason beyond the excuse he'd given me, he didn't want me to. "Will I see you later?"

He nodded. But he didn't say when. I turned, a knot building in my stomach, and walked through his apartment towards the front door. Something was wrong. Why wouldn't he touch me? I had a sudden flash, a premonition, the feeling that a dark star of fate was descending towards us.

"Jules," I heard as my hand touched the doorknob.

I turned, surprised at how close he was. He'd barely made a sound as he followed me through the apartment. There was something heavy in his eyes. Before I could decipher it, he grabbed my chin with his fingertips and kissed me. His lips were firm, hungry, his kiss swift and heated. If I hadn't been so surprised I would have moved closer to him, grabbed him, taken the closeness he had deprived me of before.

He pulled away, his fingers lingering on my jaw before they dropped away. "Be careful."