Give Me Fever

Juliet is pretty, bright, and might actually have her life
together if she wasn’t so confused about love.

Juliet has watched her older sister, Ophelia, fall in love and
she knows she wants that for herself someday. But right now
she’s  just  having  fun  and  enjoying  what  she  has  with  her
boyfriend.  When  he  makes  a  big  mistake,  though,  it  might
end  up  being  the  final  straw  for  them,  especially  when  a
friend  she’s  never  really  thought  that  much  about  starts
making waves in her life.

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This  book  is  a  work  of  fiction.  Names,  characters,  places,
and  incidents  either  are  products  of  the  author’s
imagination  or  are  used  fictitiously.  Any  resemblance  to
actual  events  or  locales  or  persons,  living  or  dead,  is
entirely coincidental.

Give Me Fever

ISBN: 978-1-4874-0051-4

Cover art by Melody Simmons

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Chapter One

uliet Nichols shimmied into the pale blue gown her sister,
Ophelia, had picked out for her as her bridesmaid’s dress.

Maid of Honor dress, maybe. Juliet frowned. What was her
title when she was the only one standing with her sister?

Not that it mattered, really. What was important was that

her big sister, her best friend in the whole world, was getting
married in just two short hours and Juliet had yet to get her
dress on. With a little bit of maneuvering she managed to get
the silk zipped and then stood in front of the antique full
length mirror in the corner of the room.

She loved the little bed and breakfast Ophelia and her

soon-to-be  husband,  Leonardo,  had  chosen  for  their
wedding.  Ophelia  said  that  was  where  they  had  been
staying  when  they’d  gone  out  on  the  whale  watching  tour
and  he  had  proposed  to  her  almost  six  months  before.  To
Juliet  it  seemed  fitting  that  they  would  be  married  here,
surrounded  by  their  family  and  friends.  It  was  nice.
Intimate.

She even wanted it for herself someday. Not the Alaska

part—they  could  keep  that.  The  beautiful  frozen  landscape
was  far  too  cold  for  her.  She  much  preferred  the  heat  and
sun  of  her  Colorado  home.  She  was  a  native  and  would
always  find  her  home  between  those  flat  plains  and  high
Rocky Mountains.

She straightened the skirt, smoothing her hands over the

fine material. Looking herself over in mirror she decided she
would be keeping this dress. Absolutely. Her sister had

Caitlin Ricci

excellent taste, sometimes. The dress was a beautiful 1940’s
remake with the classic square neckline with black bows in
the corners. It also had a black tie around the waist. And the
final touch was bit of lace on the hem that fell just below her
knees. It was elegant and beautiful. Classic without being
snobby.

Just like Ophelia was.
The dress might have been her sister’s stroke of genius

but the shoes though were all Juliet. They were black velvet
peep-toe  pumps.  They  would  kill  her  feet  after  an  hour  of
wear,  but  they  were  gorgeous  and  made  her  legs  look
amazing.

Not that she was conceited or anything. She giggled.
Juliet turned, checked herself one last time in the mirror,

added  a  bit  more  lip  gloss  and  then  met  Richie  in  the
hallway.  He  was  a  good  man,  she  thought  as  she  took  his
arm.  He  was  lean  and  wiry.  And  his  hair  was  a  shocking
shade of bright red that matched his freckles. He was one of
her  sister’s  closest  friends,  and  although  she  had  only  met
him  a  month  earlier  Juliet  had  already  warmed  to  his  easy
charm and happy-go-lucky attitude.

He was handsome in his simple black tux, but he was no

match to Leonardo when she caught sight of him. Her
sister’s husband, as she had taken to thinking of him, looked
comfortable in his gorgeous black tux as so few men did. He
gave her an easy smile and a little wave as he saw her before
turning back to the conversation he was quietly having with
her father.

She was happy for their relationship as well. Leonardo

was not hard to like, and her father was equally charming.
Ophelia had lucked out with him and she was overjoyed for
them both.

“Where’s your boyfriend?” Richie asked her as he

snagged a warm tea from a side table for her.

Give Me Fever

She took the tea gratefully and drank deeply before

answering  him.  Mm,  Chamomile.  Perfect.  “He’s  busy.”  She
almost  snorted  at  herself.  He’d  been  busy  for  at  least  a
month now. Maybe more, though. She’d been so caught up
in  Ophelia’s  wedding  plans  that  she  probably  hadn’t
noticed. Wasn’t that one of the reasons that they had broken
up  a  few  weeks  before  only  to  get  back  together  a  week
later?

“Too bad for him,” Richie said as he grabbed a stuffed

mushroom. The dinner would come later, but the appetizers
were out now. Ophelia was ever considerate of her guests.

Juliet allowed him to lead her around for another half

hour of snacking and introducing her to various people that
Ophelia  was  close  to  but  Juliet  would  probably  never  see
again before the music began and her father started moving
people  toward  their  seats.  She  moved  to  the  front  of  the
small  aisle,  the  warm  sunrise  filtering  in  through  the
windows  around  her,  warming  her  skin  even  as  the  cold
wind battered the panes. She grabbed her small bouquet of
white  roses  from  the  side  table  and  shared  a  smile  with
Leonardo.

“You’re fine,” she whispered to him.
His smile spread into a grin. “I know I’m supposed to be

nervous, but I’ve got this stone in my gut that’s worried that
she’s gone off and figured out that I’m completely unworthy
of her.”

Juliet smiled through the tears in her eyes. This wonderful

man could be so silly sometimes. “Tell the stone to suck it
up. You two are awesome together.”

Before she could stop him he grabbed her and pulled her

into a tight hug. “You’re a great little sister-in-law,” he said
into her hair before he kissed her temple. He set her back on
her feet and she tried to rearrange her crumpled flowers. Eh.
They would have to be good enough.

Caitlin Ricci

With a start she realized that Alabama was playing in the

background.  She  smiled,  loving  the  song  and  glad  that
Ophelia  had  taken  her  advice  to  have  it  as  her  wedding
march.

And then she caught sight of her big sister and a lump

came to her throat and she heard Leonardo gasp. Suddenly
he couldn’t look anywhere else but where the love of his life
stood with her father.

Ophelia had always been beautiful in a quiet, unassuming

way. She was usually a mess. Just last month they had gone
to a department store to get some new clothes and Juliet had
ended up having to take over most of the picking out of their
clothing. Ophelia had always been blind to anything but
comfortable jeans and t-shirts.

She had done well on her own this time, Juliet realized.

Her wedding dress was a pale cream and in a style Juliet had
never seen before. It looked like a longer version of a flapper
dress. The long slender lines were the same, and the dress
was covered with gentle lace and delicate beading.

Juliet blinked back her tears as Ophelia kissed their father

on the cheek and then handed her a large bouquet of
flowers. She smiled at Ophelia and stepped back to give her
space next to Leonardo, but her beautiful big sister would
have none of that. Ophelia took her in a fierce hug, holding
her tightly as she smoothed her hair.

“I love you, baby girl,” Ophelia whispered to her.
Juliet choked back happy tears. “I love you, too. Now go

get married!” she whispered.

Ophelia laughed and pulled back just enough to kiss her

sister on each cheek before they both wiped away their tears.
With one last wide smile to her sister, Ophelia turned to
Leonardo and took his hand. “I’m ready,” she told him.

He grinned and they turned toward them both toward the

officiant.

Give Me Fever

Words were spoken, and though Juliet listened she could

only see how happy her sister was and how her face lit up
with joy every time that she looked at Leonardo. He was a
good man, and he would be good for her sister. And Ophelia
loved him more than anything.

Leonardo took a deep breath and spoke his vows.
“I take you, Ophelia Beatrice Nichols, as my friend and

my love. My hopes and dreams are with yours. I will work
always  to  bring  us  together  through  compromise  and
understanding. I will be forgiving and gentle. I promise to be
faithful  to  you  in  all  ways  and  be  a  source  of  comfort  and
support,  encouraging  you  whenever  possible  and  in
whatever you may need. Together I know that we can be a
family and I can’t wait to start our life together.”

Juliet blinked back more tears as Ophelia said her vows.

Her voice was shaky but she managed to get every word out
just fine.

“Leonardo DaVinci McKenna, I promise to always give

you  the  best  of  myself,  and  to  never  ask  more  of  you  than
you can give me. I promise to respect you, every part of you,
and  do  my  best  to  help  you  in  whatever  you  may  want  in
life. I  will give you the best of myself and never hide from
you.  I  promise  to  love  you  in  the  good  times  and  the  bad,
from now until forever.”

They exchanged rings and they kissed, their fingers

entwining.  Leonardo  pulled  her  into  a  tight  hug  and  her
arms  came  around  to  circle  his  back.  They  stayed  like  that
for a few long moments, holding each other as their family
and friends clapped and cheered around them.

Over Ophelia’s head Leonardo caught Juliet’s gaze and

smiled. It was an easy, happy smile that she instantly
returned.

Caitlin Ricci

Chapter Two

uliet shook off her jet lag as she stepped off the plane at
the Denver International Airport. Her parents had gone

off on a vacation. Ophelia and Leonardo were off on their
honeymoon. She would have the whole house to herself. She
grabbed her one suitcase and called a cab to take her home.

Almost an hour later she was back home. After a long

shower,  she  was  curled  up  on  her  bed  with  a  bowl  of
popcorn  in  one  hand  and  a  glass  of  sweet  tea  in  the  other.
She was sorely behind on her TV time and in desperate need
of the mind-numbing comfort after so many hours spent on
various planes.

It wasn’t long after she got settled into marathon re-runs

of Bewitched that her doorbell rang. With a groan and a sigh
she pulled herself from her pile of pillows and went to the
door.

“Dean,” she said as she opened it, surprised by his

appearance and annoyed by his lack of manners in not
calling ahead. It shouldn’t have bothered her, though. Dean
had his own sort of idea of what manners were when it came
to everyone else, and she’d had plenty of time to get used to
his ideas.

“Hey babe,” he said as he took her quickly into his arms

and kissed her. It was a deep kiss, which was welcome, and
she found herself melting against him even as his hands
went underneath her thin tank top and spread out over her

Give Me Fever

ribs. She stepped back, breaking the kiss and dancing out of
his way.

“I missed you at the wedding,” she said as she led the

way upstairs to her bedroom.

He laughed. “I don’t do weddings. You know that.”
She rolled her eyes. “Thanks for letting me know. At least

now I don’t have any pesky expectations.” Her tone was dry
and teasing, just as she meant it to be.

She could tell Dean took it exactly as she meant it as he

laughed. They had never had any expectations of each other.
They would continue this, whatever it was, for as long as it
was fun for both of them. Not that she didn’t envy what
Ophelia had found with Leonardo. She absolutely did.

He fell next to her on the bed, pulling her under him as

his mouth found hers again.

* * * *

Juliet jumped in the shower right after Dean had rolled off
her and fallen promptly to sleep. She was getting dressed in
a pair of low slung jeans and a green blouse when Dean
woke up. Juliet smeared on a hint of pink lip gloss and put a
hair clip in her hair as he slowly sat up.

“Hey, babe,” he said sleepily as he rose from the bed and

wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. “When do
your parents get back?”

She turned in his arms and loosely hung her arms around

his shoulders. “Two weeks.” She knew what he was going to
say before he even said it. Sometimes his predictability was
good and comforting. Other times, like now, it was irritating
that she couldn’t seem to find more depth within him.

“I plan to keep you in that bed for the next two weeks,

then,” he whispered in her ear as his hands began playing
with the hem of her shirt.

Caitlin Ricci

“Uh uh,” she told him quickly, dancing out of his grip.

“I’ve got stuff to do while they’re gone.”

He gave her a blank look.
“The auction...” she reminded him. “Next week?”
The confusion left his handsome face to be replaced

instantly by a petulant scowl. “I don’t want you doing that. I
thought I told you that already. Why are you trying to hurt
me with it still?”

God, he could be so whiny sometimes. She rolled her

eyes.

“It’s fine,” she told him in gentle, soothing tones like

those she would use for the spoiled child he was acting like.

“It’s an auction,” he muttered darkly. “So that men can

bid on you. Like a whore.”

She hissed at him. “It’s a charity auction to raise money to

help feed starving children in America, you ass. It’s not a
date. And it’s not cheating.”

He continued to pout.
“Gah. Fine.” She sighed. “You know that I can’t stand the

pouting face. You can stay over tonight.”

He gave her a soft smile and went to get showered. As she

heard the water start in the bathroom she used to share with
Ophelia, she pulled out her statistics book and a notebook.
She heaved a great sigh and opened her dreaded homework.

Twenty minutes later Dean came back out wearing just a

towel  and  looking  freshly  shaved  even  though  he  smelled
like her honey and oatmeal body wash. Wasting no time, he
came  straight  to  her  and  began  pressing  soft  kisses  to  the
back of her neck. She would not be easily swayed this time,
however,  and  shrugged  him  off  even  as  tingles  began
swirling in her belly.

“I’ve got to study,” she told him as she went back to the

problem currently aggravating her.

Give Me Fever

He laughed. “What for? It’s not like you’ll need math

while you’re designing stuff I’m just going to be stripping
off you anyway.”

She huffed at him and put her pencil down with an angry

clack on her glass table. “Check your libido, Dean.”

He shook his head at her and threw up his hands. “If you

want to stay inside and waste your spring break, then that’s
your call. I’m out of here.”

She waved at him over her shoulder without taking her

eyes off the book in front of her. “Bye, then.”

Dean slammed the door on the way out.

Caitlin Ricci

Chapter Three

fter a few hours of struggling over statistics, she had
accomplished little more than a splitting headache and

tired eyes. She padded downstairs, her dog, Iago, quick on
her heels as she heated up a cup of chai tea and and dished
out a bowl of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. She sat
down on the back deck and looked out at the setting sun as
she dialed her dad.

“Hello!” he answered his phone.
She smiled and instantly relaxed as she got comfortable in

the lounge chair. “I need help with statistics.”

There was a strangled choking sound on the other end

and she giggled. “I’m not good at that math stuff, darling.
You know that.”

She nodded. “I know, Daddy. What I was hoping that you

could do was maybe suggest someone that could tutor me.
I’m sure you've got a student or another teacher or an aide
or somebody that has to be good in math.”

“Ah,” her father sounded quite pleased with himself and

she could picture his smile. “I know just the student. Tanner
Brisbane.”

“As in Australia?” she interrupted, writing down the

name.

He made an impatient noise. He always had hated to be

interrupted while he was speaking. It was the professor in
him, she supposed. “Yes, like Australia. He’s a good young

Give Me Fever

man. Very smart. Good too. Honorable. I think you’ll like
him.”

She snorted. “You don’t have to sell him quite so strongly,

Dad. I’m not buying him and I’m not dating him. All I need
is a guy that’s reasonably better at math than I am.”

“Of course, darling. Here’s his number.” She quickly

jotted down the number that he rattled off the top of his
head. She would have wondered how he knew his number
so readily, but her father knew details so easily like that. Her
father took a breath. “I wish that I could help more, sweetie.
I really do. I feel just awful about it.”

“Don’t,” she told him quickly. “We get our love of books

from you. Our imagination. Our brains. Ophelia and I were
so lucky to have you whenever we had a book report due or
some teacher assigned us Hamlet and thought it would be a
challenge.”

He chuckled at that. “Little did they know.”
“Exactly,” she said with a smile. “I’m gonna call Tanner.”
“All right. You do that. He’ll help you. Are you keeping

busy?” he asked. It was a prerequisite question that he had
to ask as a dad, but she still loved him for his concern.
“Staying out of trouble?”

Yeah, she thought, except for having Dean in her bed the

moment  she  got  home.  She  would  own  that,  though.  Her
fun, her troubles and her mistakes were all hers to own. No
regrets.  It  had  been  her  motto  for  years  and  it  would  stay
that  way.  “Yep,  I’m  good,  Dad.  I’ll  see  you  and  Mom  in  a
few weeks.”

“Good. Go call Tanner. And get some sleep,” he said just

before she said her goodbyes and they both hung up.

She finished up her ice cream and then dropped the bowl

haphazardly into the sink before dialing Tanner’s number.

He answered on the third ring.
“Hello?” he asked.

Caitlin Ricci

She took a breath, her mouth suddenly dry. “Hey. Um.

My name’s Juliet Nichols. My dad, Professor Nichols, said
that maybe you could help me.”

She could hear him moving around in the background.

He moved papers around and sat down on what she
thought sounded like a bed. “What do you need help with,
Juliet?” he asked her.

She liked how he said her name. Liked that he didn’t call

her babe or sweetie or sweetheart right off the bat like Dean
had. There was respect in that. “I’m having trouble with
statistics.”

He chuckled, the warmth spreading through her and

helping ease her muscles. “How much trouble?”

She frowned and decided just to go for blunt. “I suck at

it.”

“Fair enough,” he said. “When would you like to start?”
She flipped through her planner. Her weeks were packed

as usual, but she did have a little bit of time here and there.
“Would tomorrow afternoon work? About two o’clock?”

Juliet could hear the smile in his voice as he said, “Sure.

Want me to come there?”

“Yes please,” she said. “Do you need the address?”
“I’ve delivered books for Professor Nichols before. I’m

sure I can find it again,” he said easily, as if helping
professors, and especially her dad, was a normal occurrence
for him.

“Oh!” she said quickly, remembering something

important. “How much would you like for helping me?
Whatever you ask is fine. I just want to make sure I have the
cash on hand.”

“Don’t know,” he said. She could hear the shrug in his

voice. “Let’s see how much help you need and then go from
there.”

Give Me Fever

That sounded reasonable. And yet... “I’m not going to

sleep with you for help,” she said quietly. There was a
strangled choking sound on the other end of the line and her
heart caught. Dear God, had she killed him? “Tanner?” she
said worriedly as she clutched the phone just a little tighter.

He seemed to have recovered himself enough to laugh.

“Do you really think I’d exchange sex for tutoring from the
daughter of my favorite professor? I realize that you don’t
know me, but your dad certainly does and I think that you’d
trust his judgment, by the way he gushes on and on about
you and your sister in class.”

She blushed deeply, suitably chastised. “No, I guess you

wouldn’t. That was stupid. I’m sorry I said anything. Will
you still come over even though I’m an idiot? I really do
need help with math,” she pleaded.

The smile in his voice was plain to hear and fully

welcome. “Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Thank you,” she gushed. “See you tomorrow.”
“See you then.”
Juliet hung up before she could further humiliate herself

in front of a guy she didn’t even know.

Caitlin Ricci

Chapter Four

he multiple showers a day were getting a bit old, Juliet
thought the next afternoon as she combed through her

wet  hair  yet  once  again.  She  ran  some  conditioner  through
her  hair  and  shot  Dean  a  look  as  he  rolled  out  of  the
bathroom.  She  had  wanted  to  shower  alone,  damnit.  The
shower  was  her  one  place  to  just  think  and  let  everything
wash  away.  Literally  and  figuratively.  Though  she
welcomed Dean in all his glory most of the time, her body
had really wanted a rest after so many rounds with him the
night before.

She had a hard time saying no to good sex with him most

of the time, but she had really, really wanted to this last
time.

“Where do you want to go for lunch?” Dean asked her as

he leaned against the wall beside her. He had managed to
pull on a pair of shorts, though the top button remained
open.

“Can’t,” she told him quickly as she went to her closet

and pulled out a tank top and a pair of lounge pants.
Knowing that Dean was watching her, she picked out her
least sexy underwear and started getting dressed.

“What do you mean that you can’t?” he pressed, crossing

his arms over his chest.

She sighed as she fastened her bra and pulled the top over

her head. “I have a tutor coming over this afternoon.”

Give Me Fever

“Then I’ll stay,” Dean said quickly. “We’ll stay in, have

lunch together.”

She shook her head at him and gave him a light push

against his chest as she stood up. “Nuh uh. You’re going
while he’s here. I don’t need you hovering while I’m trying
to learn statistics.”

His mood instantly turned dark. “He? You never said

your tutor was going to be a man.”

She rounded on him, her hands planted firmly on her

hips. “Really, Dean? Seriously? Do you really want to pull
all this jealous crap with me right now? We are friends who
loosely date and have sex. We’re dating, but we both know
that we aren’t committed. In fact we even said up front that
we would only continue this as long as we were both having
fun.” She took a deep breath, catching his gaze and holding
it. “And right now, babe, I’m not enjoying this so much. So
pack in the stupid and see me later this week or, if you can’t
be mature enough to do even that much, then just go.”

His face fell and he blinked at her. “Babe. I—”
The doorbell rang downstairs, startling both of them.

Juliet’s gaze snapped to the nearby digital clock on her
dresser and she groaned. Of course Tanner was on time and
of course she had completely lost track of it.

“You were just leaving,” she told Dean quickly as she

smeared on some deodorant. “Think about what I said. I’ll
call you later.”

“But—”
She held her hand up to stop him. “I need to be tutored

right  now.  I  can’t  handle  us  and  tutoring  and  right  now.  I
think  you  need  to  think  about  things  a  bit  more  before  we
continue, anyway. It’s fun between us. We do great between
the sheets. But if we don’t do well outside of that, then there
isn’t much left for us right?”

Caitlin Ricci

He shrugged and moved toward her bedroom door. “I

don’t want us to be over.”

She gave him a playful shove as she moved past him to

get the front door. “It won’t be. We will talk soon. Now go,
and try not to glare at him please?”

He humphed as she opened the door and he grabbed the

keys to his Audi.

“Tutor better not have scratched my baby pulling in,” he

muttered darkly as he stepped up to her. He tried going for
a kiss but all she gave him was her cheek as she turned and
got her first look at Tanner Brisbane.

He was taller than she had imagined, probably a little

over six feet. A head taller than her. He had wide shoulders
and,  from  what  she  could  see  through  the  thin  t-shirt  he
wore,  sinewy  lean  muscle.  Under  the  sleeve  of  his  left  arm
she  could  just  barely  make  out  the  outline  of  an  intricate
tattoo. She wanted to see more of the dark ink that swirled
over his muscles. Wanted to touch it.

She blinked away those thoughts. Regardless of how

good-looking  Tanner  was,  those  thoughts  were  highly
inappropriate with Dean just a few yards away. She looked
to where  Dean was and watched as he gave Tanner’s beat-
up Chevy pickup truck a dirty look as he got into his car and
sped away.

Juliet met Tanner’s gaze once Dean had disappeared

down the street. He had green eyes. Not emerald green, but
a soft green that she found almost comforting and that
looked really good against his lightly tanned skin.

She felt a sense of recognition there, but she had no idea

when she might have met him or where she could have
possibly known him from.

“Come in please,” she told him, finally remembering her

manners and how not to stare. “And thank you for coming.”

“No problem,” he said.

Give Me Fever

She knew he was smiling from the warmth in his voice,

though  she  had  her  back  to  him.  She  led  him  over  to  their
small  breakfast  table  just  off  the  kitchen.  “Can  I  get  you
anything?”  she  asked  him.  “Water,  milk,  juice,  tea,  soda?  I
think we’ve got some beer, too.”

When he didn’t answer right away, Juliet turned around

to  see  him  looking  at  a  picture  she  had  taken  during  the
wedding.  Their  official  pictures  weren’t  back  yet,  but  she
had  loved  this  one  so  much  she  had  printed  it  up  and
framed  it.  She  came  up  to  his  side,  the  warmth  of  his  arm
bleeding  into  hers.  “That’s  Ophelia,”  she  said,  pointing  to
her  sister.  Juliet  had  taken  that  picture  just  after  they  had
arrived at the reception. She had gone up to Ophelia, thrown
her  arm  around  her  sister’s  shoulders  and  snapped  her
camera.  “That’s  Leonardo,”  Juliet  said,  pointing  to  the
smiling man just behind them.

Tanner nodded. “I’ve seen Ophelia a few times.”
Juliet frowned and turned to him. “You have?”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“Where? I know we haven’t met before. But you seem so

familiar,” she told him as she crossed her arms over her
chest.

He smiled at her and turned to pick up a book from the

corner of the table. She had bought it at her favorite little
bookstore off campus the week before.

“Your father owns the bookstore,” Juliet said quickly,

smiling as she figured out where she had seen him and why
he had seemed so familiar. “I’ve only seen you there once or
twice.” She turned back around and went to the fridge to
grab herself a bottle of sweet tea.

“You’re right. And I’ll take one too,” he said, coming up

behind her and resting his hip against the kitchen island. He
pulled out a pair of glasses from his pocket and slipped
them on. At her questioning gaze he gave her a shy smile. “I

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have prescription sunglasses that I had on while in my truck.
Sometimes I’m slow to remember to put my regular glasses
on when I switch them over. I’m not blind, but I tend to miss
little details like the edges of tables without them.”

Juliet giggled. “Well, we can’t have that.”
She grabbed him a drink and then plopped it down in

front of him before sitting down at the table in front of her
book and notebook. At least she had remembered to pull
them out before he came over. It made her appear somewhat
more prepared than she actually was for his visit.

“Mind if I have some music going in the background?”

she asked him. “Sometimes it helps me think. Though right
now I don’t think much will help. I’m really bad at this. I
hope I’m not a lost cause.” She giggled nervously and pulled
her hair back with a clip.

He chuckled and slid into the seat next to her. “Music is

fine and I doubt that you’re that bad. And statistics isn’t
easy.”

She gave him a quick smile before she turned around to

pop her MP3 player into its docking station. She pressed
play and then turned the music down as the music started to
play.

Tanner laughed softly and tapped the extra pencil she had

laid out for him on the table. “Billy Idol. Very nice.”

She grinned at him and then pulled her chair closer to his

as they bent their heads over her book.

Give Me Fever

Chapter Five

er phone beeped just as they were finishing up the first
chapter an hour later. She ignored the text message

and stretched her arms over her head. Her back was aching
and her head hurt, but at least some of the concepts were
starting to make more sense for her. Tanner had been patient
and kind. She’d have to thank her dad for suggesting him.

She caught his gaze looking at her stomach and looked

down  to  figure  out  what  he  might  be  looking  at.  Her  shirt
had  ridden  up  slightly  with  her  stretch  and  her  belly  ring
was  showing.  She  had  just  changed  it  from  the  original
barbell  to  a  small  pink  rose  that  morning,  and  although  it
was  much  prettier  than  the  plain  metal  it  had  itched  like
crazy for the first hour.

“Like it?” she asked him. He turned away quickly and

blushed. She giggled. He had a cute blush. She would have
to find more ways to make him blush.

He shrugged off her question, going for nonchalant and

failing. “Yeah, it’s pretty,” he said quietly after a moment’s
hesitation.

“Want to touch it?” she chirped, hopping up from her seat

and coming to stand next to him. His face was level with her
belly button as she brought the hem of her shirt up to show
him better. “Ophelia got it for me when we went shopping
the day before her wedding. She got a blue whale tail. Go
figure.”

Caitlin Ricci

“Uh...” Tanner said, his eyes wide as he looked up at her.

“No thanks.”

Blushing deeply and feeling stupid, Juliet pulled her shirt

down and stepped away from him. “Sorry,” she said quietly.
“Yesterday I mention sex and today I’m throwing my belly
at you. I feel really stupid.” She took another step back.

Tanner got up slowly and came toward her, his hands at

his  sides.  “Hey,  you’re  not  stupid.  It  is  a  very  pretty
piercing.” When she  didn’t move back from him he placed
his hands on her hips, holding her in place against him.

“Tanner...I...” she whispered, her hands resting on his

arms. She gulped deeply, hating that she leaned into his
touch, into him, even as she reveled in the warmth of him.

Juliet leaned her head back, her nose just barely brushing

the rough stubble of his chin as she touched him. God, this
was  wrong,  she  thought.  He  was  her  tutor,  a  friend  of  her
father’s,  since  he  would  never  allow  a  stranger  to  have  his
home  address,  and  someone  she  barely  knew.  Scratch  that,
she didn’t know him.

And plus there was Dean to consider. She gave a little

mental sigh at the thought of him just as her phone rang and
Disturbed began to clash with Bryan Adams coming from
the speakers.

She groaned and stepped out of Tanner’s hands. He let

her go even as he turned to watch her bend to pick up her
little blue phone. “Hello, Dean,” she said softly.

“Is he still there?” he barked.
She rolled her eyes and Tanner laughed. She found that

she didn’t even care that Dean could hear him. “And good
afternoon to you too. Yes, he is. I think I’ll invite him to stay
for dinner if he can. I’m learning quite a bit. And I will talk
to you later, Dean. I’m busy at the moment. Which you
already knew.”

Give Me Fever

He knew that she was about to hang up. Of course he did.

Dean was many things, but stupid wasn’t normally one of
them. “Go on a date with me, Juliet,” he said quickly.

She paused, the phone already lowered from her ear so

that she could hang up on him. “We haven’t been on a date
in months.”

He chuckled. “Yeah. We haven’t really left your bedroom

since we got there.”

Tanner choked on the tea he was drinking. Well damn,

Juliet thought. She really didn’t want the man that she had
enjoyed being held by a few minutes ago knowing that she
was sleeping with the jerk that he had seen her with a few
hours before.

“Uh huh. You’re running out of time, Dean. Again, I’m

really busy today,” she told him. She shouldn’t be annoyed
with Dean for mentioning their bedroom activities. He was a
normal, everyday guy. Of course he thought about sex a lot.
They all did. Didn’t they?

She looked to Tanner, wondering if she could figure out

his thoughts just as easily as she could read Dean.
Unfortunately he was looking away from her. Trust him not
to play fair.

“Go with me to Renzi’s on Saturday,” Dean was saying.

He  sounded  like  he  wanted  the  date,  which  was  odd.  He
usually  only  used  his  wanting  voice  when  she  wouldn’t
have him over at night.

“Sunday,” Juliet countered, feeling slightly better about

going out with him. “Free downtown parking and they will
have the dinner menu.”

“It’s going to be more expensive though,” he whined.
Juliet laughed at him. “Wow, be a baby will you? You

drive a freaking Audi A8. That’s an eighty thousand dollar
car. I think you can afford the ten dollar price difference
between lunch and dinner. But if you don’t think I’m worth

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it we could always just go to McDonalds...” she let her voice
trail off meaningfully.

Dean was quick to back up. “No, no. Sunday for lunch

sounds really good. Maybe we could go dancing afterwards.
I  know  how  much  you  love  to  dance,  so  wear  those  cute
heels  you  picked  out  a  few  weeks  ago.”  He  took  a  breath.
“And when did you find out how much my car cost? I didn’t
even  know  that,  and  it’s  not  something  my  family  would
have ever talked about.”

She rolled her eyes. “I googled it after the first time you

drove me in it, you wacko. See you on Sunday. Bye, Dean.”
She hung up the phone before turning back to Tanner who
was picking up his keys.

“Tanner?” she said gently, coming up next to him. She

put her hand on his shoulder to stop him. “Do you have to
go? I thought maybe you could stay for dinner.”

He turned to her, a frown seated low on his full lips. “Did

you use my presence here to jostle your boyfriend into
action?” he asked her seriously.

Juliet bit her lip. That was a really weird way of putting it,

and she didn’t think that she had used him to make Dean
jealous. But maybe...She sighed. She probably had screwed it
up again.

“I don’t think I did. If I did, then I didn’t mean to.” She

took  a  breath  and  smiled  at  him.  With  short,  quick
movements she took the keys from his hands and put them
down on the table. “Will you please stay for dinner? I really
would like you to. I can’t make more than cheese quesadillas
on my own without lots of help, but we’ve got some leftover
enchiladas and lots of frozen meals. My mom actually made
a  few  weeks’  worth  of  food  for  me  and  put  them  in  the
freezer  so  I  wouldn’t  have  to  choose  between  eating  out
every  night  or  starving  to  death.”  Juliet  paused,  trying  to
think of more excuses to convince him to stay. She really did

Give Me Fever

like having him there with her. “And we haven’t even talked
about your payment yet. I promise I won’t offer you my
belly again,” she teased as she stepped away from him.

He returned her smile. “All right. I’ll stay,” he said as he

followed her back into the kitchen.

* * * *

That  night  Juliet  lay  on  her  bed  with  all  the  lights  in  the
house on watching a horror movie with her dog and a few of
her sister’s Doubles. Tanner had gone home an hour before,
having  stayed  well  past  dinner,  which  ended  up  being  the
enchiladas. Juliet had even practiced making margaritas for
them, which, although they tasted okay, she was sure were
supposed to have more alcohol in them. She was still getting
used to the taste of the stuff, and since Tanner had to drive
and she wasn’t sure how late he would be staying she didn’t
make them nearly as strong as her mother did. She felt more
mature,  though,  with  him  than  she  did  with  Dean.  With
Dean,  when  they  ate  it  was  a  quick  snack  right  before  or
after going up to her bedroom.

With Tanner she had set the table and he had dished out

the food. She had made the margaritas and he had lit a few
of the pumpkin spice candles Ophelia had sent over from
Seattle the month before. Then they had sat down to have a
real dinner in the dining room.

He had even seemed to fit there as he sat next to her and

remarked on how good her mother’s cooking was. He’d
laughed at Iago’s begging and had stayed to have a bowl of
ice cream on the back deck with her. Hell, he’d even helped
clean up. Not just grab the dishes and toss them into the sink
kind of cleanup, but real honest-to-God rinsing of the dishes
and loading them into the dishwasher.

Caitlin Ricci

He moved through their small kitchen like he was at

home  there.  Like  he  had  been  there  before plenty  of  times.
Looking  back,  she  realized  that  Iago  hadn’t  barked  at  him.
Her old boy was getting up there in years, but he still barked
at  strangers  and  even  Dean  got  a  woof  or  two  sometimes.
Tanner  he  merely  trotted  over  to,  wagging  his  tail  and
plopped down by their feet as they had studied together.

Very strange. She was going to have to ask her dad about

how often Tanner had been at the house and how she had
never remembered him being there before.

Give Me Fever

Chapter Six

uliet arrived at the recreation center mere minutes before
her class. She pulled the Jeep into the nearest parking

space,  luckily  only  two  rows  away  from  the  wide,  arching
front  doors,  and  barely  remembered  to  lock  it  before
running inside.  She flashed her badge just long  enough for
the  woman  behind  the  counter  to  give  her  a  nod  of
recognition and wave her through.

Her teacher demanded punctuality, and Juliet hated being

late.  She  managed  to  get  to  her  station  just  before  her
instructor, Chef Chopra, came bursting into the class. Juliet’s
stomach  fluttered,  as  it  always  did,  when  she  was  in  the
smaller woman’s presence. The Indian woman was sheer fire
and  persistence,  all  in  a  barely  five  foot  package.  It  was
intimidating to say the least.

“Class,” she began quickly, her voice ringing across the

small room. “Today were are going to make a Kitchri. Now,
this is a fairly simple dish, but you will not be allowed to
slack. Not that I ever allow you to.” There was a bit of quiet
laughter from the women around her. “Now, your
ingredient lists are at your station. Get to it.”

Juliet began reading over the spice list just as her friend,

Ester, came up to her side. “What is a Kitchri anyway?”
Ester said as she plopped down next to her.

“Indian breakfast food. Spices, rice and lentils,” Juliet

replied quickly as she moved to the variety of small spice

Caitlin Ricci

jars that stood at the end of the counter in her little kitchen
work space.

Ester gave a low whistle. “You looked it up.”
Juliet rolled her eyes and began measuring out

ingredients. “We have a syllabus.”

“So,” Ester said, hopping off the stool and going to her

own kitchen area that was just across from Juliet’s, “have
you told Dean about your classes here yet?”

She shook her head. “Nope.”
Ester made a sour face, pursing her lips together and

wrinkling her nose. “Why not?”

Juliet shrugged as she kept working. “He’s weird about

stuff like this. If I study for too long, if I go to class too often,
he’s just kind of...” She blew out a breath, unsure of where
she was really going with it.

“He wants you stupid except when you’re in the sack.

There  you’re  supposed  to  be  creative,”  Ester  supplied  with
another  face.  It  was  no  secret  her  friend  didn’t  like  Dean.
Hell, most of her family didn’t really like him, either. But he
was fun and she enjoyed what they had. Usually. It had been
so much simpler months ago. All they had wanted was sex.
They  would  go  out  a  few  times,  have  sex,  and  repeat.  He
wasn’t jealous back then. Hell, she hadn’t even told him they
were  supposed  to  be  exclusive,  ever.  She  didn’t  care  about
stuff like that.

“Moving on,” Juliet said quickly. “I’ve got a new tutor for

stats.”

That brightened Ester up considerably. “Good. You’ve

been struggling to pass that class for months. It was about
time you finally broke down and admitted that you needed
some help. So what’s he like? Do we know him? How did
you find him?”

Juliet grinned at her as she began stirring her pot of

lentils. “My dad recommended him. He’s a student of his.

Give Me Fever

His dad also owns the bookstore on the way home from
campus.”

“Tanner?” Ester said, startling her.
“You know Tanner?” she asked. Ester nodded like it was

some big secret. “How does everyone know him but me?”

Ester laughed. “You’ve seen him a few times. He’s usually

carrying  a  pile  of  books  or  covered  in  dust  from  the  back
room.  Though...”  she  paused  for  effect.  “I’m  not  surprised
you  haven’t  noticed  another  man,  considering  how  tightly
Dean  has  you  wrapped  around  his  finger.  And  other
places.”

Juliet scowled and waved her spoon at her. “I am not

wrapped around any part of Dean. And use some decorum.”

“Oh I just love it when you use those big smart-people

words. Decorum. Mm, so sexy!” Ester teased her.

Juliet blushed deeply and went back to stirring her lentils.

As she smelled the warm spices and the richness of her dish
she decided that she would have to call Ophelia to tell her
about this new dish.

After class Juliet was full, as usual, after tasting a bit of

everyone’s dish, and on her way home she decided to stop
by the bookstore. Luckily there was parking right in front of
the cafe across the street which was rare to find on such a
crowded main street.

She hopped out of the jeep, locked it up and tossed her

keys  into  the  little  purse  she  had  draped  around  her  wrist
before  making  her  way  to  the  bookstore.  The  bell  over  the
door chimed when she came in. The bookstore wasn’t busy
yet,  but  there  were  a  few  people  milling  around.  She  saw
one  woman  looking  at  the  historical  fiction  novels  against
the back wall and a man sitting in a little alcove with a travel
book in his hands.

Caitlin Ricci

“Juliet!” the owner called to her from his place on a short

step stool, where he was arranging a few of the large books
on the top of a shelf.

“Hello, Mr. Brisbane,” she called to him as she began

reading the back cover of a new mystery book. She frowned
at it, finding the most likely killer just a little too obvious,
and put it back down.

“Hello, my dear,” he said, coming up to the counter in

front of her. “How’s your family?”

“They’re good. Mom and Dad are out of town for a few

weeks and Ophelia and Leonardo are off on their
honeymoon,” she told him happily.

“That’s good. Very good,” he said as he began pulling a

few books from under the counter. Judging by the titles, they
were all ones that her parents had ordered. “This is the latest
shipment,” he said, confirming her suspicions.

She pulled out her wallet and handed him her card. “I

was wondering also if you’ve got any new Indian
cookbooks?”

Mr. Brisbane smiled at her and went to the little cookbook

section just off the front counter. “We got this one in last
week. I think Ophelia will enjoy it.”

“I’ll take it,” she said as she took the book and added it to

the  pile.  She  wasn’t  sure  why  she  never  corrected  his
assumptions about her lack of interest in books. Just because
she  didn’t  read  a  book  a  day  like  Ophelia  or  dream  about
Shakespeare in her sleep like their dad, didn’t mean that she
didn’t enjoy a good romance once in a while.

As Mr. Brisbane began to bag up her purchases Juliet

spotted  a  small  gray  paperback  along  a  shelf  behind  him.
“I’d  like  that  one  too  please,”  she  said  quietly.  She  held  it
after he handed it to her. It was a poetry book by Louisa May
Alcott, and one that she hadn’t seen before, at that.

Give Me Fever

“I didn’t know that Ophelia liked her works,” Mr.

Brisbane said.

This time Juliet was too wrapped up in her new poetry

book  to  care  about  correcting  his  assumptions.  She  paid
quickly,  thanked  him  and  then  walked  across  the  street  to
the cafe, the book still firmly in her hand.

She ordered her usual, a mint hot chocolate with extra

whipped cream, and sat down in the corner booth where she
could see the clear blue sky and watch the people passing by
as she read.

About an hour later, well engrossed in a poem, Juliet

heard  a  familiar  voice  ordering  an  iced  tea  and  a  banana
smoothie.  She  looked  up  to  see  Tanner  and  a  little  boy
standing at the counter. Once they had their drinks, Tanner
turned  to  leave  and  spotted  her.  Juliet  smiled  at  him  and
after a brief hesitation and a look to the boy with him, they
joined her at the table.

“Hey,” she said warmly as she put her receipt in the book

to mark her place.

Tanner smiled at her and helped the boy into his seat

before  taking  his  own.  Juliet  looked  the  boy  over,  noticing
that  he  had  the  same  lean  build  as  Tanner,  the  same  soft
green eyes.

“This is my brother, Drew,” Tanner told her, catching her

curiosity.  He  looked  really  good  today,  she  mused.  A  soft,
worn  t-shirt  and  a  pair  of  dark  blue  jeans  over  dirty
sneakers. Not everyone could pull it off and look so at ease
and confident enough not to care. His glasses slipped a little
down  his  nose,  and  he  used  a  fingertip  to  push  them  back
up.

“Hey, Drew,” she said, trying and failing to catch the

boy’s gaze. “I’m Juliet.”

“Smell nice,” the boy said. He shook his head and began

to hum softly to himself.

Caitlin Ricci

He was autistic, Juliet knew instantly. She had read

enough about enough things that she knew the classic signs.
She might be weird about her interests, because there were
so many, but at least she was good on her facts.

“He’s eight,” Tanner said. He put his hand on the back of

Drew’s shirt, rubbing his neck. It looked like it was a
protective move as much as it was comforting.

Juliet smiled at him and touched the top of Drew’s hand.

The simple tap interrupted his humming and his eyes came
up to meet hers. “Hey,” she said softly.

“Turmeric,” he said, just quickly enough before he went

back to humming.

“Wow, that’s pretty awesome that you could smell that,”

Juliet said. “I don’t know too many people who even know
what turmeric is, let alone be able to smell it on me.”

Tanner smiled at her and she returned his smile just as

easily. “You’re good with him,” he said, the relief clear in his
voice.

She quirked a brow at him. “I like kids,” she said quietly.

It felt strange to be admitting that. No one knew that about
her.

“How’s the statistics going?” he asked.
With a sigh Juliet rolled her eyes. “I hate math. I know I’ll

need it someday, but I hate it. Do you think you might be
able to come back over sometime?”

He nodded. “When?”
Juliet bit her lip, considering. “How’s Monday at noon?”
“Sounds good.” He tapped his brother lightly on the

hand,  much  as  Juliet  had.  It  had  the  same  effect,  stopping
him and bringing his attention up to meet his brother’s face.
“We gotta go, Drew. Dad’s expecting us.” He turned back to
her  as  he  stood  up.  “Bye,  Juliet.”  He  slipped  his  hand  into
Drew’s.

Give Me Fever

“Bye, Tanner,” Juliet said, meeting his gaze briefly. “It

was nice to meet you, Drew.”

Drew nodded, his lanky hair falling into his eyes.

“Measure for Measure. Juliet.”

Juliet’s smile grew wide. “Super impressive, Drew. Most

people think of Romeo when they hear my name. I don’t
even think I was reading Shakespeare on my own at your
age.”

He shook his hair and pursed his lips. “Bye bye.” He

waved his hand at her.

“Bye, Drew,” she said. She met Tanner’s warm,

approving gaze one more time before he turned them away.
Juliet watched them as they walked across the street, Drew’s
hand still tightly clasped in Tanner’s as he helped him walk
between the parked cars and over the cracked sidewalk.

She slowly finished her hot chocolate and then went

home.

Caitlin Ricci

Chapter Seven

ean was thankfully on time for their date, and as usual
he looked great in his button down black shirt and

slacks. He had a flash of color on his cuff links, but otherwise
the  effect  was  sleek  and  stylish.  Juliet  supposed  that  was
how she had always seen Dean. He was as  put together as
his car and just as expensive to maintain, though the cost of
keeping  Dean  was  more  in  line  with  giving  him  attention
than routine maintenance.

“You look beautiful,” he said, handing her a potted

African  violet  and  kissing  her  cheek.  She  smiled  at  him  as
she  put  the  plant  on  the  kitchen  table.  Trust  him  to
remember that she preferred potted plants to the ones kept
in vases.

And she did look good. The short black dress was one of

her favorites. It hugged her curves while still giving her
enough room to dance freely.

As she turned he planted a soft kiss on her neck and

brought his hands to her ribs, just under her breasts. Though
there was warmth in his kisses she found that there was very
little heat within her as a reaction.

“Can’t we just stay in?” Dean whispered to her, his hands

going higher.

Juliet rolled her eyes and spun in his arms. “We’re going

out to lunch and then dancing. You promised.”

“Afterwards?” he pressed.

Give Me Fever

She gave him a flip shrug. “Be good tonight and I’ll let

you stay.”

There was heat in his gaze as he led her from the house.

She kissed Iago on the forehead and he promptly turned and
went back upstairs to continue his nap.

Lunch was wonderful, as it always was. Dean was the

gentleman  she  remembered  him  being  from  the  first  few
months  they’d  dated,  and  she  even  found  herself  laughing
with  him  on  occasion.  They  spent  hours  at  the  restaurant
talking and laughing, enjoying the moment and each other’s
company.

Juliet really started to have fun, though, when they went

to the club. Juliet felt the heady beat of the club’s music rush
through her as she and Dean walked past the bouncer and
made  their  way  to  the  bar.  The  club  was  understandably
crowded  on  the  warm  Sunday  night,  and  Dean  garnered
quite a few curious female glances. He kept his hand on the
small of her back as she ordered a Colorado Bulldog and he
ordered a Vodka Tonic. Top shelf, of course.

They sipped their drinks quietly as the music played

around them. “I don’t know how you can drink that,” Dean
said in her ear as his hands came around to rest on her hips.
He squeezed less gently than she would have normally
allowed but the sweet drink was already getting to her.

“It tastes like chocolate milk. Ophelia turned me on to it,”

she said as she grinned up at him. He grinned back and she
brought her arms to hang loosely around his neck as he
began moving against her.

“You are so gorgeous,” he told her just before his mouth

took  hers.  She  moaned  into  his  kiss,  her  arms  tightening
around  him  as  she  swayed  to  the  music.  His  drink  was
warm  on  her  tongue as  it  mixed  with  the  sweetness  of  her
own.

Caitlin Ricci

Their drinks forgotten, Juliet and Dean moved to the mix

of  people  dancing  on  the  club’s  large  floor.  Juliet  didn’t
know  the  song,  didn’t  know  most  of  them,  but  loved  the
beats just the same. She knew Dean just loved watching her
dance.

Half an hour later they came back to the bar, downed a

few Vodka cranberries and then returned to the floor as the
music grabbed them. They were loud and wild as they
danced together oblivious to everyone else around them.

Just past four in the morning they stumbled into Juliet’s

bedroom, still laughing and clinging to each other.

Give Me Fever

Chapter Eight

he rooster crowing in her room was Juliet’s alarm clock.
Intellectually she knew that, but still in the morning

when  it  shrieked  through  her  sleep  deprived  and  alcohol-
induced haze, she blinked wearily around as she wondered
why  someone  would  let  a  rooster  into  her  room.  Then  she
realized the fuzzy taste in her mouth was the vodka and the
heavy thing trapping her legs was Dean’s thigh. She wiggled
free and then pushed on his shoulder.

“Dean, wake up,” she said, even as she yawned.
He grumbled and rolled over, giving her his back. Juliet

sighed and lay back down. There was nothing to get up for.
It was spring break after all. A few more hours of sleep
wouldn’t hurt. In fact, it would help her mind quite a bit.

Then she remembered Tanner and her eyes popped open

as she scrambled for the clock. “Crap!” she jumped out of
bed, stumbling and going down hard on her knees with a
thunk as her foot caught in the sheet. “Dean, it’s almost ten
o’clock!” she shrieked.

“Uh huh.” His voice was muffled from the pillow he

threw over his head. “Close the curtains will you babe? It’s
too bright.”

Juliet cursed and threw a flip flop at him. “Get up! You

can’t sleep here anymore!” She rushed into the bathroom to
start the shower running as she rifled through her closet for
something that was both clean and matching.

Caitlin Ricci

“What’s your problem?” Dean asked with a yawn as he

stretched his arms high above his head and watched her.
“Come back to bed. There’s time for more fun before a nap.”

She rolled her eyes and tossed a pair of shorts and a tank

top on the bed. She moved to her dresser and pulled out a
pair of matching underwear which she tossed on top of her
other clothes.

“Grab the red ones instead,” Dean said, holding up the

blue pair she had picked out. “Those are sexier.”

“They aren’t for you,” she told him before she stormed

into the bathroom. “And get your stuff together!”

He came in after her just as Juliet was washing her hair.

“What do you mean they aren’t for me?” he asked, the
confusion and a pout already evident even through the
soapy water.

“Tanner will be here at noon,” she said quickly before she

rinsed out the shampoo.

Dean slammed the door as he left. Huh, that was new,

Juliet thought. Not even a complaint or an accusation of her
cheating. Strange.

She shrugged it off and washed her face.
Dean wasn’t there when she got out of the shower. Again

she  shook  it  off  as  she  got  dressed  and  applied  some
moisturizer. As she was combing out her hair she heard the
doorbell ring and trotted down the stairs to answer it. And
that’s when she saw  Dean, in all his naked  glory,  sitting at
her dining room table.

“My mom and dad eat breakfast there!” she shrieked at

him.

He shrugged, unconcerned. “I want that boy that you’re

playing  with  to  know  who  he’s  dealing  with.  You’re  mine,
not his, and he doesn’t have a chance in hell of being where
I’ve  been  almost  every  night  this  week.”  He  gave  her  a
pointed look even as the color drained from her cheeks.

Give Me Fever

“You—You—” she stammered, too mad at him to make a

coherent thought.

“Yes, darling? I...”
She stamped her foot. “You ass! Get out!”
He held his hands up and went back to her bedroom, she

hoped to get dressed. “Fine. God in Heaven, woman. I was
just playing with you. Maybe you’re about to start bleeding
or something.”

She screeched at him again even as he closed the door.
There was another knock on the door and she took a deep

breath and smoothed her hair. She pasted a happy-go-lucky
smile on her face and opened the door to see Tanner on her
front porch with a bag of take out in his hand.

“I thought,” he gave her a sheepish smile. “That since you

made me dinner last time I could bring you something. It’s
burgers and fries. I uh...hope that’s okay...”

Juliet followed his gaze up the staircase to where Dean

stood shirtless as he made a show of buttoning his pants.

“Really Dean?” she called up at him, exasperation and

annoyance clear in her voice. “Just get dressed and go
home.”

He huffed and sat down at the landing to put on his socks

and shoes.

Juliet rolled her eyes as she turned back to Tanner. He

looked even less sure of himself now. “Bad time?” he said,
his feet already turning to leave.

She reached out and grabbed his shirt sleeve. “Nope.

Perfect timing. And a burger would be awesome. Thanks for
thinking of it.”

Tanner nodded and let her pull him inside. He gave a

cursory nod to Dean as he followed Juliet out onto the deck.
“Want a drink?” she asked him as they passed the fridge.

“I’ll grab something. You?” he said, placing the bag on the

patio table before going back inside.

Caitlin Ricci

“Soda would be great,” she called after him as she pulled

two chairs up to the table. She remembered that  Dean  was
still  there  just  in  time  and  she  rushed  inside  to  make  sure
that Tanner was still okay.

She shouldn’t have worried. Dean was watching him with

a scowl and a glare firmly in place, but Tanner was just fine
on his own as he got two sodas from the fridge. He had an
easy grace about him, a confidence that couldn’t be taught
by even the best modeling or acting teachers.

Iago lumbered out of her parents’ room, his tail wagging

happily when he noticed that he had company. Dean got
two quick barks. “Stupid dog, you’ve seen me at least a few
times a week for almost a year now.”

Iago came up to Tanner, his wag moving from just his tail

to take over his whole body until he was a wiggling bundle
of  happiness  at  the  man’s  knee.  Tanner  bent  down  to  pet
him,  Iago  closing  his  eyes  in  pleasure  as  he  found  just  the
right spot on his neck.

Juliet watched in wonder as her dog licked Tanner’s

scruffy chin and the man chuckled and patted him on his
head. “The treats are in the—Oh.” Juliet closed her mouth as
Tanner went to the small sugar container on the counter and
pulled out one of Iago’s peanut-butter-flavored treats.

Even Dean noticed Tanner’s familiarity with her kitchen

and it made his scowl grow darker. Before he could erupt,
though, Juliet stepped in front of him. “I had fun last night,”
she said as she embraced him in a quick hug. “Thanks for
taking me out.”

“Uh huh.” He returned her hug even though he was still

watching Tanner. “See you.”

He gave her a quick kiss on the lips. He sought more, but

she quickly pulled away. She wasn’t a fan of possessive
kisses just for show, no matter who they were from, but this

Caitlin Ricci

Chapter Nine

nce again studying had been hard, but at least it was
slowly getting easier. That was progress, she supposed.

It  was  late  afternoon when  she  and  Tanner  finally  called  it
quits  and  put  away  her  books.  They  had  moved  to  the
backyard and were taking turns throwing the ball for Iago.

“You’re really good with Drew,” Tanner told her, tossing

the  ball  for  her  old  dog.  He  lumbered  over  to  the  beat-up
tennis  ball  and  brought  it  back  at  a  slow  trot.  It  had  been
years  since  she  had  seen  her  dog  actually  run  like  he  had
when  he  was  a  puppy,  but  the  old  spark  in  his  eyes  was
there as he played, which was good enough for her.

“I like him,” Juliet said, warming under his compliment.
Tanner bent down to rub Iago’s back and scratch at the

base  of  his  tail  before  he  tossed  the  ball  again.  “I  think  he
likes you, too. One of his favorite things to do is to spend the
day  at the zoo. He’s in love with the penguins.” He took a
breath  and  caught  her  gaze.  “Would  you  like  to  join  us  on
Saturday?”

She shook her head and sighed. “I’d love to Tanner.

Really I would. But I’ve got a bachelorette auction that day.”
Juliet smiled at his blank look. “I know that you’ve seen the
flyers around campus. Hotties for Toddies and all that good
stuff?” she blushed. “It’s a horrible slogan. I didn’t make it
up. But a bunch of us girls are going to be auctioned off for
dates, and the money raised goes to help starving kids in
America. It’s actually pretty awesome, and all I have to do is

Give Me Fever

stand up there on a stage and look nice and then go on a
date with someone. Not too hard at all.”

He shared her smile. “So do you already have a date

picked out yet, or does the guy have to figure it out for
himself?”

She giggled. “The guy has to do all the work. And it

doesn’t have to be a guy. I could get bid on by some
gorgeous lesbian girl.”

He laughed and then ran his hand through his hair. “You

know, it really is a great thing that you’re doing. It’s a good
cause, and you’re putting yourself out to spend time with
some stranger on top of it. All for some kids that you don’t
even know.”

She shrugged, loving his praise and warmed by it at the

same time. “I told you, I like kids.”

He nodded. “So how about the zoo the Saturday after?”
“I’d love to,” she replied with a wide grin as she tossed

the ball for Iago.

Caitlin Ricci

Chapter Ten

uliet joined Ester for their weekly pottery class the next
day. Though neither of them had any real talent, the fun

of  it  was  in  seeing  who  could  get  the  messiest  while  still
mastering  the  skill  needed  to  perfect  the  famous  lopsided
bowl  technique.  Ester's  therapist  had  suggested  pottery
years before as a way to deal with something she had only
told Juliet glimpses of, and even after her friend had stopped
going to therapy, they still continued to have fun playing in
the clay.

"You look lovely today," Juliet teased her as a large chunk

of the wet red clay landed in her glossy black hair.

"You're a brat," she said as she smooshed her bowl back

into a lump on the middle of her wheel. "But I will take your
compliment, since it is true."  Juliet couldn’t help but watch
her  friend  work  the  clay  in  front  of  her,  and  not  really
because she was good at it. Ester was what poets would call
a  classic  beauty.  She  was  petite  and  curvy,  much  different
than  Juliet’s  slim  build.  She  tried  not  to  be  jealous  of  her
friend’s good looks, but it was pretty hard.

Juliet giggled. "As you should."
"So how goes it in the world of Dean?" Ester asked her,

nearly gagging on his name.

Juliet rolled her eyes at her. "Come off it. He's not that

bad. And he's fine. Still not happy about the auction, but he
won't cause a scene at it." She paused and bit her lip
uncertainly. "Hopefully."

Give Me Fever

Ester rolled her eyes but widely kept quiet about him.

"And Tanner?"

Juliet's blush wasn't subtle.
"Uh huh," Ester said, leaning forward. "Tell me."
"He's taking me to the zoo next Saturday. With his

brother," Juliet told her quietly.

Ester pursed her lips. "I wasn't aware that he had a

brother. But that's not the point. What's wrong?"

"Dean thinks I'm cheating,'' she admitted.
Her friend's laugh was loud enough to draw stares from

most  of  the  people  in  the  small  class.  After  a  quick
admonishing  look  from  the  teacher  Ester  got  back  to
molding  her  clay  into  a  loose  rendition  of  a  bowl.  "Dean
always  thinks  you're  cheating,"  Ester  reminded  her.  "Even
with me. The point is, what do you think?"

Juliet's answer was a long time coming. "I think that I'm

starting to like Tanner," she said, her voice barely more than
a whisper. "I don't cheat, though. Never."

"Of course not. Only cruel people hurt those they care

about, and you aren't cruel. But tell me, do you want to?"

Juliet sighed. Sometimes Ester knew her too well.

"Sometimes I find myself wanting to kiss him."

Ester shrugged. "Nothing wrong there. It's perfectly

normal  to  want  to  do  something.  Just  don't  act  on  it  until
you  decide  which  one  you  care  about.  Tanner  doesn't
deserve  to  be  played  with,  and  even  though  I  can't  stand
Dean, he shouldn't be hurt either."

Juliet breathed out a sigh. "You're right, of course you are.

I'm dating Dean, so I have to keep it to just friends with
Tanner. Thanks Ester."

"Sure...no problem," her friend said before turning her

focus back to the clay in front of her.

Caitlin Ricci

Chapter Eleven

ater that afternoon, Juliet was walking Iago through the
neighborhood park when her phone started ringing. She

walked over to the nearest bench and plopped down before
answering Ophelia’s happy ringtone. This week it was
Carrie Underwood. Next week she was thinking of changing
it to Taylor Swift.

“Hey, Ophelia,” she said brightly, patting Iago gently as

he laid down between her legs.

She could hear Leonardo laughing in the background as

Ophelia answered her. “Hey! How’ve you been?”

Juliet sighed. “Confused. You?”
“All right. That’s not a good emotion for you. And I’m

good. Our honeymoon is excellent. I love Alaska, as you
already know. It’s the best place in the world. And I worry
about you all alone in the house with only Iago to keep you
company. So tell me everything,” Ophelia said gently.

Juliet took a deep breath. “Dean is driving me crazy. He’s

so jealous and egotistical, and I’m just not having fun
anymore, but every time that I say something about it he
suddenly becomes nice again and we go out clubbing or he
tells me that I’m gorgeous and all the happy fluttery feelings
come back from when we first started dating.”

“So tell him what you’re thinking,” her sister prodded.

“You’ve never hesitated to tell a guy something before.”

“Uh huh. Easier said than done. Then there’s Tanner, a

student of Dad’s, who has been tutoring me. I really like

Give Me Fever

him. He’s got a little brother who’s autistic. And they seem
super  close.  He’s  really  nice.  Comfortable.  And  Iago  likes
him and you know he likes so few people and damnit, I just
don’t know what the hell I’m doing.” Juliet sighed. She ran
her  hand  through  her  hair,  frustrated  by  it  all.  “I  talked  to
Ester about this earlier and she told me I needed to choose
and  not  to  hurt  Tanner  or  Dean.  And  then  I  thought  that  I
would  just  stick  to  Dean  and  not  even  think  about  Tanner
that  way  again.  And  then  I  saw  my  statistics  book  where  I
left it on the table and all of my feelings about Tanner came
crashing  back.  Ophelia,  I  almost  kissed  him  in  our  kitchen
the first day we met when he came over to  tutor me. Dean
had  just  left,  and  that’s  just  so  not  okay.  I’m  not  like  that.
Never.  Well,  not  anymore  at  least.  I’m  trying  to  do  better.
Something’s got to be wrong with me.” Juliet watched a little
boy  run  across  the  park  with  his  mother  and  father.  They
had  a  husky  puppy  with  them  and  they  looked  incredibly
happy,  the  woman  running  after  the  little  boy,  the  dad
laughingly following them.

“Okay, baby girl, I need you to take a breath. Go with

your  gut.  If  it  says  to  stay  with  Dean,  then  find  a  way  to
make it work with him. If it says go with Tanner then you
know  what  you  need  to  do,”  Ophelia  told  her.  “I  know
you’ll  choose right.  And  I  won’t  even  tell you  how  much  I
dislike Dean sometimes.”

Juliet laughed through her stress. “You and Ester both.”
Ophelia giggled. “I gotta go, Juliet. I love you a lot. We

will be there for your auction—Leonardo and I decided to
come spend a couple weeks with all of you before heading
back to Alaska. I wouldn’t miss the chance to see my little
sister in a ball gown decked out like a beauty queen.”

“See you soon,” Juliet said, “And I love you, too.”

Give Me Fever

Chapter Twelve

uliet parked her jeep in the small parking lot of the local
raceway. She was under a large oak tree that was just

beginning to provide some shade from the spring sun. It was
her preferred parking spot, and had been for months. Right
next  to  her  was  Dean’s  shiny  Audi,  a  perfect  beacon  in  a
parking lot full of dusty trucks and generic sedans. She took
a  minute  to  compare  her  vehicle  to  his,  as  she  usually  did
when they were side by side. The jeep was still new-looking.
She’d had it nearly a year now and still loved every minute
that she was in it. The Wrangler fit her perfectly. Her style,
her personality.

Though she did like being in Dean’s Audi, sometimes, it

always  felt  too  luxurious  for  her  tastes.  She  was  a  burger-
and-fries  kind  of  girl.  A  steak  cooked  rare  on  a  good
Saturday  night  with  her  beer  in  a  mason  jar,  but  definitely
not  a  tartar-and-crème-brulee-every-night  kind  of  girl.
Though  she  did  enjoy  the  occasional  party,  usually  with
Dean by her side, that wasn’t how she wanted to live her life
anymore.  Sure,  when  she  was  a  teenager.  it  had  been  fun.
Now, though, she wasn’t so sure.

Juliet walked up the short flight of stairs and stopped

briefly  at the ticket stand. She was surrounded on all  sides
by people. Some families, mostly single guys. Some already
with  a  cup  of  beer  in  their  hands.  Soon,  she  knew,  they
would  probably  have  a  paper  plate  full  of  bbq  ribs  in  the
other.  The  firefighters  had  a  stand  just  around  the  corner

Caitlin Ricci

with some of the best pulled pork sandwiches she had ever
eaten. They were a personal favorite, especially when paired
with the frozen lemonade they made so well.

She came up to the ticket booth and smiled at the teenager

they had working there in the afternoons. She had seen him
off and on on her visits to the track. He checked her friends
and  family  pass,  matched  her  name  with  his  guest  list  and
marked her off before waving her through. They weren’t all
so thorough. Pretty soon he would probably be just like the
rest  of  them  and  glance  at  her  pass,  assume  she  belonged
there, and let her in. It wasn’t his fault, just how the job wore
on people.

She grabbed a frozen lemonade and said hi to the

firefighters working at the little booth.

They offered her a sandwich with extra sauce, just the

way  she  liked,  and  even  said  they’d  toss  in  their  sweet
potato fries on the house but she unfortunately had to turn
them  down.  Nothing  against  them  of  course.  They  were
fabulous guys and the food was already making her mouth
water. But Dean liked to go out to dinner after he finished a
race.  Win  or  lose,  they  always  went  out.  He  usually  won,
though. Or at least placed.

She stepped into the stands and walked down the long

flight of metal stands to the first gate. A few people waved
to her as she stepped into the friends and family area, and
she waved back to the few people that she did know in the
stands. She went through the final gate and stepped onto the
track. A quick walk along the wall and she was in Dean’s pit.

Dean saw her before the others and gave her a quick hug

and a kiss before he turned back to his car. The guys around
him  said  their  quick  hellos  before  turning  back  to  the  car.
She went over to the side and sat down in the plastic folding
chair  to  watch  them.  She  took  a  sip  of  her  lemonade  and
settled in for the race.

Give Me Fever

Chapter Thirteen

uliet had been looking forward to the auction for months,
and now that the day had finally arrived she could barely

contain  her  excitement.  She  and  Ophelia  had  spent  the
morning in a salon. Their nails had been done and they had
both received facials.  Ophelia had taken an inch or two off
her  long  curls.  Juliet  now  sported  a  lovely  loose  bun  that
looked somehow elegant  and carefree.  The dress had come
from another girl’s home. Her mother had donated all of the
dresses that the girls were wearing at the auction. They had
to return them at the end of the night, of course, but tonight
Juliet was  more than happy  to be wearing such a beautiful
ball  length  gown.  It  was  a  dark  emerald  green,  one  of  her
favorite  colors,  and  the  long  skirt  made  her  feel  like  a
princess as she walked around on heels she couldn’t hope to
see past all the length of the dress. She loved how it felt to
wear, had loved to twirl in it before, when she hadn’t been
wearing her heels, and loved the envious looks that the other
girls had given her when they had drawn numbers out of a
hat  and  she  had  been  chosen  as  first  to  pick  out  her  dress.
Lucky  number  one.  She  giddily  found  a  chair  just  past  the
curtain of the stage and sat down to watch the audience just
before the auction started.

There were lots of faces out there. Lots of men she didn’t

know.  All  of  them  looked  nice,  but  not  all  of  them  had
dressed  up.  There  were  some  that  had  hoped  to  impress
their  future  dates  by  wearing  tuxes.  Others  had  gone  for  a

Caitlin Ricci

simple  button  down  shirt.  Some  wore  ties.  Others  didn’t.
Most were around her age, though it looked like there were
a  few  fathers  of  students  in  the  crowd  as  well.  Professors
couldn’t  bid,  but  that  was  the  only  rule  that  had  been
enforced.  Juliet  was  even  surprised  to  see  a  few  women  in
the crowd. She saw Ophelia and Leonardo seated at a table
with their parents off to the side. She was glad to see them
supporting  her  and  this  cause.  Just  to  attend  the  auction
required  a  purchased  ticket,  and  a  small  portion  of  that
money  did  go  to  the  wine  that  many  of  the  guests  were
sipping  or  the  little  appetizers  that  they  seemed  to  be
enjoying.  But  the  vast  majority  of  the  money  went  to  the
charity. And it was one that she believed in as well. That had
been  important  for  her  when  the  sorority  had  asked  her  if
she wanted to participate months before.

At first she had thought it was a joke. The sorority wasn’t

known for being nice to people that weren’t their sisters, and
while  Juliet  knew  she  was  well  liked  and  even  considered
attractive  in  some  circles,  she  was  not  one  of  their  sisters.
And  she  had  told  them  as  much.  But  then  one  of  the  girls
had  explained  to  her  that  her  ideas  of  the  sorority  were
founded  in  the  past.  They  were  the  new  sorority,  and  they
were out to do good and be inclusive.

So Juliet had given them a chance. And while she wasn’t

about to go pledge herself to these girls, she was proud to be
participating in this auction to raise money for such a good
cause.

“That dress looks hideous on you,” a voice at her

shoulder said, startling her out of her memories.

Juliet blinked up at Dean. “What are you doing back

here?”

He made a face. “Checking up on you. With obvious

need. Can’t you go change?”

Give Me Fever

She looked down at the beautiful gown and frowned. She

loved this dress. It looked good on her. “I like it. And we’re
starting in a few minutes anyway, so no, I can’t go change.”

He frowned. “Pity. Too bad you couldn’t have chosen that

gown,” he said, nodding to a woman who stood talking with
a friend of hers. Her dress was much tighter than Juliet’s and
the neckline plunged almost to her navel. It showed off the
woman’s ample cleavage, of which Juliet was sorely lacking,
and also her perfect tan, which, again, Juliet was lacking in.

“I can’t wear something like that,” she said quietly, trying

not to look at the woman with envy. It wasn’t her fault that
she was beautiful.

Or that Dean found her more attractive than Juliet.
That thought twisted in her gut as Dean rattled off more

problems with her outfit and her hair. The neckline was too
modest. The color was too dark. She had on too little lipstick,
not enough eyeliner. And her eye shadow was the complete
wrong shade for tonight.

He finished it off by tsking softly to her as his arm came

around her shoulder, his long fingers curling into her upper
arm. “Whatever am I to do with you, Juliet?” he asked her,
as if she should know the answer. She shrugged and looked
down at her hands. At least he hadn’t had anything negative
to say about her manicure. Maybe he hadn’t noticed yet.

Pulling her closer against him, nearly smashing her into

his side, Dean put his free hand up and cupped her chin,
bringing her gaze to his. “You know I’m just trying to help
you right? I’d hate for you to make a fool of yourself and feel
horrible after such a big, important night.”

She nodded. He was right. Dean did just want to help her.

That thought warmed some of the ice from her belly. “Will
you be bidding tonight?”

Caitlin Ricci

He smiled at her. “Of course. You wouldn’t mind if I bid

on a few other girls too, right? I’d like to help out the cause
as much as possible and we did decide it wasn’t cheating.”

Her breath caught. He wanted to date other girls? “But—”
Dean shook his head. “Now Juliet, don’t be selfish. I came

fully prepared to spend a good sum of money to help the
cause tonight. And I can’t very well single you out to spend
all of it on can I? That would embarrass you. So this makes
the most sense.”

He was right. She nodded slowly. “It isn’t cheating,” she

whispered to herself, knowing in her heart that they weren’t
exclusive.

“Of course it’s not. Why would I want to cheat on my

beautiful Juliet?” With that he kissed her forehead and stood
back up. She didn’t want to look, in fact she knew that she
shouldn’t  have  but  she  couldn’t  help  watching  him  walk
away.  She  also  couldn’t  help  the  pain  that  moved  through
her  as  she  saw  Dean  give  the  woman  in  the  low-cut  dress
more than one look as he passed her.

The music started, the announcer began speaking, and

Juliet bucked up for her turn on stage.

The woman in the other dress was three ahead of her, so

she had a pretty good view of her as she walked gracefully
down  the  stage  that  had  been  set  up  in  the  large  meeting
room. Her bidding started out faster than most of the other
women’s  and  it  continued  to  go  up  from  there.  Just  when
she  thought  the  bidding  would  stop  at  just  over  five
hundred dollars, a new voice spoke up.

Her heart sank as she recognized Dean’s voice and, as

usual,  he  was  throwing  his  money  around  as  if  it  didn’t
matter.  But  as  people  started  to  register  his  two  thousand
dollar  bid  for  another  woman,  they  did  notice,  and  it  did
matter.  Hot,  salty  tears  pricked  her  eyes  and  she  had  to
forcefully  swallow  past  the  lump  in  her  throat.  It  wasn’t

Give Me Fever

cheating, she reminded herself. It was just for charity. He
just wanted to help.

The woman got off the stage and she was beaming. She

had  brought  in  by  far  the  most  money  so  far.  Her  self-
satisfied  smile  continued  until  she  caught  sight  of  Juliet
standing against the wall, her arms crossed over her chest as
she hugged herself tightly.

“Oh jeebus,” she said, coming in front of Juliet and

putting her hands firmly on her shoulders. “He. Is. An. Ass.”

Juliet didn’t reply, didn’t even meet the woman’s gaze.

She couldn’t. Dean had found her attractive. He had wanted
her. So he had bought a date with her. It wasn’t cheating. He
couldn’t have purchased her to be able to cheat. They had
talked about that.

The woman just shook her head and walked away when

Juliet never looked up.

The next woman went, a pretty platinum blond with long

legs.  Juliet’s  heart  sank  further  when  she  heard  Dean
bidding  again.  He  had  far  overbid,  just  as  he  had  on  the
woman  before,  and  she  was  stunningly  beautiful  with  her
smile as she came back to their little group. The next woman
went  and  Juliet  couldn’t  watch  her  go.  At  least  she  didn’t
hear Dean bidding on this one.

“Nichols! You’re up!” the announcer called to her.
Juliet gave herself a mental shake and squared her

shoulders. She could do this. She plastered a bright smile on
her face, licked her lips and walked out onto the stage as the
announcer started telling the audience about her.

Dean started the bidding at seven hundred. She gave him

a  small,  thankful  smile  at that.  He  bid  first and  he  bid  big.
She started to relax a bit. A few more bids were placed and
he outbid them aggressively. She was watching  him as she
stood at the end of the stage and jutted out her hip. Ophelia
waved  at  her  and  she  gave  her  sister  a  smile  back.  Then  a

Caitlin Ricci

few  more  people  bid  and  Dean  started  to  look  startled.
When  she  looked  back  to  find  Dean,  she  saw  him  walking
out of the room, his phone pressed against his ear.

She frowned at him until another bid caught her

attention. Juliet scanned the crowd, searching for the bidder,
and caught sight of Tanner. He gave her a small smile and a
wave just before the announcer declared him the winner.

As she was getting off the stage, Dean came back in. He

smiled at her until he caught sight of the chalkboard where
the results were totaled. Once he saw her final bid his face
darkened and he became furious. She caught the dark look
that Dean shot to Tanner before she went back behind the
curtain and walked off stage.

Give Me Fever

Chapter Fourteen

he house phone started ringing while Juliet was in the
bathroom brushing her teeth. She heard Ophelia yelling

down the hall. Before she could spit out her toothpaste and
go  ask  her  sister  what  was  going  on  her  cell  phone  started
ringing.  She  cleaned  up  quickly  and  picked  up  her  phone
from the nightstand.

Before she knew it, Dean was yelling into her ear.
“Dean?” she asked wearily. She had been upset for a few

hours last night and really hadn’t had enough sleep to deal
with him so early this morning.

“Tell that bitch of a sister of yours never to hang up on me

again,” he seethed in her ear, his voice like acid on her skin.

She blinked at the screen, making sure it really was him

calling. “Uh...”

“And don’t you dare go out with that redneck trash

tonight,” he continued. It sounded like he was pacing in the
background. Maybe even banging things around. She could
hear glass breaking somewhere near him.

Her already very thin breaking point snapped and she

flipped her phone closed, hanging up on him. She tossed her
phone  aside  but  it  started  to  ring  again.  She  ignored  it  the
first  time  as  she  went  to  comb  her  hair  but  as  her  phone
continued  to  play  “Disturbed”  throughout  her  small
bedroom  it  began  to  get  harder  and  harder  to  ignore  the
ringing.

“Yes?” she snapped irritably.

Caitlin Ricci

He sounded even angrier now as he said, “Don’t you ever

hang up on me again.” Dean seemed to curse the words and
she cringed from each one as if slapped.

“What...” she gulped. “What happened last night? Why

didn’t you bid on me more?”

He sighed. “I ran out of cash. I got up to go get cash, and

then I got a call, and by the time I got back that asshole had
already bid on you.” He sounded really upset and she found
that she could almost believe him. But there was one more
thing.

“You bid so much on the other girls,” she took a breath,

“that  you ran out of cash when it came to me.” The words
hurt  to  say.  But  they  hurt  more  to  keep  inside.  She  knew
they were true, and yet she had hoped that they weren’t.

“I know, baby,” he said, his voice soft and pleading, “I

didn’t do well with my money.”

Juliet shook her head. That was a lie. “You never don’t do

well with your money. Don’t lie to me, Dean. I’ve had
enough. We’re done.” She took a deep breath and pressed
her head to the cold wall. “Please don’t call me again.”

He laughed, and the brittle sound grated on her nerves.

“You’ll change your mind. You’ll come back to me. You did
last time.”

“Not this time,” she whispered just before she hung up on

him. She hoped it was for the last time.

She got dressed and thankfully only the silence of her

bedroom greeted her. Juliet applied a bit of lip gloss and just
a swipe of mascara.

Then her phone rang again. It wasn’t Disturbed, but he

could be calling from a different phone. Maybe he had
borrowed his father’s phone or something. She didn’t really
much care. Juliet muttered darkly under her breath as she
grabbed the phone from where she had tossed it.

Give Me Fever

“Stop calling me,” she nearly screeched into the phone,

her knuckles turning white as she gripped it in her hands.

“Sorry. I’ll let you go.”
Juliet blinked and her breath caught. “Tanner?”
He laugh was warm and soft. Much like himself. “Yeah,

it’s me.” He paused and she could hear the soft intake of his
breath as well as the scratch of his beard against the phone.
“I was going to ask you if you wanted to go for our date
tonight, but if you’re not feeling up for it...” he let his voice
trail off, leading her but letting her choose their next step.

She found herself smiling. “I want to go out. Tonight

sounds great.”

There was warmth in his voice. “Sounds good. I’ll pick

you up at six.”

She nodded before she realized that he couldn’t see her.

“What should I wear? I’ve got a few nice dresses and the
heels to match them.”

“Um...no,” he said, a hitch of uncertainty in his voice.

“You’ll want to be warm.” After a short pause he added,
“And comfortable.”

“Okay...” Juliet replied slowly. Warm and comfortable?

“Jeans?”

“Yeah, jeans would be good,” Tanner said, the edge

leaving his voice as the warmth flooded in.

She smiled. She could do jeans. “I’ll be ready.”
“Good. See you then.”
He hung up before she did, but she hardly noticed. She

hadn’t  worn  jeans  on  a  date  in  well...She  frowned.  She
couldn’t  remember  ever  wearing  jeans  on  a  date.  Certainly
never with Dean.

Ugh. She groaned. Thoughts of him were not very

welcome, and since the dates had to be completed within the
week thinking about him going on dates with those two girls

Caitlin Ricci

who she knew were much prettier than her was not a good
idea.

Juliet went over to the mirror to look at herself

objectively. If such a thing were possible, she should be able
to  do  it.  She  started  with  her  hair.  It  was  shorter  than  her
sister kept hers, but they shared the same loose brown curls
that  had  strands  of  both  blond  and  red  throughout.  It
needed  to  be  trimmed,  but  it  wasn’t  unhealthy  by  any
means.

She had freckles, though they weren’t as pronounced as

her sister’s. Her eyes were large, her nose not too big for her
face and her mouth was a good shape, though her lips were
a bit full. Her chin  was narrow as were her shoulders. Her
breasts,  as  Dean  had  pointed  out,  were  lacking,  but  her
stomach  was  only  a  little  rounder  than  flat,  and  her  hips
were  a  good  shape.  Guys  usually  liked  her  legs  and  butt,
and years of horseback riding  with a family  friend had left
her with well-shaped thighs.

“What on earth are you doing?” Ophelia asked from her

doorway.

Juliet made a face into the mirror. “Looking at myself

objectively.”

Her sister rolled her eyes and steered her over to the bed.

Juliet sat down obediently and watched her sister as she
tsked. “Tell me why, and don’t you dare mention Dean’s
name, because I swear to God if he has you second guessing
how pretty you are for even a minute I will go castrate him
with a rusty spoon.”

Juliet couldn’t lie to her sister, but she didn’t doubt

Ophelia’s threats either. “I can’t do that without lying to
you,” she said, opting for the truth.

Her sister blew out an irritated breath and flopped on the

bed beside her. “Do you think Dean will cheat?”

Give Me Fever

She shrugged. “If he does, then he does. I can’t stop him,”

she said reasonably. “I’d prefer that he doesn’t, of course.
And we’ve always said we weren’t exclusive. He’s just never
been so blatant about finding other girls attractive before.”

Ophelia nodded. “Of course.”
“But if he does, then at least I would want him to tell me.

Sometimes, though, I get the feeling that he is already
cheating on me,” Juliet said quietly.

Her sister sat up and put her arm around her shoulders.

“I know it’s none of my business but...” She frowned.

“I keep the condoms in the top drawer of my dresser,”

Juliet supplied easily.

Ophelia laughed and released the breath she had been

holding. “Good. That’s really good. I’m glad you’re being
protected...and um...”

“Safe?”
Her sister was blushing a deep red. “Yeah, that too.”
Juliet playfully jabbed her sister with her elbow. “You’re

so much fun to tease.”

She stuck her tongue out and twisted her hair up into a

loose bun. “It’s bothering me,” Ophelia said as she caught
Juliet’s questioning look.

“Get it cut.”
Her sister made a face and shook her head. “Not that I

don’t love how yours looks, but I couldn’t have mine that
short.”

Juliet shrugged. She loved her short hair. Loved how fast

it was to get dried in the morning and loved how it never
bothered her neck or shoulders like Ophelia’s seemed to.

“Tanner told me to wear jeans tonight,” Juliet said with a

sigh. “I’ve never worn jeans before to a date. Does he mean
my nice dressy jeans, or my holey, dirty, play in the mud
jeans? And what shoes should I wear?”

Caitlin Ricci

Ophelia laughed and ruffled her sister’s hair. “It’s cute to

see you flustered about going on a date with a guy. I’d say
stay away from either extreme with your jeans. You’ve got
to have at least one pair of jeans that aren’t messy yet aren’t
your best. And wear sneakers. He didn’t expressly say boots
right?”

Juliet shook her head.
“So go with your cleanest pair of tennis shoes. What else

did he say?”

“To dress warmly,” she said. “Should I wear a jacket

then?”

Ophelia shrugged. “Or a hoodie. It sounds like a hoodie

would be better. Go for some layers, though, so you can take
them off just in case you need to.”

Juliet smiled at her. “Look at us. You’re actually giving me

advice on what to wear out on a date.”

Her sister laughed and bumped shoulders with her.

“Super rare, I know.”

Juliet grinned. “Very rare.”

Give Me Fever

Chapter Fifteen

anner showed up perfectly on time. Iago was happy to
see him and even managed to lick his hand before

lumbering back up to her bedroom to continue his nap.

“Tanner, good to see you again,” her father said as Tanner

came into the living room by her side. They shook hands.

“Hello, sir,” Tanner replied with a big grin.
The sir rocked Juliet. No one had ever called her father sir

in front of her before, but her father didn’t so much as blink
at  the  formality  of  it.  She  caught  Ophelia’s  gaze  over
Tanner’s  shoulder.  She  looked  just  as  startled  as  Juliet  felt.
Did Tanner call him sir all the time?

“How’s the essay coming?” her father asked and Tanner

groaned good-naturedly.

Their mother pushed on their father’s shoulder. “No class

talk tonight,” she chided him warmly. “It’s Juliet’s date. You
can bother the poor boy tomorrow.”

The sisters giggled and then Tanner led Juliet out to his

truck. He held the door for her and helped her up into the
warm cab. She ran her hands against her jeans, feeling the
rough texture under her fingertips and against her nails. Her
stomach fluttered nervously as Tanner slid into the seat next
to her.

She giggled and played with the strings on her hoodie.

She had been forced to borrow it from Leonardo, since she
didn’t own one herself, and she was glad that she had. The
soft, worn fabric felt good against her skin.

Caitlin Ricci

“You look good in jeans,” he said quietly as he shifted his

truck out of park. He wasn’t looking at her, but she could
feel the warmth in his gaze every time that his eyes flicked to
her. She smiled under his praise.

“They’re okay for tonight?” she asked him.
He nodded and turned off her narrow side street and onto

the main street. “They’re perfect,” he said.

She grinned. “I’m glad. Usually Dean has me change

because I don’t do a good enough job dressing myself and—
” She caught his scowl and her words froze on her lips.
“Tanner?” she asked, her voice wary.

He shook off her concern. “Sorry. Just because I don’t like

him doesn’t mean anything.”

Juliet nodded slowly. She took a deep breath and gave

him a small smile. “I don’t really like him much either right
about now. Want to have a nice night without thinking
about him?”

Tanner smiled thankfully at her. “Yeah.”
She settled into the seat beside him as he drove quietly

into  the  night.  Though  his  Chevy  pickup  was  an  older
model,  the  interior  was  clean  and  it  was  obviously  well
maintained.  The  dash  sported  a  newer  radio  with  lots  of
little  gadgets  and  buttons  and  there  was  a  small  GPS  unit
that was currently turned off.  The cab was warm, the fabric
soft  and  the  air  smelled  fresh,  as  if  he  usually  kept  the
windows  down  when  he  drove.  Right  now  the  windows
were  up,  a  thin  barrier  against  the  cool  night  air  while  she
stayed warm inside the cab.

The seat was more like a long couch and she found that

she liked the intimacy of it. Her seats in the Jeep were
comfortable of course, but this was different. This was a long
stretch of cushion with barely any space between the two of
them.

Give Me Fever

Occasionally Tanner would drop his hand down to his lap

or even rest it on the fabric of the seat next to him. When that
happened their fingers were so close she thought they could
almost  touch.  She  wanted  to  touch  him,  wanted  to  feel  the
brush  of  his  fingertips  against  hers.  But  each  time  she
thought  she  could  reach  out  and  do  it,  he  would  pull  his
hand  back  and  hold  the  steering  wheel  again.  He  wasn’t
even conscious of it, or else he didn’t even notice how much
she wanted to feel that connection.

Country music played softly over his radio and she found

herself lulled into a comfortable peace by the familiar
melodies.

“Where are we going?” she asked as he pulled off the

highway toward an exit marking the entrance to a little town
she had never heard of.

He gave her a small, secret smile and tightened his hands

on the steering wheel as he turned onto a narrow dirt road.
“There’s a spot up here I found awhile back. Sometimes I
like to drive when school gets to be too much or there’s too
much stress or life just seems to be too much. I’ll grab Drew
and a few bottles of water and drive until I find somewhere
that takes away the world.”

She whistled softly. “Sounds nice.”
He nodded. “It is.” Tanner’s gaze caught on the letters on

her hoodie, as they glowed bright white against the darkness
of the cab. “Titan?” he asked.

Juliet tugged at her hoodie. “It’s the name of the rig

Leonardo works on,” she said. “Ophelia had it made for
him.”

“You two seem really close,” he said.
“Ophelia and me?” she asked. Tanner nodded. “We’re

very close. She's one of my best friends.”

“And you and Leonardo?” he continued.

Caitlin Ricci

She smiled at him. “He's a great guy. He obviously loves

her and he's really good to her.”

Tanner returned her smile. “Good. She seems happy.”
“She is,” Juliet said.
Tanner tapped his fingers nervously on the steering

wheel. Juliet frowned at him. “Please relax. You seem really
nervous.”

His hands went still on the wheel. “I am,” he said quietly.
Juliet quirked an eyebrow at him. “Why?”
His cheeks turned a soft shade of pale pink. “This is my

first date.”

She scrunched up her face in disbelief. “Really?”
He nodded. “Yep.”
“How’s that possible? You're older than me,” she asked,

blinking at him as if it would make sense if she just focused
a bit harder on him.

Tanner laughed. “I’m only older than you by a year.”
Juliet nodded. “Still, though...” she shrugged and looked

away.  She  wouldn’t  tell  him  why  she  really  doubted  this
could be his first date. She wouldn’t tell him how much she
wanted to touch him. Or how much she wanted to run her
face against the short stubble on his cheeks and chin. He was
soft and gentle, and he listened to her like Dean never had.
Even  her  parents  had  always  divided  their  attention
between her and her sister. All she had ever wanted was for
someone to spend all of their considerable attention on her.

Maybe that was why she had liked Dean so much at first.
“I’ve always had Drew to look after, and casual dating

pales in comparison to that,” Tanner was saying as he pulled
off into a small field. He slowed as the rough dirt road
turned into deep ruts just before he parked his truck.

“Wait here,” Tanner said as he stepped out of the truck.

She tensed slightly, all manner of horror movies going
through her mind as she realized that she had gone to the

Give Me Fever

middle of nowhere with a guy that she barely knew and
now he was going to break out the chainsaw. The women
hosting the auction had warned them about that and she had
listened just like all the girls had when the women had told
them to stay in town, to drive themselves, and to let people
know where they were going.

And she had done none of that of course.
“You look a little wild,” Tanner said as he opened her

door for her.

“You were just coming around to get my door?” she

asked him, disbelief plainly clear on her face.

“Yeah...” He frowned, tucking his chin against his chest.

“What did you think I was doing?”

She gave him a sheepish smile. “Um, getting your

chainsaw maybe?”

His lips quirked into a smile and he took her hand.

“C'mon.”

Juliet got out of the cab with his help and followed him

around to the back of the truck. He pulled the tailgate down
and then used one of the tire covers to easily climb up, as if
he had been doing it for years. Which he probably had been.
She looked at him uncertainly. She had been around trucks
before but she had yet to find a graceful way of climbing
into the back of one.

With his help though, she managed to climb up until she

was kneeling in the bed of his truck. It took her another
moment to get her balance and stand up. She walked slowly
over to where he was unloading something from the large
silver trunk that sat just below the window of the cab.

Moving closer she could see that he was pulling a small

cooler out along with a bundle of blankets and pillows. Last
he pulled out a little lantern. With a twist of his fingers the
light sprang to life, illuminating the small space between
them.

Caitlin Ricci

Juliet settled in next to him, pulling her knees to her chest

and  putting  her  chin  on  top  of  them  as  she  watched  him.
“Where  are  we,  anyway?”  she  asked  him  quietly  as  she
stared at the darkness around them. There were some lights
off in the distance to her right, a small cluster of them that
she thought could possibly be a house or two, but they were
at least a mile off.

“We’re east of Denver by almost an hour,” he told her as

he sat down next to her. “And we’re about ten minutes off
the highway.”

“So...nowhere?” she asked him with a small smile.
He pulled out a bottle of lemonade and one of sweet tea

and offered them both to her. She took the tea gratefully.
“Yeah, pretty much nowhere. Sometimes it’s the best place
in the world.”

She nodded, fully understanding what he meant as they

settled into the silence of the night. After a few quiet
moments as they sipped their drinks she finally looked up at
the stars above them and her breath caught.

“Wow,” she whispered as she craned her neck back as far

as she could.

Tanner chuckled low and deep beside her. “Yeah. That’s

it exactly. That’s why I come out here with Drew.”

She nodded slowly. “I get that.”
“Here,” Tanner said, handing her a plate.
Juliet looked down to see fried chicken, potato salad, corn

bread, watermelon and a chocolate chip cookie all in small
piles on her plate. She went for her favorite first. “Yum,” she
said as she took a bite of the cookie.

Tanner nodded, a piece of chicken in his hand. “Drew and

I made them this afternoon. He made the corn bread himself.
It’s from a mix, but I think he did a pretty good job. He likes
spice though, so be careful.”

Give Me Fever

“Thank you,” she said, her voice quiet in the darkness.

“It’s lovely. This was a great idea.”

He smiled at her and they ate in easy silence, neither

needing  to  waste  the  quiet  on  unnecessary  words.  She  ate
heartily,  savoring  the  simple  foods  and  enjoying  Tanner’s
company more than she ever had on any other date.

It occurred to her that it was a sort of irony that a date

that had been paid for through an auction was turning out to
be the best date she had ever been on.

Once they were done eating, he stretched out the blankets

and the pillows and lay down on his back. After a moment
of hesitation she followed him. He had a blanket for each of
them,  which  she  eagerly  wrapped  herself  in  as  she  laid
down  next  to  him  and  got  comfortable  on  the  thick
comforter under her.

“I come out here to stargaze,” he told her as he got

situated under his own blanket. “Way out here where there
aren’t any lights from the city it’s so much easier to see them.
They sky is clearer, the air cleaner.”

“I completely agree with you,” she said quickly.
He smiled at her.
“Tell me about Drew. How does he know Shakespeare so

well?” she asked him after a moment as she stared up at the
night sky.

“When he was born I started reading him whatever books

I was assigned to read for high school. I read him everything
from my algebra homework to my biology book. Then in
college I started reading him whatever I was assigned there,
too. I’m a literature major, so most of my classes have been
with your dad and I’m sure I don’t have to tell you how
much he likes his Shakespeare.”

Juliet laughed. “I knew he used his works in a few of his

classes, but I hadn’t realized it had become such a backbone
for him.”

Caitlin Ricci

Tanner grinned. “I’ve read him Measure for Measure four

times now for four different classes with Professor Nichols.”

“Wow. No wonder he recognized the reference to my

name so easily.”

Tanner’s smile was proud as he nodded. “Yeah. He’s a

smart kid.”

Juliet shared his smile and stretched her arms over her

head as she looked up at the stars. “I’ve gotta say Tanner,
this is by far the best date I’ve ever been on.”

He laughed deeply. “I don’t know if that’s a good thing or

if I should feel sorry for you.”

She shook her head, her smile firmly in place. “It’s a good

thing. Believe me. It’s a very good thing.”

Her gaze caught on a shooting star and she stretched her

arm  up,  pointing  it  out  to  him.  Tanner  reached  up  too,
pointing out another one to her. She followed the star with
her  eyes  as  his  hand  caught  hers  and  his  fingers  wound
around hers, intertwining their hands. She was glad that the
darkness was so thick around them as a warm blush began
creeping over her cheeks. It flooded to her neck and over her
chest  until  she  felt  warm  all  over  as  his  fingers  held  hers
between  them  on  the  blanket.  His  fingers  were  warm  and
rough, the callouses tickling her fingertips.

“Tell me about your truck,” she whispered as she turned

on her side, facing him.

“It was my dad’s,” he said, letting go of her hand just to

wrap  his  arm  around  her  and  pull  her  close  to  him.  She
rested  her  head  on  his  chest  and  breathed  deeply.  She
snuggled into him, pressing herself into his side and into his
warmth as the night seemed to chill around them. His other
hand came up to his stomach and rested there, waiting and
expectant until she slid her hand into his fingers and let him
hold her.

Give Me Fever

“It’s a ‘77 Chevy,” he said quietly as he gently stroked the

pad of his thumb against her hand. “He gave it to me when I
was ten, and we’ve spent every summer since then slowly
fixing it up. He promised me that it would be ready on my
sixteenth birthday and that I would get to drive it on my first
date.” He laughed dryly and she smiled at him. “He was
right about the date, just not the year.”

“What happened?” she asked him.
He shrugged. “Drew was born, my dad started losing it,

my mom had an affair, and a year after he was born, almost
to the day, mind you, she left us.”

Juliet tried to sit up on her elbow and look at him but he

held her in place.

“Uh huh. You’re comfortable. Stay that way.”
She smiled and snuggled back into his side. “I’m sorry

Tanner.”

He shrugged. “Don’t be. I’m not.”
“Do you still see her?” she asked him.
He shook his head. “Sometimes. It used to be more, but

now it’s barely once a year.”

“Do you miss her?” Juliet asked as she took a deep breath,

breathing him in.

“Naw.”
She huffed at him, disbelieving.
He chuckled. “Yeah, sure. I used to miss her a lot. She’s

my mom, so of course I did. But...” He shrugged. “She chose
her new husband and his kids over us. So no, I don’t really
miss her anymore now. And before you ask—no, I’m not
angry. At first I was. But now, not so much.”

Juliet could understand that. He seemed incredibly strong

to her, to be able to deal with everything he had been
through and growing up so quickly and just to find the love
of his brother out of all of that and not to hold on to any of
the anger.

Caitlin Ricci

It made her feel incredibly selfish and immature. Even

before  her  twenty-first  birthday  a  few  months  earlier,  she
had spent years partying where all she cared about was how
much  fun  she  was  having  and  how  much  more  she  could
have  the  next  night.  While  the  man  beside  her  had  been
going  to  high  school  and  then  to  college  while  raising  an
autistic  child,  she  had  been  partying,  staying  out  late  and
having sex with guys she barely knew. Compared to him, it
had left her feeling weak and just a little bit dirty. She had
always loved her life, had always been fulfilled from it and
fine with the choices she had made. But next to him, it just
didn’t seem like enough.

“Hey,” he said, rubbing her shoulder gently and pulling

her closer to him. “Tell me what you’re thinking. You’ve
gone quiet.”

“I’m not like you,” she whispered bitterly. “You’re good,

you’ve led a good-person kind of life.” She frowned. “If that
makes sense at all.”

He shrugged. “And you’ve what? Killed elderly women

with boiling acid?”

“No, of course not. but—”
He put his finger to her lips. “Shh. I know you, or at least

I’ve known of you for years now. You’re Professor Nichols’
younger daughter. Everyone that has ever taken his class has
heard you and your sister referenced plenty of times. And
Dean isn’t exactly unpopular, so it’s hard not to hear about
him and therefore you in relation to him. You’ve partied. So
what? You’re young. We both are. There’s no reason you
should feel bad for having fun with your life.”

“You didn’t,” she quietly said.
“Ah, no, see that’s where you’re wrong. I did have fun.

Drew  and  I  go  to  the  zoo  almost  every  weekend.  I  see  a
movie  with  him  at  least  twice  a  month  and  we  eat  pizza
every  week.  We’ve  done  laser  tag  and  bowling  and  gone

Give Me Fever

fishing for weeks during the summer just the two of us. So
no,  I  haven’t  gone  out  with  people  my  own  age  in  a  long
time.  Actually,  you’re  the  first  in  a  few  years.  But  yes,  I’ve
had  fun.  Lots  of  it,  in  fact.  And  don’t  feel  bad  for  me  for
raising  my  little  brother.  And  don’t  beat  yourself  up  for
living  the  life  that  you  have.  You’re  a  good  person,  Juliet.
Accept  that  and  embrace  it,”  he  told  her,  his  voice  strong
and his words sure.

She laughed. “You sound like a self-help guru.” She took

a breath. “Or a saint.”

He shook his head. “No, I sound like a composed adult.

And I’m not a saint. Far from it actually.”

The way he said it, the heat behind his words as his

breath ran over her forehead, made her belly tighten and her
mouth  go  dry.  “Tell  me,”  she  whispered  to  him,  her  body
moving closer to his. She knew that she was begging him for
whatever  he  would  say  to  keep  her  feeling  this  way  about
him.

But he shook his head and pulled away with a soft smile.

He would say no more about it.

They stayed up for a few more hours watching the stars

and then fell asleep together under their blankets, her head
still nestled firmly on his chest.

* * * *

Juliet awoke the next morning in a hazy fog, her mouth dry
and tasting disgusting as she smacked her lips together. She
was cold and her hair felt like it was a mess. She was about
to tell Dean that he left the window open and that he needed
to go close it when she heard a rooster crowing faintly in the
distance. And it wasn’t a rooster like her alarm clock noise
either. This was a real live rooster somewhere near her. She
slowly blinked open her eyes and saw Tanner first, his face

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sporting even more unshaved hair and his clothes a mess,
from what she could see above the blanket. The second thing
she saw was a cow munching on some hay just beyond the
fence a few yards away.

“Tanner,” she said, shaking him quickly as she began to

panic. Her parents were going to kill her. She had promised
them  that  she  wouldn’t  stay  out  all  night  again  while  they
were in town. They couldn’t control her while they were out
of town, but she would certainly try to obey them while they
were in town to give her their horribly disappointing looks
that  they  were  so  damn  good  at.  She  shook  him  again  for
good measure, since he wasn’t waking up fast enough.

He groggily blinked up at her. “Hey,” he said with a

sleepy smile just before he stretched. His stretch was languid
and involved his whole body. Just like a cat’s. He pulled off
his blanket and she saw that his hoodie had ridden up with
his stretch, showing off the lean expanse of his stomach and
the dark trail of hair that stretched from his navel to below
the button of his jeans.

Juliet found herself following that dusting of hair with her

eyes and she caught herself licking her lips just before
Tanner pulled his shirt down and sat up next to her.

“My parents are going to kill me,” she grumbled. “I

wasn’t supposed to stay out all night.”

“No worries,” he said with a large yawn. He ran his

hands through his messy hair. She wasn’t sure what look he
was going for but he only managed to make it look worse.

“Oh I’m worried,” she told him darkly. “Very.”
He shook his head and licked his lips. He rubbed his eyes

and  shook  his  head  again.  Juliet  was  trying  not  to  find  it
adorable that he took longer to wake up than she did in the
mornings.  She  thought  it  was  pretty  cute,  actually,  and
under  different  circumstances,  she  would  have  probably
kissed  him  and  brought  him  back  to  bed  instead  of

Give Me Fever

panicking and wondering how many times her dad must
have called to yell at her during the night.

She flipped open her phone only to find an empty screen.

Well,  not  empty.  The  picture  of  her,  Ophelia  and  Iago  was
still  there  as  her  wallpaper.  And  the  clock  read  just  after
eight in the morning. But aside from a text from Ester telling
her to have fun on her date with Tanner, there was nothing
else that she had missed. No furious calls, no angry fathers,
nothing. She blinked at her phone in disbelief.

“It’s not here,” she whispered to herself.
“Hm?”
Juliet showed him her phone. “My dad didn’t call. I was

sure that he would have started to call and yell at me for
being late, starting at early this morning.”

He shook his head and yawned again. “That’s what I was

telling you not to worry about. I cleared it with the
professor.”

She just stared at him. “You cleared what with my

father?”

He waved his hand in a general manner to indicate

everything around them. “The date, us staying out all
night.”

Juliet frowned at him. Dean had used that line once, too,

and she had been grounded for two weeks that time. She
couldn’t be too sure so she pressed the speed dial key for her
dad.

“Hey pumpkin. How was your date?” her dad asked

cheerfully.

Juliet just stared at the man across from her. “You and

Tanner really talked about us staying out all night?
Seriously?”

Her mother’s chiding voice came in through the speaker

and Juliet realized that she had been put on speakerphone.
“Of course they talked. Tanner’s a good boy. Not like that

Caitlin Ricci

Dean fellow you’ve been spending time with lately. Did you
know that Tanner’s dad owns the bookstore we all use?”

Juliet rolled her eyes. “Yeah Mom, I know.”
“So come on home when you’re ready Juliet,” her mother

said. “We’re making pancakes and sausage. And your sister
is juicing the oranges right now.”

“Okay, Mom, I’ll be home soon,” she said just before she

hung up.

“Do you have to go?” Tanner asked as he came up beside

her. He sounded resigned yet still a bit hopeful.

With a slow nod Juliet said, “Yeah. I'm actually really

surprised that they let me stay out this long.”

Tanner nodded. “We probably shouldn't push it. Why

don't you hop in the cab while I put these things away?”

“I'll help,” she said.
He paused, a pillow held loosely in his hand. “You don't

have to,” he said.

She smiled at him. “I know. But I want to.” She started

gathering the other pillows. They had cleaned up their trash
from dinner the night before, so the morning clean up went
quickly.  He tossed the blankets haphazardly into the metal
trunk, not bothering to even fold them, which intrigued her.
If  his  truck  was  anything  to  go  off  she  knew  that  he
obviously  cared  about  his  things.  But  he  didn’t  seem  to  be
fussy about them like Dean was.

They cleaned up quickly and then she joined him in the

front of the cab. It was warm and comfortable, and although
she  was  dirty  and  hadn’t  brushed  her  teeth  since  the
morning  before,  she  was  relaxed  next  to  him  as  he  put  the
truck  in  gear  and  started  driving  them  back  home,  the
sounds of Santana playing softly through the speakers.

She yawned as they got back on the highway. Halfway

through the drive back his fingers found hers on the seat in

Give Me Fever

the space between them. Their hands stayed loosely
entwined during the rest of the ride back.

“Thank you for the date,” she said quietly as Tanner

pulled into her driveway.

He smiled at her and brushed a bit of hair out of her eyes.

“You’re welcome, Juliet. I had fun.”

She blushed and hopped out of the tuck. “I did too,” she

said quickly. She wrapped her arms around herself, hugging
her middle as she walked up the short sidewalk to her front
door.

Tanner came up beside her and rested his hand on the

small of her back. She turned to him quickly, breathing
deeply as she rested her head on his chest and he wrapped
his arms around her shoulders.

Juliet nuzzled her face into the warmth of his neck.
“I want to kiss you,” he whispered to her.
His simple declaration made her belly tighten in

anticipation as butterflies began to spin and arc through her.
“I would like that,” she said, her voice barely a breathy
whisper.

His arms tightened around her, pulling her closer against

him.  Her  hands  went  to  his  sides,  stroking  the  heat  of  his
skin  through  the  warmth  of  his  hoodie.  She  could  feel  his
heart beat through his neck as it pressed against her cheek.
He  turned  his  head  and  nuzzled  the  side  of  her  head,  just
above her temple.

“You’re so tempting,” he said with a breathy laugh. “But I

know you’re dating Dean and I won’t ask you to cheat on
him. I know you’re not like that.”

She bit the inside of her cheek. Dean. She had forgotten

completely about him as she had held this man’s hand, had
stood in his arms, had slept with her head on his chest
throughout the night. “You don’t know me that well,” she

Caitlin Ricci

told him softly, the sadness creeping into her voice, despite
the happiness she felt at being wrapped in his embrace.

She felt his mouth spread into a smile against her

forehead.

“No,” he said quietly. “I don’t know you very well.” He

took a breath. “But I’d like to.” His voice was hopeful,
leading but not demanding. She nodded against his neck.

“I’d like that too,” she told him, her voice just as honestly

hopeful.

The front door to her house opened and she turned to

look at the intrusion. Her sister stood with the corners of her
mouth quirked up into a small smile. She was in her usual
state of dress, a pair of loose jeans worn out in the knees and
a t-shirt. Her feet were bare and her skin was flushed. Her
lips were dark and swollen as if she had been interrupted
from a heated kiss with Leonardo. It warmed Juliet’s heart to
see her sister looking so happy and fulfilled.

Tanner looked at her, too, and Juliet expected him to pull

away from her but he only put his chin on top of her head.
“Hey, Ophelia,” he said warmly as he continued to hold her
close, his breath warm against her messy hair.

“Good morning, Tanner,” Ophelia said brightly.
His arms slowly slipped from her sides and he placed a

gentle kiss on her forehead. It was barely a breath of a kiss
but it still had her ducking her head to hide the blush that
covered her cheeks.

“Thanks again for the date, Juliet. I’m glad my first date

was with you,” he said. “See you soon, I’m sure. At the very
least your dad has his weekly book order to pick up, so
hopefully I’ll see you there in a few days.” He took an
awkwardly slow step back, his keys ready in his hands.

“It was good to see you again, Ophelia. Say hey to the

professor and your mom for me please,” Tanner said, taking
another step back.

Give Me Fever

Juliet caught his gaze and saw the hesitation in them that

she was sure mirrored her own. She wanted him to stay. She
didn’t want him to go just yet. Maybe not anytime soon
even. She just couldn’t think of an excuse to get him to stay.

“Pancakes,” she quickly blurted.
Tanner’s eyebrows shot up and his smile turned into a

grin. “Huh?”

Ophelia stepped up to save her from her blurting

stupidity. “Mom made pancakes. There’s always plenty. I
think what my sister meant to say was would you like to stay

for breakfast, Tanner? I would so very much like your company on
this fine beautiful morning. Right, Juliet?”

Her sister was grinning at her and Juliet knew that

somewhere, sometime she would both get her sister back for
embarrassing  her  and  thank  her  heartily  for  saying  the
words  she  couldn’t  seem  to  form.  Her  father  would  get  a
kick  out  of  her  not  being  able  to  talk  to  a  boy.  Not  just
because  she  dated  a  lot,  but  because  he  had  thought  that
those  one-word-a-day  calendars  were  the  best  gifts  for  his
daughters for many years in a row before they reached their
teens and could tell him what they actually wanted. Though
for  Ophelia  it  usually  involved  books  or  a  new  science  kit
and  for  her  it  was  most  often  the  latest  cd  or  some  new
clothes.

“Really, Juliet?” Tanner asked, the laugh ready in his

words. “Is that what you meant to say?”

Juliet grinned at him and nodded. He wanted to laugh

because he was happy. Just like she did. This was a man that
would never laugh at her, would never ridicule her or make
fun of her. She was as sure of it as she was that yes, she did
want him inside at their breakfast table where he had looked
so comfortable during their tutoring sessions not so many
days ago.

Give Me Fever

Chapter Sixteen

he next afternoon Juliet was reading a book at the
breakfast table when she heard the doorbell ring.

Everyone  was  out  back  getting  ready  to  start  the  barbecue
and she could hear her dad and Leonardo talking about the
best  temperature  to  cook  steaks  to.  They  were  having
cheeseburgers,  so  the  point  was  moot  for  the  moment  but
she  could  see  the  merits  of  both  sides  of  the  argument.  It
didn’t  help  though  that  her  father  was  talking  about  cow
steaks  and  Leonardo  was  talking  about  elk.  She  supposed
that rare was rare, no matter where you were from, and she
knew  her  father  liked  his  steaks  at  medium  rare,  so  she
figured the conversation was mostly just for her father’s fun,
as  he  enjoyed  having  a  decent  debate  with  a  man  over  the
age  of  twenty-two.  But  Leonardo  sounded  like  he  was
having  just  as  much  fun  debating  with  him  as  well.  She
thought  again  about  how  lucky  Ophelia  was  to  find
someone  so  wonderful  for  herself  that  he  seemed  to  fit  so
easily  with  them  all.  Even  if  she  did  have  to  go  to  colder-
than-anything-Alaska to do it.

She opened the door with a contented smile on her face. It

froze in place as she saw Dean standing on her doorstep.

“Hey,” she said carefully. “What are you doing here?”
“Can I come in?” he asked, his voice bitter and cold. She

had never seen him like this and it caused a ripple of
uncertainty to flow through her, but she had never flat out

Caitlin Ricci

said no to him before and she wasn’t about to start while he
was acting so strangely.

“Sure,” she said, stepping out of the way. He came in, his

shiny black shoes making barely a noise on the stone entry
way. She closed the door behind him and looked at him
expectantly.

“How was your date?” he asked her coldly, startling her.
Juliet narrowed her gaze at him. “How were yours?”

When he just stared at her, she rolled her eyes. “Don’t start
this crap Dean.”

He moved in closer to her, his hands at either side of her

hips as he pressed her up against the wall behind her. It was
a familiar, intimate position they had shared often in this
same spot, but today it just felt wrong.

“I heard that you spent the night out there with him.

Showed  back  up  yesterday  morning,  both  of  you  looking
well-sexed,  as  you  had  his  arms  around  you  on  your
goddamn porch for the whole  world  to see  what  you were
doing to me behind my back,” he spat in her ear.

She trembled against him and tried to push against his

chest,  but  he  was  so  much  heavier  and  so  very  much
stronger.  “Are  you  having  me  followed?”  she  said
incredulously.  She  hated  how  her  voice  cracked  and  how
she  felt  so  very  small  and  vulnerable  next  to  him.  She  felt
pitiful  and  frightened,  something  she  never  would  have
expected  or  wanted  to  feel  within  her  own  home.  She  had
invited  him  in,  and  the  situation  needed  to  be  fixed  and
calmed down before someone came in and found them like
this. She didn’t need her family to see him at his worst.

“I’ve got friends in his neighborhood,” he told her, his

voice growing calm in a sort of chilling quiet. It scared her
more than his anger had a moment before. “So how did you
set it all up?”

Give Me Fever

Startled and confused, she stopped pushing against him

and blinked up at him. “Huh? Setting what up?”

He rolled his eyes at her and held her chin firmly between

her fingers. “I’ll say this slowly so that you can understand,
but don’t you dare lie to me. Can you do that for me, baby
girl?”

She nodded slowly, not wanting him to get mad at her

when he had control of her face. She took a deep breath and
plastered  a  friendly  smile  onto  her  face.  “I’ll  tell  you
anything you want to know, Dean. You know that, sweetie.”
She  brought  her  hands  up  to  stroke  his  chest  through  the
fine material of his expensive sweater. Her fingertips paused
over  his  heart.  The  beat  was  slow,  controlled.  She  pulled
back her hand, her nails curling into her palm. She couldn’t
hide  her  fear  of  him  as  she  licked  her  lips  nervously  and
stared up at him. If anything, her fear seemed to make him
happy in some sick way. His eyes seemed to almost glitter as
he moved his hand to the side of her face so that his thumb
could  still  stroke  her  bottom  lip  as  most  of  his  fingers  lay
against the pulse in her neck.

She was shocked to feel him put just the first little hint of

pressure against that tender flesh. “Stop it, Dean. This isn’t
funny,” she hissed at him.

“I should hope not,” he said as he moved closer against

her, pressing so hard against her that he nearly made it
impossible for her to breathe. “Now tell me about how you
had sex with that stupid hick and how you played me in
front of everyone.”

She shook her head against his chest. The cramped space

made the movement nearly impossible. “I didn’t know that
he was even there until you left and he placed the bid.” She
tried to force her hands between them to push on his chest,
but with him so close and his hands at her sides she was
effectively pinned. “Please let me go, Dean,” she whispered,

Caitlin Ricci

her voice cracking. “We can talk about this later. I promise.
Just let me have this afternoon with my family.”  She hated
how  tears  pricked  her  eyelashes  and  how  she  shook  with
fear.  Most  of  how  she  hated  how  goddamn  weak  she  felt
being trapped with him at that moment.

“No, Juliet,” he said steadily. “I think we’re going to be

talking here for a while.” His hand moved fully to her neck
while his forearm kept her shoulder pinned against the wall.
Her eyes widened as she felt his fingers curl around her
throat. “Now, we’re going to play a game. And I know how
much you like games.”

Hot, salty tears fell from her eyes to spread over her

cheeks. “No, please Dean, no.”

“How long were you cheating on me for? Weeks?” he

asked. “And remember, sweet Juliet, there is a downside to
lying to me.” That last threat he said with just the slightest
hint  of  pressure  against  her  neck,  as  if  to  drive  his  point
home.  As  if  she  could  mistake  his  intent.  But  still,  she
couldn’t lie to him. She wouldn’t ever put Tanner in danger
if  she  could  really  help  it  and  she  wouldn’t  say  what  this
man wanted her to say just to save her own skin. Any police
officer would have told her to do it differently. Though they
would have told her to scream for help. It would have made
so  much  more  sense  than  having  him  on  top  of  her  and
being so vulnerable when her family was only a few rooms
away.  But  somewhere  in  her  mind  she  thought  she  could
still  salvage  this  situation.  She  could  calm  Dean  down.  He
would  leave  quietly.  Things  would  be  okay.  Her  family
would  never  have  to  know  about  her  latest  screw-up  in  a
long  line  of  screw-ups  that  involved  guys.  Though
admittedly,  they  had  never  had  her  pinned  to  a  wall  with
her throat in their hand.

Juliet took a deep breath and met his dark gaze. “I. Never.

Cheated. On. You.” She made sure every word was bitten

Give Me Fever

out so that he could fully understand her. Cheating to them
was  sex  without  the  other  person  knowing.  They  had
discussed  this.  Communication  was  essential  in  any
relationship, and she had made sure that there were ground
rules  for  theirs.  Aside  from  her  one  weak  moment  months
ago in the tattoo shop when they were barely starting to go
out,  she  hadn’t  even  kissed  another  man  in  all  the  months
that  they  had  been  together.  She  couldn’t  say  the  same  for
him. She didn’t have proof, and she certainly didn’t have the
names of the women that he wanted more than her, but like
the women at the auction she knew that they existed.

His fingers tightened on her skin and she gasped past

even the light pressure of his warning squeeze. “Don’t you
lie to me, slut. I’ll—”

Suddenly she was free as Dean was being yanked away

from her. Juliet sank to her knees and hid her face under her
arms,  cowering  against  the  side  of  the  wall  as  she  heard
Leonardo  yelling  at  Dean.  She  could  make  out  bits  and
pieces of what he was saying but mostly it was just noise to
her.

That was, until she heard Dean yelling at her sister. That

snapped  whatever  mis-timed  self-preservation  ideas  she’d
had  when  she  had  crumbled  to  the  floor  to  protect  herself.
She shot to her feet on shaking legs and rounded on him.

“You don’t talk to her that way!” she screeched at him,

startling  her  gathered  family.  “You’re  a  bully,  and  you’re
mean, and you need to leave, and don’t you ever come back
here!”  Juliet  felt  Ophelia’s  arm  come  around  her  stomach,
supporting her and holding her all at the same time. Beside
her,  she  saw  Leonardo  and  her  father  standing  off  to  the
side,  ready  to  step  in  should  she  need  it.  Her  mother  was
behind them, protected and safe as she stared at the scene in
shock  and  horror,  clutching  a  loudly  barking  Iago  in  her
arms.

Caitlin Ricci

“Don’t ever call me again,” she whispered brokenly just

before she scrambled out of her sister’s arms and stumbled
up the stairs as she tried to run on shaking legs.

She continued to hear voices from downstairs, but after a

few minutes of arguing she heard the front door slam, and
the house slowly filled with an uneasy, floating silence. She
pulled that quiet around herself like a blanket as she curled
up on her bed, her mother’s frightened face seared into her
mind. She was so scared, and Juliet had brought that horror
on her. No mother should have to see violence in her home,
against her children and the family that she loved. And Juliet
had exposed her to that out of her own stupidity. That
realization left an acrid, burning taste in her mouth as the
guilt and shame began to settle deep in bones and whisper
through the blood pounding in her ears.

Her door opened, squeaking on rusted hinges as two sets

of  footsteps  came  near  her.  She  shut  her  eyes  tightly,
unwilling to see the hurt on her mother’s face. Or worse, the
disappointment.  She  couldn’t  handle  that  right  now.  She
knew  that  she  wasn’t  Ophelia,  but  dammit  she  was  okay
usually.  Sometimes.  She  tried  anyway.  It  was  just  hard  to
live up to perfection all the time.

“Open your eyes, sweet girl,” her mother cooed, her

warm hand stroking the hair off her forehead. Juliet slowly
obeyed her mother as Ophelia laid down on the bed behind
her.

“I’m so sorry, Mommy,” she choked out as a wave of

fresh tears began streaming down her cheeks.

Her sister’s arms came around her stomach, tightening

around her and holding her close as her mother’s face came
closer and she pressed a kiss to Juliet’s forehead. “What are
you sorry for?” she asked.

Juliet swallowed hard. “Bringing him into my life. Letting

you see that. Not protecting us.” She took a deep breath.

Give Me Fever

This one  hurt the most. “Not being better,” she whispered,
the  words  bitter  and  harsh  against  her  tongue.  She  hated
saying them, but the truth sometimes hurt, especially when
you were admitting it about yourself.

She was flipped onto her back as Ophelia turned her over.

Her sister pressed her forehead against hers as she crowded
her on the bed. “What the hell are you talking about? Stop
that shit this instant.”

Juliet grinned and then laughed brokenly. “You cursed,”

she whispered. It was such a rare occurrence that it
demanded attention.

Her sister rolled her eyes and sat up, giving Juliet her

space. “You’re always good, Juliet. And that idiot’s crap isn’t
your fault.”

“I brought him into our lives,” she protested.
Ophelia huffed loudly.
“You  aren’t  responsible  for  that  young  man’s  actions.

Though I’d like to skin him myself, and would have, if your
father hadn’t stopped me,” her mother said vehemently. Her
fingers came up to trace Juliet’s neck.

Juliet shared a smile with her sister. Hearing their mother

talk  about  skinning  someone  was  almost  comical.  She  was
fierce,  but  she  was  tiny  in  a  family  of  people  of  average
height.  Iris  Nichols  though  was  no  one  to  mess  with.
Especially  when  it  came  to  her  kids,  whether  they  be  her
daughters  or  the  kids  that  she  taught  through  her  youth
literacy programs at their  local library just a few blocks  up
the street.

“It’s going to be okay,” Ophelia told her as she stroked

her sister’s arm. “You’re going to be fine. Everyone makes
mistakes sometimes. Just call Dean a mistake and move on
from him. You’re so much stronger than you give yourself
credit for.” Her mother nodded for emphasis.

Caitlin Ricci

Then Leonardo and her father came into her room and

she watched as Leonardo gave Ophelia a gentle kiss on the
top of her head. Although he stayed next to his wife, Juliet
knew his attention was on her. And it felt good to have that
kind of protection on her side.

He reached up and stroked her cheek and brushed the

hair off her face. She was glad she had such a big bed, with
the  three  of  them  on  it.  She  remained  lying  down.  It  was
comfortable and allowed her to curl onto her side instead of
sitting  up  and  facing  them  all  right  now.  It  was  futile,
though,  since  lying  down  also  allowed  everyone  to  crowd
around her and look down at her as if she was on a surgical
table and being dissected.

That was an image she didn’t particularly like, so she

slowly  sat  up,  crossing  her  ankles  and  tucking  them  under
her as she  brought  her knees up to her chest and wrapped
her arms around her knees. At least she was wearing shorts
today. Being in one of her short skirts would have been just
too much vulnerability for her at that moment.

“You’re so much better than that jerk. Don’t waste any

more tears on him,” Leonardo told her seriously.

She gave him a grateful smile and brushed the tears off

her cheeks. She was starting to come back to herself with the
help of the love of her family  all around  her. These people
loved  her,  she  belonged  to  them  and  with  them,  and  they
would forgive her for this most recent stupidity as they had
all  the  other  times  before.  She  had  to  stop  making  such
horrible mistakes, though.

“You’re one of the good guys,” she told him honestly, her

voice serious. “One of the very rare ones.” She turned to
Ophelia. “You got super lucky.”

Juliet took a few shuddering breaths and went to the

bathroom before anyone could say anything more to her.
She brushed her teeth and splashed water on her face. After

Give Me Fever

patting her face dry and applying a bit of mascara and some
lip  gloss,  she  came  back  out  to  her  bedroom  to  find  her
family  still  gathered  around  her  bed  and  watching  her
expectantly.

“I think the burgers might be ready to go on that old

grill,” Ophelia said brightly. There were a few nods of
agreement and Juliet gave her sister a grateful smile.

She hung back as everyone left her room. Ophelia was the

last one to leave and Juliet gave her sister a big hug and she
was happy to get one in return.

“Thank you,” she whispered into her sister long curls.
“Anytime,” Ophelia said as she gave her one final

squeeze before pulling away and leading her downstairs to
where their family waited on the deck.

Caitlin Ricci

Chapter Seventeen

few days later Juliet and Ophelia walked into the
bookstore ready to pick up their father’s latest order.

She  was  happy  to  see  Tanner  behind  the  counter  and  she
gave  him  a  smile.  She  couldn’t  help  the  blush  that  swept
over her cheeks or the flutter of her heart at the sight of him
with a well-read paperback in his hands as he sat perched on
a wooden stool behind the counter.

“Reading the merchandise?” she teased him as Ophelia

began to browse the rows and rows of books.

“Something like that,” he said with a grin as he put the

book aside.

She picked it up and read the familiar title with a smile.

“Treasure Island. I used to love this story.”

“Yeah, well, I preferred the Muppets movie version

myself,” Tanner said with a shrug. “I was going to tell Drew
about it and I wanted to make sure that I had all my facts
straight before I presented it to him.”

She nodded. “It’s always good to have your facts

straight.”

He smiled at her and ran a hand through his hair. “Here

to pick up your dad’s books?”

Juliet cocked her hip against the counter. “Yep. And I

wanted to see you again, too, or else I would have just sent
my sister to fetch them.”

“Fetch things yourself!” Ophelia called good-naturedly

from somewhere in the stacks.

Give Me Fever

Tanner grinned and took her hand in his. His fingers

played against the palm of his hand. “Well, whatever the
reason, I’m glad you decided to come in.”

“Me too,” she said softly, leaning closer to him. “Thank

you again for the date, Tanner. I had a lot of fun.”

“I did, too,” he said, leaning into her too.
“Which of these mysteries do you think Dad might like,

Juliet?”  Ophelia  called  to  her.  Juliet  gave  Tanner  an
apologetic  smile  before  joining  her  sister  in  a  corner  of  the
small  store  marked  with  a  brass  plaque  denoting  it  as  the
mystery books area. They settled on one neither of them had
heard  of  before,  but  the  obscurity  of  it  would  probably
appeal to their father.

“I’m so glad Dean is out of your life now. You’re going to

be so much better off now without him. You’ll see,” Ophelia
told her. Juliet knew how well sound carried in the store, but
found that she didn’t care if Tanner knew she’d broken up
with Dean. It would save her from having to tell him herself
later.

They approached the counter and Ophelia put the

mystery book on the counter as Tanner started bagging the
books for their father. “I’m sorry about Dean,” he said, not
looking at her. “If you need anything or want to go to a
movie or something sometime just to relax and stuff, give
me a call, all right?”

She startled, surprised by the softness of his answer.

There was no pressure in it. Just a friend asking another
friend out to a movie. But— “You aren’t that sorry are you?”
she asked him with a smile. “Usually you’ll look me in the
eyes. You wouldn’t just then.”

He sighed and met her gaze. “You should probably know

that about me. I don’t lie well. Along with an addiction to
chocolate chip cookies, it’s one of my quirks.”

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“Or charming qualities, depending on who you ask,”

Ophelia said pointedly as she moved to the section of new
releases.

Tanner blushed and shifted his weight. He rested his

forearms  on  the  counter  as  he  leaned  toward  her.  “Yeah,
well...no,  Juliet,  I’m  not  sorry  that  he’s  out  of  your  life.  I
don’t  think  it  was  any  secret  that  I  didn’t  like  him  much.
And  I  didn’t  like  how  he  treated  you,  especially  at  the
auction.”

“Amen,” Ophelia called over her shoulder.
Tanner cleared his throat. “And as much as I would like

to just sweep you up into a relationship now with me since
you’re free and all, I’m not like that.”

Her smile was uncertain. “You’re not?”
He shook his head. “You need time to heal. I was serious

though, about going out sometime if you wanted. Just didn’t
want you to think I just wanted to date you or something.”
He was blushing and took a step back from the counter as he
looked away and cleared his throat, unsure of himself.

She let out a breath. He was full of so many constant

surprises. “That’s really sweet of you, Tanner. Thank you.
Are we still on for Saturday?”

He nodded. “Only if you’re up for it, of course.”
She gave him a small smile and said, “See you then.”

Juliet grabbed their bags and met Ophelia at the front of the
store.

Give Me Fever

Chapter Eighteen

he following Saturday Tanner picked her up for the zoo,
but Drew stayed in the truck. “He was being stubborn

about not wanting to go in,” he told her apologetically as
they walked back to his truck.

She shrugged. “I was ready to go anyway and plus, new

people can be scary sometimes.”

Tanner gave her a smile and got the door for her. He

helped her climb in next to Drew and then came around the
front of the truck to get in on his side.

“Hey Drew,” Juliet said as she buckled herself in. It was a

bit  chilly  out,  and  she  was  glad  to  see  that  he  and  Tanner
were  both  wearing  hoodies.  She  had  chosen  to  get  dressed
up, or as dressed up  as one could get for the zoo. She was
wearing  her  nicest  pair  of  jeans  with  her  black  knee  high
boots  over  them  and  a  pink  sweater.  Ophelia  had  said  she
looked  nice,  and  the  quick  glances  that  Tanner  took
whenever  they  hit  a  stop  light  confirmed  it.  His  attention
made her feel pretty and special.

“We’re going to the zoo today,” Drew told her proudly.

“We go lots, but I guess it’s okay that you came today.”

Juliet laughed even as Tanner scolded him for his

rudeness. “Well thank you for that,” she told him. “I’m glad
to be here with you.”

“Favorite animal?” Tanner asked her as he pulled onto

the highway.

Juliet pursed her lips as she thought. “Elephants.”

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“They smell,” Drew informed her.
She ruffled his hair. “Yeah, they do. And they’re also

super smart, and they take care of each other for years, and
they live in families.”

“Ever ridden one?” Tanner asked.
She shook her head. “I ride horses, but I’ve never been on

anything bigger than them. I don’t do heights well.”

He smiled at her. “That’s probably safer.”
She shared his smile and settled in for the short ride to the

zoo.

The zoo was thankfully not too crowded, and they were

able  to  get  close  enough  to  see  all  the  animals  that  Drew
wanted  to.  Juliet  was  struck  again  by  how  close  Tanner
seemed to his brother and how well he took care of him.

“Want some ice cream?” Tanner asked her as he got in

line.

“Yes, please,” she said, coming up beside him, Drew

clinging tightly to her arm.

Tanner tried to pull him off her but he stubbornly refused

to let go. “C’mon Drew. Don’t cling to her.”

She put her hand on Tanner’s shoulder. “It’s okay

Tanner,” she told him. “I don’t mind at all.”

He looked at her uncertainly. “You sure?”
She smiled at him and moved her hand to Drew’s upper

back.  “Yeah,  I’m  sure,”  she  said  with  a  soft  smile.  Tanner
returned  her  smile  and  ordered  their  ice  creams.  He  also
ordered them a plate of chicken tenders and French fries for
lunch.

Juliet pulled a few water bottles out of her bag as they sat

down. She had purchased them and some postcards at the
first gift shop that they had gone into and now she was glad
that she had. The line for drinks was getting longer by the
minute as the day began to warm up into the early afternoon

Give Me Fever

hours. It would still be cold as soon as the sun set, so she
was glad she had dressed at least a little warmly.

“Did you get lots of pictures?” Tanner asked her as she

sat her camera on the table next to her.

“Tons,” she told him. “Especially of the penguins.” She

licked  the  honey  mustard  dressing  and  chicken  tender
crumbs  off  her  fingers  before  turning  on  her  camera  and
handing it to him. She had opened the saved images folder
to one of her favorite pictures of the day, one of Tanner and
Drew  in  front  of  the  penguin  exhibit.  It  had  been  Drew’s
favorite, and the picture was of the two of them turned away
from  her  as they  watched  the  penguins.  Drew  had  his  face
and hands plastered against the clear plastic barrier. He was
grinning widely.

“I’d like a copy of this picture if that’s okay,” Tanner said

as he handed her camera back to her.

Juliet blushed. She planned to print one out for herself

later today. It was a great profile picture of them both. She
knew the perfect silver frame to put the picture in, and there
was  room  on  her  dresser  for  at  least  another  few  pictures.
“Sure,”  she  told  him  as  he  put  her  camera  away  and  took
another bite of the chicken tender in front of her.

They finished lunch and walked around for a bit longer

before piling back into his truck. She was pulling out her
water bottle once they got back onto the highway when a
small plush jaguar fell onto the seat next to her. She looked
up at Tanner questioningly.

“Surprise,” he said simply. “I saw how much you liked

it.”

She stared at the little cat in wonder as she picked it up

and began stroking its fur. He was right, she had really
wanted it, but had decided against getting it. “I haven’t
been given a stuffed animal since I was a little girl.”

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“Sorry, I should have asked first,” Tanner said with a

frown as he pulled off the highway and onto the side streets.
She quickly reached around Drew to be able to put her hand
on his arm.

“Don’t say that. I like it a lot. It was very sweet,” she told

him with a reassuring smile. After a moment he returned her
smile and she settled back into the seat, her little jaguar held
tightly in her lap.

Once at her house, Tanner left the truck running so that

Drew could listen to the radio as he came around to Juliet’s
side and opened the door for her. He helped her step down
and then as they walked up the sidewalk together his fingers
slid into hers. It was natural and easy and she smiled at him
as she curled her fingers around his. On her porch he pulled
her into his arms, the jaguar squished between them as their
hug  lingered  and  she  breathed  in  his  warmth.  She  liked
being  pressed  against  him  like  this,  like  there  was  nothing
between  them  and  he  wouldn’t  mind  holding  her  for  a  lot
longer than they had time to. She found she wouldn’t mind
holding him that long, either.

Drew honked the horn, hurrying Tanner along, and with

an apologetic smile he kissed her forehead and walked
quickly back to the truck. She waved to them as they drove
off and Drew waved back to her, which made her giggle just
before she went inside.

Give Me Fever

Chapter Nineteen

he first day back to school after any break was always
difficult for Juliet, and the Monday after spring break

was  no  different.  She  woke  up  late,  had  forgotten  to  wash
her favorite jeans and was barely on time for her first class of
the  morning.  She  was  having  even  more  trouble  focusing
this  morning  than  usual,  and  being  the  daughter  of  a
professor on campus hardly helped. Her professors had the
ill-conceived  notion  that  growing  up  around  the  notion  of
classes  and  students  and  colleges  made  her  somehow
immune to everything going on around her, somehow above
the normal day-to-day activities of being a student. As if she
had already developed a jaded, been there done that sort of
attitude  when  it  came  to  school,  so  they  assumed  that  she
would  always  have  her  papers  and  projects  in  on  time  or
early, and that they would be exceptional because of course
she had already done this all before.

A professor from a class that she had detested the

previous semester had actually threatened to tell her father
that  she  had  received  a  failing  grade  on  one  of  the
professor’s  papers.  She  had  told  him  to  go  ahead  and  had
walked off. Of course  nothing  had come of it. Not that  she
thought her father had really been upset at her. He probably
would have done what he did when her third grade teacher
had assigned her Tolstoy since Juliet had made the mistake of
complaining  that  she  had  read  every  book  that  the  teacher
had  assigned  for  the  year  and  could  she  please  read

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something new and different. Her dad had gone straight to
the teacher and spoken to her. She wasn’t sure what he had
said  and  she  had  never  asked  him,  but  the  next  day  the
teacher  had  taken  her  to  the  school  library  and  told  her  to
pick  out  whatever  book  she  would  like  to read  that  month
and to write a report on it when she finished it. The teacher
had even been nice to her. Juliet could almost remember the
woman  apologizing  for  losing  her  temper  and  snapping  at
her.  She  had  read  The  Secret  Garden  by  Frances  Hodgson
Burnett and had loved it. She had devoured it in less than a
week, with many late nights spent under her blankets on her
bed  with  a  flashlight,  her  book,  and  a  baggie  filled  with
Oreos.  The  paper  that  she  had  turned  in  the  following
Monday had received an A. It had been the beginning of her
being able to choose her own books to read in many of her
literature classes over the years.

But that was to be expected, too, as the daughter of a

professor.  At  least  she  could  understand  literature
professors expecting more of her because of who her father
was.  But  the  professors  who  expected  her  to  understand
subjects like math just because her father was a professor, or
worse  because  her  sister  had  multiple  degrees,  had  started
getting to her while she was still in high school. They would
get upset with her when she didn’t understand the concepts
and  would  often  ask  her  father  how  they  should  go  about
teaching  her  when  she  just  couldn’t  seem  to  learn.  He  had
been  at  a  loss  too,  so  she  had  struggled  and  had  barely
gotten through most of her required math courses.

Thinking back, she realized that Tanner had been one of

the very few people to be patient with her when it came to
her  trouble  with  math.  Thinking  about  his  unending
patience  and  his  easy  manner  had  her  smiling  despite  the
monotone  voice  of  the  professor  or  the  dull  nature  of  the
material. It was a sales class, so a little math but a whole lot

Give Me Fever

of detailing the markets and trends and looking for clues as
to what to design and release and when.

She was frustrated with her degree choice. Lots of people

changed  their  majors,  she  knew  that.  No  one  in  her  family
ever  had.  Or  if  they  did  have  a  change  of  heart,  they  did
what  Ophelia  had  done—just  finished  the  degree  that  she
didn’t  really  want  and  then  started  an  entirely  new  one.
Juliet didn’t really want to do that, though. She didn’t have
the patience or the desire to get multiple degrees.

She only wanted one. The right one. But she wasn’t sure

exactly  what  that  was  at  the  moment.  She  had  chosen
fashion  design  because  she  liked  clothes.  She  really  truly
did. She liked dressing up her older sister like a doll and she
liked  being  able  to  help  her  friends  with  their  clothing
choices and styles. She enjoyed shopping, like many women
her  age,  and  she  really  liked  texture  and  color.  She  had  a
portfolio  in  her  backpack  of  designs  that  she  would  like  to
see in completion someday. But was this what she wanted to
do? She wasn’t sure. She wasn’t positive it was anymore. But
she didn’t know what she’d want to do if not this—and one
thing  about  her  father,  he  liked  to  have  someone  come  up
with  their  own  choices  before  they  asked  his  opinion.  And
she would need more than just his opinion. She would need
his  approval  to  switch  all  of  her  classes  if  that  was  really
truly something she wanted to do, since he paid her bills.

She would table it for now before she gave herself a much

unwelcomed headache in the middle of class. Eastern
wintertime markets demanded her attention at the moment
anyway.

Her phone vibrated in her pocket and she discreetly

looked  down  to  read the  text  message  without  alerting  the
professor  to  what  she  was  doing.  Not  that  the  professor
couldn’t  tell  she  wasn’t  fully  present  for  the  class  anyway.
She hadn’t taken a single note, and today was supposed to

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be entirely material that she needed to know for the final test
that was worth a good thirty percent of her grade.

Are you dating Tanner? The message read.
Juliet sighed. Already the rumors were beginning. It

wasn’t  a  large  campus  but  it  certainly  wasn’t  Midwestern
small,  either.  She  had  noticed  quite  a  few  people  paying
more  attention  to  her  once  she  had  started  dating  Dean
almost a year ago, though. The attention had been strange at
first,  but  she  supposed  that  she  had  let  it  blend  into  the
background after the first curious month.

He’s a friend. She replied back, not that it was the girl’s

business.  But  being  rude  wouldn’t  have  seemed  right.  She
had barely spoken to the girl in the months since she’d met
her,  and  she  had  certainly  never  received  a  text  message
from her. Juliet couldn’t even remember what class she had
shared with the girl now that she tried to place her.

My brother saw you holding hands at the zoo, the girl

continued to text.

Juliet rolled her eyes. Rudeness and manners and all that

good stuff aside, she was getting really tired of feeling  like
she  was  being  watched.  If  it  wasn’t  Dean  and  his  friends
then it was people that wished they were friends with him.
As far as she was concerned, the whole lot of them could just
go jump off a bridge. They were welcome to have him after
what  he had done  to her.  Just friends. And  you’re welcome  to

spread that to everyone else who may be gossiping about me.

Okay so that last part might have been a bit rude. But she

could not stand people that gossiped and wanted nothing to
do with them. Her phone vibrated again and she looked
down at the message and blew out an irritated breath at the
unflattering curse. With a few quick keystrokes she deleted
the girl as a contact of hers and then closed her phone again.

Class let out a few minutes early because the professor

was starting to lose her voice, and Juliet ignored the girl on
her way out the door. It was easy when she wasn’t sure

Give Me Fever

which  girl  it  was,  but  she  assumed  she  was  somewhere  in
the  group  that  was  currently  giving  her  glares.  She  shook
them off and walked to her next class.

On her way through one of the smaller courtyards she

saw  Dean.  She  was  hoping  he  wouldn’t  notice  her  but  he
tried to come toward her just as she was going into another
hallway. She gave him a nod to let him know that yes, she
did see him, and that no, she had no intention of speaking to
him right now or ever again. It seemed a bit more civil than
giving him her middle finger when she was supposed to be
the  civil  and  enlightened  daughter  of  a  professor.  Hoping
her  ex-boyfriend  fell  down  a  flight  of  stairs  and  broke  his
pretty nose was hardly fitting to that image, but it was still
pretty fun.

Her textiles class went much faster than her previous class

and as she finished her classes for the day she was happy to
be able to drink in the late spring sun as she made her way
to  her  bright  yellow  jeep.  She  loved  her  little  beauty  and
couldn’t thank Ophelia enough for giving it to her when she
had  taken  the  job  that  relocated  her  to  Alaska  on  a  more
permanent bases.

She drove home slowly, enjoying the side streets and the

sun on her cheeks and hair. As she pulled into the driveway
she was glad to see that the blinds in the house were open,
meaning that Ophelia and Leonardo were there and not on a
walk with Iago like they had enjoyed doing most of the
afternoons during their trip. She was especially happy to see
Ophelia stretched out on top of Leonardo’s lap on the couch
as they watched TV in the living room, because they would
be flying back to Alaska tomorrow and it would probably be
months before she would see her sister again.

“Hey,” Ophelia said sleepily as she made room on the

large couch for Juliet by her feet.

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100

“Hey. Anything good on the TV this time in the

afternoon?” she asked. She sat down in Ophelia’s vacated
spot and then pulled on the pants of her sister’s jeans to get
her to stretch back out. She quickly accepted and lay her feet
over Juliet’s lap. On the floor by her feet Iago lay snoring
loudly.

Ophelia shrugged. “Just judge shows.” She snuggled

further into Leonardo’s tummy and his arms tightened
around her.

“How was class today?” Leonardo asked as he stroked

Ophelia’s hair. If her sister could purr, she would be. Juliet
was sure of it as she watched her sister close her eyes and a
soft smile come out to play on her lips.

“There was some minor gossip about me,” she began.
“Anything that you can’t handle?” Leonardo asked.
She shook her head no but wondered idly what it would

have  been  like  to  have  a  big  brother  ask  her  that  in  high
school, when girls could be some of the worst bullies. She’d
have probably loved him just as she loved Leonardo for who
he  was  and  the  wonderful  things  he  did  for  her  sister  and
how he treated her each and every day.

“And Dean tried to talk to me and I blew him off,” she

told them as she settled deeper into the couch.

“Keep your head up,” Ophelia told her, oblivious to the

way her husband’s face had turned into a scowl at the
mention of Dean’s name. “Don’t let him get you down or
upset you.”

“Will do,” Juliet said cheerfully. Honestly, she wasn’t

worried about him anymore. He was a mistake, nothing
more. She wouldn’t allow him to be anything more than that
for her, now or ever again.

Leonardo caught her gaze. With deliberately slow

motions he moved her hair away from her neck to check it
for bruises just as he had been doing ever since that

Give Me Fever

101

afternoon.  There  hadn’t  been  anything  more  than  faint
shadows  of  bruises  the  next  morning,  but  still  he  checked.
She had still taken to wearing her hair down, but since it was
barely past her chin, there wasn’t much else that  she could
do  with  it  anyway.  She  proudly  offered  him  her  neck  to
reassure him. Once he was satisfied that there were still no
bruises  marring  her  pale  skin  he  sat  back  and  returned  to
rubbing Ophelia’s side.

“Need anything done about him?” Leonardo asked her.
Juliet giggled. “You already did it. Thank you though.

Really.”

He nodded but still looked a bit worried. “You going to

be okay once we go home?”

Juliet sighed. “I’m going to miss you both terribly. You

know that. But yeah, I’ll be okay.”

“We’ll be back soon,” Ophelia reassured her. “Or you

could come up to Alaska to visit us.” She laughed as Juliet
made a face.

“I have a thing about places where the high for the day is

in the single digits for most of the year,” she told her.

Leonardo chuckled. “Yeah, well there is that.”
Juliet nodded and settled in to watch a little TV.

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102

Chapter Twenty

uliet watched sadly as Ophelia and Leonardo walked into
the bright artificial light of the Denver International

Airport. They were dressed warmly for the first leg of their
trip  which  would  take  them  into  Canada.  From  there  it
would  be  a  long  series  of  layovers  and  changing  planes  to
finally arrive back at the little Alaskan town that they called
home.  She  remembered  that  trip  from  when  she  went  to
Alaska  for  their  wedding  and  she  did  not  enjoy  the  flights
into Nome or on the way back. And Ophelia and Leonardo
would be going so much further north than that.

She watched them go until an impatient driver started

honking behind her. Then she put on her headset and called
Ester as she pulled out of the airport loading area. .

“Hello?”
“Hey,” she said as soon as her friend answered the phone.

“Are you busy?”

“Not terribly,” Ester said with a sigh. “Just studying for a

test that I should have studied for over the break. I didn’t,
though, because I’m an idiot. So what’s up?”

“You’re not an idiot. I was just wondering if you wanted

to hang out. But you seem busy,” Juliet replied as she
merged onto the highway.

“Yeah, I am. And it sucks ‘cause I would so rather be with

you today,” Ester said, the reluctance and disappointment
obvious in her voice.

“It’s all right,” Juliet told her. “I’ll see you later.”

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“Yep.”
Juliet hung up the phone and turned on the radio. She

didn’t want to go home and sit in the big house all alone, as
she missed her sister. And she was still a bit uneasy about
being there alone after what had happened with Dean. She
doubted that he would come back, but still, she was uneasy
sometimes.

As George Strait came across the radio she got an idea.

She flipped through her phone to one of the contacts that she
often used and pressed the little green send button.

“Hello?” the kind elderly woman said as she answered

her phone on the second ring.

“Hello, Mrs. Banks,” Juliet said. “It’s me, Juliet Nichols.

May I come see the horses today?”

The woman laughed, her dry voice becoming brittle in a

way that broke Juliet’s heart. She had known the woman for
years and she was almost like a grandmother to her. She was
an  almost  grandmother  only  because  she  had  been  Juliet’s
English  teacher  many  years  ago,  and  some  part  of  her  was
still  unnerved  by  the  deceptively  frail  lady  that  could
intimidate her with barely a glance.

“You are welcome to come out here and visit me anytime,

Juliet. You know that. Should I expect you in half an hour?”
the woman said sweetly.

Juliet quickly pulled off on the nearest exit and popped

into  a  parking  space  in  an  empty  parking  lot.  “Let  me
check,”  she  told  Mrs.  Banks  as  she  climbed  out  of  the  jeep
and  walked  around  to  the  back.  Her  duffel  bag  was  still
there, just as she had left it the last time she had gone to see
the woman. She had meant to bring it in a few days ago and
was glad that she had forgotten completely. “I have my bag
with  me,”  she  said  brightly.  “I  will  see  you  in  thirty
minutes.”

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104

“Very good. See you then, dear,” Mrs. Banks said just

before she hung up.

Juliet hopped up into the back of the jeep and began

pulling her riding boots out of the duffel bag. Thankfully she
had  just  worn  some  low  heeled  sandals  that  morning  and
they came off easily. She kept a few pairs of socks in the bag
and  put  a  clean  one  on,  making  a  mental  note  to  take  the
dirty ones  in  and  wash  them  that  evening. Her  boots  went
on smoothly like a favorite pair of worn jeans and soon she
was tossing her sandals into the bag and getting back in the
driver’s seat for the short trip up to Mrs. Banks’ home.

She lived a short drive off the highway in a housing

subdivision  that  was  built  in  the  late  thirties.  Many  of  the
homes showed their age but they were all well taken care of.
It  was  a  quiet  section  of  town  and  each  house  had  a  few
acres with it. Some people used the space as just a place to
play  football  with  their  kids,  others  had  put  in  large  pools
and one or two had added either a tennis court, a basketball
court  or  in  one  family’s  case-  both.  But  the  majority  of  the
homes were as they were meant to be, with sturdy wooden
fences  that  lined  the  quiet  streets  and  a  couple  of  horses
grazing in the pasture.

She would have loved to live in a place like this, Juliet

thought, if she could have ever afforded it. Back when Mrs.
Banks  and  her  late  husband  bought  it  in  the  fifties,  it  had
been affordable. Now it was close to a million dollar home.
She  should  know.  She  had  checked  often  in  the  area  when
she  first  graduated  high  school  as  a  place  to  dream  about
living someday. But that was little more than a dream now
as  the  reality  of  her  situation  had  set  in.  If  she  stayed  in
fashion, she could make a life for herself. It  might not ever
be plush, but it would most definitely be comfortable. And
she was able to visit Mrs. Banks as often as she wanted to, so
it  was  almost  like  having  a  home  in  the  beautiful

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105

neighborhood of Pine Run. Almost, but not quite. But it was
enough to sustain her for now until she graduated college,
got her degree and her career really got moving. It was still a
good dream, though.

Juliet pulled her jeep into the little dirt alcove Mrs. Banks

used to use for her trailer when she was still young enough
to  go  rescue  the  horses  in  need  herself.  She  had  long  since
sold  the  trailer,  but  everyone  that  knew  her  knew  that  she
would  spare  no  expense  rescuing  a  horse  any  day  of  the
week,  even  now.  Though  she  had  never  been  a  formally
recognized  rescue,  the  people  in  the  neighborhood  often
referred to her as that woman on the hill that rescues those
old  horses.  Though  it  was  usually  much  shorter  than  that.
She deliberately kept an open stall available for just such a
needy  horse  and  although  sometimes  she  found  homes  for
the  horses  that  she  rescued,  the  four  that  were  currently
grazing in the pasture were her permanent pets. She hadn’t
been out riding on any of them for years, but Mrs. Banks had
enough friends that the horses got regular exercise and she
paid  a  kid  a  few  houses  down  to  muck  the  stalls  every
afternoon. She still came out every morning and evening to
toss the horses a few flakes of hay and to talk to them and
stroke their faces.

Juliet went through the smaller, people-sized gate and

then  down  the  narrow  dirt  path  to  where  the  horses  were
happily  grazing.  She  had  forgotten  to  bring  any  carrots  or
apples  for  them  but  a  quick  stop  in  the  barn  turned  up  a
handful of the sugar cubes Mrs. Banks made sure to keep on
hand for her beauties at all times. They were Misty, Ginger,
Black  Beauty,  and  Merrylegs.  Like  her  father,  Mrs.  Banks
taught literature, though to a much younger audience than
her  father.  Her  kids  had  all  been  about  Drew’s  age  and  so
she  had  named  her  horses  after  her  favorite  horses  in  her
two  favorite  books,  Black  Beauty  and  Misty  of  Chincoteague.

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Juliet had teased her about Ginger, since she was a mare in
the book and the big chestnut quarter horse in front of her
was a very handsome gelding.

But no matter. That was the horse she had ridden as a

child. He was still her favorite, though she was far too big to
ride him now. She petted his pretty red face and stroked him
between  his  ears  as  he  reached  forward  to  take  the  sugar
cube from her palm. She had been visiting Mrs. Banks when
a neighbor of the woman’s had pulled up in his trailer and
had unloaded an emaciated, dirty horse the color of rust that
his previous owners had called Rudy. The story was that he
had  been  neglected  after  the  daughter  had  outgrown  her
love of horses and then the husband had lost his job. It was a
sad story, for sure, but even at such a young age Juliet had
been furious. The neighbor had told her to be careful around
him since he was a strange horse, and Ophelia had tried to
pull  her  away  from  him,  but  she  had  simply  ignored  her
sister, running out of  her arms and over to the big gelding
she  would  spend  the  next  few  years  riding.  He  had  been
lame  even  then,  his  front  right  ankle  swollen  and  bleeding
from  an  injury  that  was  never  treated.  The  vet  had  been
called  that  morning  and  Rudy  had  been  treated  to  his  first
meal  in  a  while,  attention  from  the  vet,  a  good  brushing
from  Juliet  with  the  help  of  Mrs.  Banks,  and  the  first
affection he had been shown in many months, from what the
vet could tell. And then he had been given a new name. Mrs.
Banks  named  him  that  evening  as  she  sat  reading  to  her
horses the way she used to read to her children in class. She
still read to them every night, Juliet knew. The Adventures of
Tom Sawyer lay on top of a hay pile, ready to be picked up
again that evening.

“Hey Ginger,” Juliet said to him as she rubbed his ears

and ran her fingers through his long red mane. “Hello
beautiful.” Of course the other three horses couldn’t be

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107

ignored. Black Beauty, who was actually a stormy dark grey,
was  a  Thoroughbred  who  wasn’t  fast  enough  to  race.  He
wasn’t quite sane, but he could be settled enough to go for a
short  ride  with  a  bit  of  work  and  a  rider  with  a  lot  of
experience.  Merrylegs  was  an  almost  white  Arabian  cross
with  a  fine  head,  intelligent  mind  and  only  one  eye.  His
other had been badly damaged in an accident with barb wire
when  he  was  barely  a  year  old.  Though  his  white  hair  hid
most  of  his  scars,  the  ones  over  his  cheek  were  still  clearly
evident  and  they  saddened  her  every  time  that  she  saw
them. Still, though, she loved him just as much as the others
and thought he was no less beautiful for his signs of wear.

Then there was Misty. Of the four of them, she was the

one  that  most  resembled  her  namesake.  Like  the  fictional
Misty,  this  Misty  was  a  pony  with  a  large  spotted  pinto
pattern that made her look more like a fat milk cow than a
horse.  She  was  a  good  old  girl  who  was  well  into  her
twenties  and  on  occasion  still  had  some  spunk  to  her,
though  those  times  seemed  to  be  getting  more  and  more
rare. She had been a beloved schooling horse once. She had
taught  children  how  to  ride  for  years,  showing  them
everything  from  basic  horse  care  to  jumping  to  the
beginning  levels  of  dressage.  But  that  was  many  years  ago
and now she was fully retired as she ate her senior feed that
had to be mixed with water and her joint supplement paste
to help her eat since age and poor care had eaten away at the
few teeth she had left. She was the only horse of the four that
no  one  ever  rode,  though  Juliet  tried  to  take  her  out  for
walks whenever she was over.

She was debating who to take out first when Mrs. Banks

came down from the house, a cane in one hand and a new
halter and lead rope in the other. “Hello, dear,” she called as
she got closer. All of the horses crowded up to the fence as
they clamored for attention from this woman who had saved

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their lives. She gave them each a pat on their noses and
kissed her little Misty on the forehead.

“Hello, Mrs. Banks,” Juliet said politely. She had always

enjoyed  a  certain  formality  with  the  woman.  This  woman
had taught her to curtsy properly and how to have afternoon
tea  like  a  lady.  She  despised  improper  grammar,  and
swearing in her presence was a sin that would get you sent
outside  to  polish  the  saddles.  Or  to  the  kitchen  to  chop
onions.  Both  were  chores  that  had  to  be  done  more  often
than not, and they were both tasks that Mrs. Banks disliked
doing.

“Who were you thinking of taking out first?” she asked

Juliet  as  she  ran  a  critical  eye  over  her  horses.  She  didn’t
assess them as their previous owners had. She was looking
for sore spots on their coat from rubbing against the fence or
any  swelling  from  stepping  in  a  hole.  Seeing  none,  she
entered  the  small  pasture  and  put  the  new  halter  around
Misty’s  head.  “I  was  thinking  of  taking  Misty  out  on  a
walk,”  she  said  after  a  few  moments  as  Juliet  continued  to
debate whether she wanted to go for a ride first or a walk.

That solved that decision. She grabbed Ginger’s well-

worn  halter  and  lead  rope  from  the  hook  by  the  gate.  The
two horses walked well together, and since Juliet could ride
neither it was easiest to walk them together, but it was hard
to keep control of both of them if something were to happen
to  spook  one  of  them.  She  usually  had  to  just  take  one  of
them out at a time, which meant their  time for a walk was
shortened so that she could get both of their walks in during
the day before the sun went down.

Once she had Ginger’s halter on him, she followed Mrs.

Banks out of the pasture as the other two horses began
munching on the lush green grass, knowing that their turn
would be soon. They led the horses down the same familiar
trail with its lush canopy of trees and flat paths that wound

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109

between  the  houses.  Horses  of  all  sizes  and  colors  greeted
them  as  they  passed  and  although  Juliet  knew  from
experience that Ginger could and would gallop when asked,
he was content to go slowly as Mrs. Banks and Misty set the
pace with her cane.

“Tell me about that sister of yours,” Mrs. Banks told her

as they passed the house with the Emus.

Ginger always got a little uneasy around the large birds,

even though they were secluded in a small pen well inside of
the fence they were walking past.

“Easy Ginger,” she told the big gelding. “I know, buddy. I

think they’re crazy scary too.” She sent the offending birds a
glare for good measure.

“Child, your grammar is atrocious. Speak like you write.

Write like you speak,” Mrs. Banks called back to her.

Juliet couldn’t resist needling her. “My dad says to write

like you speak, so that my essays are more approachable.”

“Nonsense,” Mrs. Banks said primly. “If everyone wrote

like they spoke, the education system would collapse. People
hardly ever speak well. That’s the problem. So people
should write like they speak and they should speak like they
write.”

“Yes, Mrs. Banks,” Juliet said, feeling very much like she

was back in elementary school and this woman was still her
teacher.

That was how her father had met Mrs. Banks. Sharing a

love of literature and teaching, they had instantly formed a
connection that had lasted so many years later.

“Tell me about your sister,” Mrs. Banks said. “You

ignored me the first time I asked.”

“She’s well,” Juliet was quick to answer her this time.

“She and Leonardo flew back to Alaska this morning.”

“I cannot wait to see the beautiful children those two will

create. You miss her, I’m sure.”

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110

Juliet nodded. “Of course. She’s my sister.”
Mrs. Banks tsked her. “Not of course. Not because she’s

your  sister,  at  least.  You  miss  her  because  you  are  friends,
which  is  so  much  stronger  than  blood.  Some  people,  like
your  father  most  likely,  will  say  otherwise.  But  blood  you
cannot  choose.  And  all  the  evil  people  in  this  world  are
related by blood to some poor family that wishes that  they
could  choose  their  family.  But  of  course  they  can’t.  But
friends, you can choose. You can love your friends. And you
should.”

“Yes, I do.”
Mrs. Banks nodded. “Then love your sister because of

who she is. Because of the choices she has made in her life
and because of the character of her spirit. But do not ever
love someone blindly because of blood. Do you understand
me, child?”

Absolutely. As usual Mrs. Banks made perfect , and she

was using her teacher voice, too, so Juliet could almost feel
that uncomfortable wooden desk under her butt as she sat
doing her cursive in Mrs. Banks’ afternoon class. “Yes, Mrs.
Banks.”

“Good. That’s very good. Oh, child, my bones are aching.

We will turn around here up at the next left. It will take us
straight back home. Are you going to stay and go for a ride
still today?”

Juliet nodded. “I’d like to ride them both when we get

back.”

“Very good. Beauty has been acting up again, so be extra

careful with him. He’s not right in the head, that big boy of
mine,” Mrs. Banks said with a slow, sad shake of her head.

“I’ll treat him well,” Juliet reassured her. It was a

privilege to spend time with this kind old woman and to get
to ride her horses. She would never do anything to
jeopardize the kindness that this woman showed her. And

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111

hardly  anyone  got  to  ride  Beauty  when  he  was  acting  up.
Mrs.  Banks  was  afraid  someone  would  hurt  her  big  boy  in
his  stupidity.  But  she  trusted  Juliet  with  him.  And  Beauty
was always better after a good workout. She’d be sore in her
arms and chest from fighting him every minute for his head
for the first half hour but after he got back into the swing of
riding  and  listening  to  someone  other  than  himself  for  a
change,  he  really  was  a  good  horse  to  ride.  His  gaits  were
smooth and powerful. If he could be controlled for extended
periods of time, he could have had a career in show jumping
years before, when he was in his prime.

Mrs. Banks had hired a trainer once to come out and look

at  him,  thinking  that  perhaps  his  lack  of  manners  and  a
sound mind were just more of a lack of training. The woman
had  spent  the  afternoon  with  Black  Beauty  before  she  had
announced  that  he  was  just  sadly  incurable.  She  theorized
that  something that had happened to him on the track had
broken him inside. Juliet’s guess was abuse, but she figured
that any sort of trauma could cause that in a horse just like it
could  in  a  person.  She  adored  him,  craziness  and  all.
Besides, it was more that he had some eccentricities than that
he was actually bonkers.

But, trying to saddle him up back at the barn, she realized

that  she  could  always  be  wrong.  He  was  especially  nuts
today. He wouldn’t hold still, wouldn’t allow her to put his
bridle on and kept invading her space, which was something
she  didn’t  like  with  most  people.  With  an  animal  that
weighed more than a thousand pounds, it just wasn’t going
to  happen.  He  had  even  lifted  his  leg  to  kick  at  her  a  few
times as she had tried to take the time to brush out his long,
almost  black  tail.  After  another  attempt  to  get  the  western
saddle  on  she  gave  up  on  it  and  the  bridle  and  decided  to
just ride him like she had been doing for years. She grabbed
another  lead  rope  and  clipped  it  to  the  ring  just  under  his

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chin on his halter along with the first one. It wasn’t the safest
way  to  ride  him  or  any  other  horse,  but  she  knew  from
experience that pushing him to be ridden her way was just
going  to  aggravate  both  of  them  and  lead  to  disaster  and
probably her getting hurt as he dumped her on her butt in
the small arena.

So, she decided to play it his way just for today. Juliet

used a rail on the fence to climb up on him and let him walk
around the pasture with the other horses. Ginger came to see
what she was doing a few times before finally losing interest.
Both Merrylegs and Misty also came close enough to
investigate what she and Beauty, were doing but neither of
them got nearly as close to her as Ginger did.

Beauty had tossed his head and flattened his ears but that

was  fairly  normal  behavior  for  the  feisty  gelding.  If  she
didn’t have the years of experience riding him and learning
his habits and cues like she had, his sudden bouts of energy
might have thrown her as he decided to take off into a gallop
and  change  paces  every  few  strides—as  if  he  had  no  idea
what he really wanted to be doing but was not at all happy
with  what  was  happening  currently.  She  wrapped  her
fingers  in  his  mane  and  held  on  tight  to  him,  ready  for
whatever  he  was  planning  to  do.  He  tried  a  quick  buck,
which was a new behavior for him, but there was very little
height  or  real  intent  behind  it,  so  maybe  he  just  had
something that was irritating his legs and not that he wanted
to actually throw her off.

Eventually he settled into a slow, gentle canter. It burned

his muscles and let her relax for a change, which was a
welcome relief. As predicted, her arms and chest ached from
just trying to hang on to his head. She needn’t have
bothered, though. The ground was soft and she was wearing
her riding helmet, so on the off chance that he did manage to
throw her, which wasn’t completely unheard of, she would

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113

go  home  with  little  more  than  a  few  bruises.  That  was
nothing  to  sniff  at,  but  they  wouldn’t  leave  her  aching  for
days,  unlike  the  results  of  fighting  him  for  control  of  his
head would.

After a few laps around the pasture he finally slowed into

a  happy  walk.  His  tail  was  high  and  his  head  was  held
proudly  as  it  bobbed  with  each  graceful,  arching  step.  His
dark  gray  coat  shone  with  a  light  layer  of  sweat  and  Juliet
knew  that  her  pants  would  need  to  be  washed  before  she
could do anything this evening. She would probably shower
first before she went out too, she thought with a wry smile.
She really stank.

Now that Black Beauty had his sanity back, she stopped

him with a gently uttered “Whoa” and a shift of her weight
on his back. Once he had come to an almost complete stop,
which was as good as it got with him, she slid off his back.
He  was  much  more  relaxed  now,  the  wildness  completely
gone from his gaze as he wandered off to munch on the lush
green grass. He gave a happy nicker to the other horses and
then started to roll in a patch of bare dirt. She’d watch him to
make sure he really would be okay for a few more days, but
he  would  probably  be  good  for  another  week  if  it  came  to
that. She made a mental note to make sure to come up in a
few days and ride him again so that  he didn’t get that bad
again. She’d also make sure to brush him out before she left.

Merrylegs was next, but thankfully he wasn’t nearly as

much of a pain in the butt as Beauty was. Because he was an
Arabian  cross  he  didn’t  have  quite  as  small  of  a  head  as
other Arabians, so he and Beauty were able to share halters.
She slipped the halter over his face, latched it behind his ears
and  climbed  up  onto  his  back  in  barely  a  few  minutes.  He
responded easily to her leg pressure and they had a relaxing
ride  around  the  pasture  before  she  brought  him  over  to
roughly the same spot that she had found him in and easily

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dismounted  him.  They  had  only  trotted,  so  he  was  barely
breathing  heavily.  He  went  back  to  grazing  and  she  gave
him an affectionate rub on his shoulder.

Beauty cleaned up easily with just a bit of brushing, and

she gave his nose a pat before sneaking a final sugar cube to
Ginger. Juliet walked the short distance up to the house and
found Mrs. Banks in a lawn chair with a glass of iced tea in
her hand and a small bundle wrapped in cellophane plastic
wrap held loosely on her lap.

“I’ll be leaving now. Thank you for letting me come out

and ride the horses and take Ginger on a walk,” she said.

Mrs. Banks smiled at her. “You look better.”
Juliet nodded and a big smile spread across her face. “I

feel better.”

Mrs. Banks nodded and then looked down to her horses

in  the  pasture  only  a  few  yards  away.  “You’re  good  with
them.  Most  people,  especially  young  people  your  age  who
didn’t  grow  up  around  horses,  wouldn’t  have  taken  the
chance on Beauty that  you did today.   If they had, then he
probably  would  have  thrown  them  anyway.  He’s  picky
about who rides him like that. And most people would not
have fallen in love with Ginger as you did when you were so
small that you barely came up to the underside of his belly.”

Juliet blushed under her praise and shifted her weight on

the balls on her feet. “Beauty is a good horse. He just needs
to focus for a bit before he can remember that he’s supposed
to be a horse again sometimes. And as for Ginger, there’s not
much else I could have done. I remember what he looked
like that day. Most people wouldn’t have been able to do
anything less than what I did if they had seen him.”

Mrs. Banks chuckled. “You’re wrong about that, child.

People  don’t  always  do  the  right  thing  when  it  comes  to
animals,  and  certainly  not  when  it  comes  to  people,  even
their  own  family.  But  I  remember  how  you  were  that  day.

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You were a hellcat that whole day until you knew that he
would be safe for the night. You even begged to spend the
night next to him just to be sure of it.”

“I don’t remember all that,” Juliet said quietly as she too

watched the chestnut gelding graze next to Merrylegs.

“The very young and the very old have the pleasure of

forgetting  these  unwelcome  memories.  The  rest  of  us  are
stuck with them, unfortunately,” Mrs. Banks told her sadly.
With a clap of her weathered old hands she dismissed those
thoughts. “On to happier things now, I should think. Here, I
baked  these  this  morning.  Now,  you’ll  not  eat  the  entire
pound cake yourself. It’s for your family, too. And you will
make  sure  to  tell  Ophelia  that  I  enjoyed  meeting  her
Leonardo when they came up yesterday.”

“Yes, Mrs. Banks,” Juliet said as she took the small bundle

in her hands. “I’ll see you soon.”

“I’ll be here waiting, child. Go home and get cleaned up.

You stink to something awful right about now.”

Juliet laughed and waved as she walked away back to her

jeep. She waved to the horses one more time before climbing
back  up  into  her  jeep  and  heading  back  home.  She  hadn’t
lied when she’d told Mrs. Banks that she felt better after the
hours of riding. She was sore, tired, dirty and most of all she
reeked  of  horse  sweat,  but  she  felt  like  she  was  more  at
peace  than  she  had  been  in  months,  maybe.  She  was
breathing easier, her mind clearer and her skin no longer felt
quite so tight around her.

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Chapter Twenty-One

y the time Juliet had returned home her parents had
already left a note on the fridge saying that they were

going  on  a  date  and  she  should  invite  Tanner  over  so  that
she  had  some  company.  The  note  was  in  her  mother’s
flowing script, the beautiful words blending together to look
more like art than a scribbled note on the back of a grocery
store  receipt.  Juliet  added  a  pack  of  sticky  notes  to  her
mental  shopping  list  for  later  that  week.  Her  mother  used
whatever  piece  of  paper  she  found  lying  around  for  the
notes that she wrote for herself and everyone else but Juliet
was sure that soon she would run out of scraps of paper.

Her parents often went on dates, and it was one of the

things Juliet thought that made their relationship last so
many years instead of ending in a messy, bitter divorce like
many of her friends’ parents had. When she got married, she
planned to still have dates with her husband, too.

It was never an if she got married idea, Juliet thought, as

she tossed a bag of popcorn into the microwave. It would be
when she got married. Aside from her name being associated
with one of the great love stories in literature and the irony
that  it  would  be  that  she  herself  never  got  married,  it  just
wasn’t what she wanted. She didn’t need a man in her life to
feel happy in her life  or good about herself. She knew that
much.  And  she  knew  plenty  of  people  that  were  perfectly
happy  and  fine  with  their  lives  even  though  they  were
single. That wasn’t it either.

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117

She wanted a husband and kids and all that because she

wanted to share her life with someone. Someone that  liked
her  family,  liked  her  dog,  made  her  feel  pretty  and
competent and intelligent and someone that she could enjoy
spending  time  with.  She  had  never  thought  Dean  was  that
person.  He  was  for  dating  and  for  fun  while  it  lasted,  and
when  it  stopped  being  fun  he  was  supposed  to  just  walk
away,  nice  and  clean  and  super  easy.  Only  it  hadn’t  been,
but there was nothing she could really do about that now.

As she stepped out of the shower and plopped onto her

bed she turned on the TV and she started to consider calling
Tanner.  There  was  a  Bones  marathon  on  and  she  tossed
some  popcorn  into  her  mouth  as  she  switched  the  channel
over.

She liked spending time with Tanner. He was a really

good guy, and even though she had only really just started
to  get  to  know  him  over  the  past  several  weeks,  she  knew
enough about him that she might even consider him a great
guy. She wouldn’t play teenage girl games with him like she
had when she was younger, and she wasn’t interested in just
having fun with him like she had been with Dean. He was
someone that she could see actually being committed to, and
not just in the sense that  sex was cheating and kissing was
not,  but  actually  being  in  a  defined  relationship  with  him
where  she  could  be  his  girlfriend.  They  were  already
holding hands together in public, and she had woken up in
the back of his truck with all of her clothes on correctly, so it
wasn’t completely out of the realm of possibilities.

She didn’t think that he could be the one absolutely for

sure.  Mr.  Right  and  all  that  good  stuff  was  great  for  some
people. Hey, it had worked out splendidly for Ophelia. But
she  was  barely  twenty-one,  and  while  she  knew  plenty  of
people  in  her  classes  that  were  married  and  had  children,

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118

and even some single parents as well, that just wasn’t where
she wanted to be in her life right now.

Her phone started ringing, the latest Jason Aldean song

filling  her  bedroom  with  its  country  beat.  “Hey,  Ophelia,”
she said as she flipped open her phone. She didn’t bother to
look  at  the  name  on  it  since  she  had  chosen  that  new  ring
tone for her sister only the night before.

“Hey,” her sister said. Juliet could hear her walking

around an airport, though which one would be a mystery to
her since they all sounded the same to someone that
travelled as little as she did. “Have you called Tanner?”

Juliet rolled her eyes and snorted. “You’ve been talking to

Mom.”

“She called and left a voicemail. So did Dad, actually. I

guess they both thought of it but neither actually bothered to
talk to the other person,” her sister said lightly. “So have
you?”

“Nope, I just got home not too long ago. And besides, it’s

getting kind of late. Maybe he wouldn’t want to come over
just to keep me company,” Juliet said. She doubted her own
words even as she said them. Tanner would come if he
could, she knew that instinctively. That was just what kind
of guy he was.

Ophelia sighed into the phone and Juliet could hear the

irritated tapping of her nails on some hard surface. “Juliet...”
she began.

She laughed and shook her head. “First, are you annoyed

with me, or with having to change planes every few hours
on your way back home?”

“Huh?”
“You’re tapping your nails, and you only ever do that

when you’re really annoyed with something,” Juliet told her.

The tapping stopped instantly. “I hadn’t realized that I do

that. It probably drives Leonardo nuts. And I’m a little

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119

annoyed at both. You know how impatient I can get when
I’m forced to wait for something,” Ophelia said. “But really,
you should call Tanner. I’m worried about you.”

“You shouldn’t be,” she said. “I’m fine. I’m just relaxing,

watching some TV, eating some popcorn. I’ll probably run
down and get a drink here in a few minutes. We might even
have some coffee left in the pot that I could pour over some
vanilla ice cream and make a yummy iced coffee.”

Ophelia took a breath and Juliet could hear her sit down

in one of the squeaky chairs. The airport might have been in
Canada then. Ophelia had complained about the squeaky
chairs in that country’s airports ever since her first visit there
years before. “I’m sorry,” her sister said at last.

Juliet blinked at the phone in confusion. “For what?

Why?”

Her sister took a breath “I’m sorry that I didn’t realize

how bad Dean was and try to stop him before now. I should
have protected you. But I was so busy with my own life up
here that I just assumed that you were okay, when obviously
you weren’t.”

“Oh no, Ophelia, don’t blame yourself,” Juliet said

quickly. “I don’t think anyone knew just how far he could
go, including me.”

There was a long pause before her sister spoke again.

“Still, it’s for the best that he’s gone. And maybe you should
call Tanner to keep you company for a little while at least.
You know I adore Iago, but the old man isn’t much of a
watch dog.”

Juliet laughed. “Great segue, dear sister. Sure, I'll call

him."

"Great," Ophelia said brightly. "Since I already asked him

to come over."

Juliet groaned loudly into the phone. "Seriously?"

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120

"Uh huh." At least her sister sounded a little remorseful

about interfering in her life. Juliet couldn’t be too upset at
her though, she was sure that her sister was just looking out
for her and trying to please their parents too.

Just then the doorbell rang. “That’s probably him now,”

Juliet said. “But since no one warned me that he was coming
over, I suppose I will just have to greet him without getting
dressed.”

Ophelia gasped. “You can’t greet him naked!” she hissed,

her  voice  muffled  as  if  she  was  covering  up  the  phone  to
keep  from  letting  the  general  crowd  around  her  know  the
indecency of her little sister and her scandalous ways.

“I’m not naked, you dolt,” Juliet laughed, happy to be

teasing her. “Still though, a little heads up would have been
nice. I could have put on something nicer than an old t-shirt
and a pair  of shorts.”  She got up from her bed and started
downstairs,  Iago  slowly  lumbering  after  her.  She  checked
the  peephole,  recognized  Tanner  and  began  unlocking  the
door. “It’s him. Bye, Ophelia.”

“Bye, Juliet,” her sister said just before hanging up.
She pulled her t-shirt down as far over her barely-there

shorts as she could manage before opening the door. It was
less than she would have liked to wear around him so early
in their dating, but it would have to do for the moment. She
really hadn’t expected company, after all.

“Hey,” she said with a smile once she caught sight of him.
He returned her smile easily. “Your sister asked me to

come check on you.”

“Just my sister?” she asked him as she motioned for him

to come inside.

He came in and gave Iago a rub between his ears before

turning to her as she closed and locked the door. “Your dad
might have called me as well. And your mother too,” he said
with a blush.

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121

She giggled. “Uh huh. So, since you’re here, feel like

watching a movie?”

He pulled a disk out from underneath his hoodie. “I

thought you might be interested in this,” he said, handing it
to her.

Juliet grinned as she caught sight of the familiar title. “The

Exorcist. One of the best classic horror stories of all time.”

“Good choice?” he said a bit uncertainly.
She linked her arm through his and led him upstairs to

her room. “Perfect choice,” she told him giddily.

He paused at the doorway to her room and she turned

back and looked at him questioningly. “It’s really...” he
pursed his lips as he looked around her bedroom, “girly,
maybe?”

She rolled her eyes and tossed her fuzzy purple pillow at

him. He caught it easily but he still looked a little bit dazed.
“I’m a girl, Tanner. Come on in and get comfortable.” She
popped the movie into the player and flopped onto her belly
on the bed where she had been minutes before. Tanner still
stood in her doorway and she locked gazes with him. He
looked really unsure of himself and a bit uncomfortable.

She got up from the bed slowly and with a soft smile took

his hands in hers. “It’s okay, Tanner. I should have asked
first if this would be okay. I forget sometimes that you aren’t
as experienced as other guys I’ve dated in the past. We can
go downstairs, if you want.”

He shook his head and pulled her close for a soft kiss on

her temple. “No, this is good. If...if you’re okay with it too?”
he asked her uncertainly.

She nodded and wrapped her arms around him. “I am.

I’m very okay with it. I wouldn’t have invited you in the
house or upstairs into my room if I wasn’t.”

He gave her a soft smile and allowed her to lead him to

the bed. He sat back against her headboard and she lay

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122

down beside him. As she started the movie she threaded her
fingers loosely through his.

“You’ve seen it before,” Tanner observed when she failed

to react to some of the beginning creepy scenes.

“It’s one of my favorites,” Juliet said with a grin. “But I

will be screaming pretty soon. Just a warning.”

Tanner returned her grin easily. “Fair enough.”
She curled up against his side and Tanner wrapped an

arm  around  her.  About  halfway  through  the  movie  she
reached  up  and  turned  his  face  to  hers.  She  nuzzled  the
underside  of  his  jaw  before  stretching  her  neck  up  and
brushing  her  lips  against  his.  Before  she  could  deepen  the
kiss  he  turned  his  face  away  from  hers  with  a  sigh  and
reached around her to pause the movie.

“Tanner?” Juliet asked him uncertainly as she sat back a

little.

He gave her a reassuring smile and pressed his lips to her

forehead. “Is this really what you want, Juliet?” he asked her
quietly.  “You  know  my  dating  history.  Or,  I  guess,  lack  of
one. I’m only interested in something long term, and I know
that’s not your usual style. If you want to be with me, I need
you to accept Drew as part of a long term package as well,
because he’s not going away, and there may be times when
if we’re going out he’s going to be coming too or times when
I  can’t  go  out  because  I  promised  him  that  we  would  do
something  together.  And  I  need  you  to  understand  that
about me.”

He looked at her eyes and sighed softly. “I know. It’s a lot

to take in. And it’s a ton to ask someone, especially at our
age. I just wanted to be sure that you had all the facts before
you made a decision about us. I want you to think on it for a
while, please, and be absolutely sure that dating me is
something you want for the long term, and that you can be

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123

committed to me, since I won’t accept anything less than
that.”

She blinked at him for a long time before taking a deep

breath and curling back up against his side. “Thank you for
telling me all of that,” she said quietly. “I really respect that
you know exactly what you want and that you value and
love your brother so much.”

“And you’ll think about it?” he edged.
She nodded against his chest. “I’ll think about what you

said and give you an answer.”

He smiled down at her and wrapped his arms around her

shoulders, pulling her in close to him. “Thank you.”

He turned the movie back on and they both settled in to

finish  watching  it.  Juliet  stayed  quietly  lost  in  thought
during  even  her  favorite  parts  of  it,  but  when  it  was  over
and Tanner had turned the movie off, she sat up and caught
his gaze.

“I’d like that kind of relationship with you,” she told him

quietly as she held his gaze.

He cocked his head to the side as he studied her. “Are

you sure?”

She nodded quickly, her decision made. She’d never been

in a long-term relationship or in something that felt so
committed already, but the decision felt right and solid and
she knew that she was capable of it being with him the way
that Tanner wanted. The way that he deserved. “I am.”

He gave her a small smile and got up from her bed,

bringing her up with him by their still entwined fingers. He
gave her a hug which she eagerly returned as she pressed
herself fully against him. “I should be going home now,” he
said quietly into her hair. “It’s getting late, and I’ve got to
work at the bookstore in the morning.”

She nodded against his chest. “Thanks for coming over.”

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124

“My pleasure,” he said as he stepped back from her. Juliet

found that she instantly missed his touch and wrapped her
arms around herself. She grabbed the movie for him and led
him to the front door where he gave her a kiss on her cheek.

She leaned in to surprise him with a kiss on his lips but he

turned away with a teasing smile. “Soon,” he told her,
hugging her one last time before leaving and getting into his
truck. She watched him drive away until his taillights
disappeared around the corner.

She knew that it was his respect for her and his own

manners,  but  she  was  left  a  bit  confused  by  his
unwillingness  to  kiss  her.  She  frowned  and  went  to  bed,
deciding that some sleep might help clear her head.

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125

Chapter Twenty-Two

he next afternoon Juliet sat outside between classes with
Ester as they drank in the warm sunshine. She laid her

head against the back of the bench and sighed wearily.
“Fashion is starting to lose it’s magic,” she told Ester
miserably. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

Ester laughed and said, “Thank God. I was bored out of

my mind most days listening to you talk about fabrics and
colors and matching.”

Juliet playfully shoved her.
“So what would you like to do?” Ester asked her.
Juliet  shrugged.  “Not  sure.  Just  not  this.”  She  stood  up

and gathered her things, slinging her backpack over her
shoulder. “I’m not going to the rest of my classes today. I’ll
catch up with you next time.”

Ester stared at her. “You’re not going to class? Why not?”
Juliet shrugged again. Fashion didn’t feel right. At that

moment,  being  at  school  didn’t  feel  right  either.  Her  skin
was  too  tight  and  everything  just  felt  wrong,  strange  and
uncomfortable. “Doesn’t feel right,” she said. “I can’t explain
it,  Ester.  All  I  know  is  that  I  don’t  want  to  do  fashion
anymore. I don’t know what I want, but I know that I can’t
sit  through  an  hour-long  lecture  on  textiles,  and  I  have  no
interest in ever working on my portfolio again.”

Ester whooped and grinned at her. “Good for you, girl.

Break out of those faux fur chains and go do something that
you enjoy, for once.”

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126

Juliet laughed and hugged her friend. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Bye, girl!” Ester called as Juliet turned and walked the

short distance to her jeep.

On her way home from the campus Juliet saw the

bookstore and quickly pulled into the mostly empty parking
lot.

“Hello Juliet,” Mr. Brisbane said as she stepped through

the door.

“Hello.” She quickly looked around and relaxed when she

didn’t see Tanner or Drew around. “I’m looking for a book
on autism,” she told him as she leaned against the counter.
His look was skeptical and she pursed her lips at him.
“Please, I just want to know,” she said.

His expression softened and he reached under the

counter. After a moment of rifling through books he pulled a
slim volume onto the counter. “This is the one I read when
Drew was first diagnosed. And it helped.”

“Thank you,” she said as she pulled out some money.

“Please don't tell Tanner about this. I don't want him to take
it the wrong way.” She was gone before he could ask her
what way that would be.

Back in her Jeep she called Ophelia and filled her in on

everything that had been happening.

After a few moments Ophelia asked her, “Are you sure

that you’re ready for all that? An autistic child is a huge
deal, and you’re so very young.”

Juliet laughed uncertainly. “I’m dating his older brother,

not adopting him. But yeah, I certainly hope so.”

“Me too,” Ophelia said. “But be careful with both of

them.”

Juliet promised she would and then hung up the phone,

saying she would call again soon. She missed her sister
terribly, but she did sound happy to be back home and

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Chapter Twenty-Three

few days later Juliet found herself at Tanner’s house.
They were hanging out in his backyard. She was

surprised  to  find  out  that  he  only  lived  a  quick  ten-minute
drive from her house. She loved his backyard, with its lush
grass  and  a  big  swing  on  the  back  deck.  They  had  spent  a
good  hour  on  that  swing  just  hanging  out  and  soaking  up
the  sunshine  as  they  sipped  some  lemonade.  Only  a  few
yards  away  Drew  was  running  around  playing  and  rolling
in  the  grass.  She  liked  how  closely  Tanner  watched  his
brother, letting him have fun and enjoy himself but ready to
jump in just in case Drew needed him.

She slipped her hand inside his and her heart warmed

when, even though his gaze didn’t stray from Drew, he
squeezed her hand back.

“Tell me about yourself,” she said, taking a sip of her

lemonade.

He chuckled and kissed her temple. “What would you

like to know?”

She shrugged. “Where’s your mother now?”
A dark look came over his face and Juliet was about to

take the words back when he shook his head.

He swallowed and licked his lips before beginning to

quietly speak. “I told you most of it on our date. A year after
Drew was born she divorced our dad. She’d starting dating a
coworker and they got married almost a year later. I see her
sometimes. It used to be a lot more but now, not so much.

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129

It’s not so bad. She just couldn’t handle it. But after she left,
and especially when he found out about the affair, Dad
started to lose it. He really wasn’t eating or taking care of
himself very well.”

“So who took care of Drew?” she asked him.
“I did.”
She frowned. “You would have been only...” She tried

doing the math in her head but failed. The number just
didn’t seem right.

“Seventeen,” Tanner said.
Juliet’s mouth opened. “You were just a kid then. Raising

an autistic kid.”

He smiled at her and reached up to ruffle her hair. “Don’t

look so offended. It wasn’t so bad. I worked hard to get my
high school diploma by the end of that year, so I graduated
as a junior. I love my brother and I don’t resent either of my
parents for the choices that they made. My best friend is my
little brother. That might be weird for a lot of people,
especially since we’ve got quite a few years difference
between us, but it’s true.”

“You’re pretty awesome,” she told him, cuddling into his

side.

He shook his head. “No I’m not.” He licked his lips and

smiled at her. “Mind if I kiss you now?”

She smiled at him and tilted her chin up for him. “Not at

all.”

Their first kiss was everything that she had ever wanted

in a kiss from a boyfriend and had never gotten from anyone
before Tanner. It was soft and gentle and she could feel his
warmth  flowing  through  her  as  his  arms  tightened  around
her.  And  what  started  out  innocent  and  sweet  turned  into
craving and desire as she pressed herself against him.

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130

She knew that he wanted more than just a simple kiss,

and she was more than willing to give it to him when he
pulled back from her.

“Easy, Juliet,” he whispered softly to her, his breath

coming in soft pants that fanned her heated face. “Let’s
wait.”

She paused at those words. She’d never waited before,

had never held off until the moment was just right. Always,
in  every  relationship  she  had  ever  been  in,  she  had  gone
with whatever had felt good at the time. She had been damn
careful, of course. She wasn’t stupid by any means. But she
had  never  waited,  either.  This  waiting  thing  with  Tanner,
though,  sounded  pretty  good.  It  made  her  feel  soft  and
feminine.  Cherished.  Like  she  was  something  special.
Something worth waiting for.

She smiled at him and nodded, tears pricking her eyes.

She blinked them away before he could see, but still his
hands came around to hold her tightly.

“That wasn’t a rejection,” he said quickly, his voice tinged

with worry. “It’s not that I don’t want you.”

She laughed and shook her head as she cuddled up to

him. “I know. It’s just that no one has ever said that to me
before. No one has ever made me feel the way that you do.”

He shook his head. “I don’t believe that.”
“It’s true.”
“Then men are stupid,” he said. His voice was so sure, so

adamant that Juliet laughed just that much harder.

“Except you though, right?” she asked him.
He smiled at her. “Nope. I can fully admit to being stupid

too sometimes. Come on, let’s go make the pizza.”

Juliet giggled and let him pull her inside as he called out

to Drew that it was time to come in for dinner.

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131

Chapter Twenty-Four

he next morning Juliet decided to skip her class on
modern European fashion trends and instead stay home

with a bowl of orange  slices and  Tuck Everlasting.  It wasn’t
her  favorite  book,  but  she  did  enjoy  the  story.  She  was  a
romantic  at  heart  though,  and  the  fact  that  the  love  story
didn’t end up as she thought it should always disappointed
her. She chose, as she often did, to ignore the story’s lessons
about  mortality  and  the  consequences  of  immortality,  and
instead  focus  on  the  innocence  of  first  love  and  the
adventure of it all.

The phone rang and Juliet answered it automatically,

expecting Ester to call her and ask how she was doing on her
stint away from the real world.

“Hey,” she answered happily and she tossed the

beginnings of a shopping list into the book to mark her
place.

“Hi, Juliet.”
She sat up slowly, her heart beating loudly in her ears.

“Hello Dean,” she said, her voice quiet and a bit unsteady.

“I’m sorry for being such an ass to you that night,

sweetheart,” he said quickly. He did sound a bit sincere, she
supposed.

“Uh huh.”
“So how are you doing?” he asked her.

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132

She blew out an irritated breath. He sounded actually

concerned with her well-being, and it was nice of him to ask
but still, she remembered how he had been. “I’m fine.”

“That’s good. Really good. Hey, I was wondering, do you

ever think that we could be friends again?” he asked.

She frowned. “Maybe,” she hedged.
“Thanks, Juliet. You’re really great. Talk to you soon.

Bye.” He hung up quickly and she was left staring at her
phone in confusion.

She couldn’t remember a time when she and Dean had

ever been just friends, but he sounded sincere and genuine,
so she was willing to think about giving it a shot. She
frowned, remembering the bruises that he had left on her
neck. Maybe not.

Juliet went back to reading her book and a few hours later

she met Ester at the coffee shop after her friend finished with
her classes for the day. “Hey,” she said as she grabbed an ice
tea and pulled up a chair next to her best friend.

“Hey yourself,” Ester said as she pulled her ebony mane

into a tight bun. “So how was your day off?”

Juliet grinned at her. “Really good. Only...Dean called.”
Ester paused, her iced coffee a mere inch from her mouth.

“And?” she asked as she took a sip.

“He says that he wants to be friends,” Juliet said quietly.
Ester put her glass down so hard that some of the creamy

liquid sloshed over the sides. She even drew a few stares.
“That is such a load of crap,” she hissed, leaning forward
and crossing her arms in front of herself on the table. “And
how dare he call you after what he did to you. The nerve of
him. Total jackass.”

Juliet nodded along with her. “But he did sound

genuine.”

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133

Ester pursed her lips and sat back in her seat. With slow,

measured movements she took a sip of her coffee. “Right.
And you believe him.”

“Not fully but…” Juliet shrugged. She hated feeling

wrong for wanting to believe that Dean could have some
good somewhere in him, but the way that Ester was looking
at her made her feel just as stupid as Dean had often accused
her of being.

“He’s just playing games—ignore him,” Ester said matter-

of-factly.

Juliet frowned. “I don’t think he would play games like

that.”

Ester let out an exasperated sigh. “Call your sister, then,”

she said. “She’ll tell you the same thing that I am.”

“All right.”

Juliet mulled over Ester’s words after she got back home.

What if Ester was right? What if Dean really could play
those kinds of games to her?

She dialed Ophelia. “Hey, I need your opinion,” she said

as her sister answered the phone.

“All right...what’s up?”
She sounded busy with plenty of noise in the background.

“All right, I’ll make this quick. Do you think Dean is capable
of change, or do you think he’s just playing games?”

Ophelia sighed and Juliet winced, dreading what her

sister was about to say.

“Juliet...he’s...well...My husband had to pull him off your

neck.  All  right?  I  don’t  like  him  and  I  don’t  want  you  to,
either. But...you’re an adult. Trust your gut. I  think  he’s an
abusive  ass.  But  I  think  you  know  that  too. So  just,  I  don’t
know, trust yourself I guess.”

She smiled. “Thanks, Ophelia. I needed to hear that.”
“What’s your plan then?”

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135

Chapter Twenty-Five

uliet laughed as Drew’s car raced in front of hers,
narrowly beating her to the virtual finish line on the TV

screen in front of them. She stood and ruffled his hair.

“All right guys, I’m off.” Juliet really didn’t want to go

and barely resisted picking up the controller again even as
Drew grabbed her hand and begged for a rematch.

“You’ve got to?” Tanner asked, looking just as sorry

about it as Drew did.

She nodded. “Yeah, I’ve got a pottery class at the rec

center.” She tilted her chin to the side, considering them
both. “You two wouldn’t want to come, would you?”

Tanner nodded quickly. “Sure we would. Right, Drew?”
He popped up next to her and took her hand, something

he’d been doing off and on since she had come over that
morning. They’d done little more than play video games and
watch movies for the few hours, but she’d had a lot of fun.

“I guess that settles it then,” she said, sharing a grin with

Tanner.

She started up the Jeep and drove down the familiar

streets to the rec center. They came into the center barely a
few minutes before her class was supposed to begin. With a
smile she realized she was usually more on top of the time
than that, and the fact that Tanner could get her to almost be
late for a class must say something about how much she
liked him.

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136

There was hardly anyone else in the class when they

entered. She’d chosen this class on purpose, wanting to have
some privacy not to feel like a complete idiot when she
couldn’t even figure out how to make a simple bowl.

“We can put our stuff down here,” she said, showing

them  the  cupboards.  Her  purse  fit  neatly  inside  one  of  the
little holes and then she realized that the guys didn’t really
carry  stuff.  Not  like  she  did,  anyway.  She  put  her  little
combo  lock  on  the  door  and  showed  them  to  her  favorite
pottery  bench.  It  faced  away  from  the  busy  parking  lot,
toward the mountains.

“How long have you been coming here?” Tanner asked,

helping Drew onto a stool and then taking his own next to
hers.

“A few months.” She sliced up a bit of the clay that was

already  there  waiting  for  them  and  gave  the  guys  a  chunk
each  to  play  with.  Drew  immediately  squashed  it  between
his  fingers  and  laughed  while  Tanner  plopped  it  onto  the
pottery wheel. “When I  first came here I  was a mess. But I
wanted  something  physical  and  creative  that  I  could  do,
even if I really couldn’t make anything. Now, though, I can
sort  of  make  a  cup.  Not  a  good  cup,  and  nothing  anyone
would want to drink out of. But it’s still a cup.”

Tanner smiled and started to form a little bowl, copying

her  movements  as  much  as  possible.  Drew  looked  like  he
was having fun simply getting messy. Juliet didn’t mind, it
was  by  far  her  favorite  pottery  class,  though  she  didn’t
accomplish much more than getting dirty.

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137

Chapter Twenty-Six

wo days later Juliet was lying outside, trying to get some
sun on her perpetually pale skin, when her phone rang.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”
She smiled. “Hey, Tanner. What’s up?”
“You wouldn’t want to come join me for a bit of

volunteering today, would you? I’m at the Pit Bull rescue in
Thornton. It’s a bit of a drive.”

Juliet nodded. “About forty minutes.”
The disappointment was clear in his voice. “Yeah, I know.

It is pretty far. Want to grab something to eat afterwards
instead?”

Juliet got up from her lawn chair and went back inside.

“We can do that too, but I’m on my way. Thornton isn’t all
that far. And it sounds like fun. I love Pitties. Do you have
any puppies there today?”

Tanner laughed. “We’ve always got puppies. There’s this

pretty little blue and white girl I think you’ll like.”

“Sounds great. See you soon.”
“Bye.”
She hung up, got ready to go, and was on the road in less

than ten minutes. The rescue was nearly forty minutes away
from her house, and over an hour away from his, but as soon
as she saw him walking a dog in front of the kennels when
she pulled up, she understood the devotion he had to have
to this place. It was clear in his face as he bent down to give

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138

the  big  mix  a  rub  along  his  neck  and  shoulders.  He  didn’t
appear to have seen her yet, so she watched him as he stood
back up and gave the dog a treat before leading him along a
worn  dirt  path  that  ran  along  the  outside  of  the  kennels.
Dogs barked at him and sometimes the dog he was walking
got distracted and barked back, but a slight reprimand from
Tanner was enough to get the dog walking correctly again.

He was smiling even before he spotted her and quickly

waved her over. Caught, Juliet slid out of the Jeep and
started toward him.

“You look like you really love them,” she said, walking

up.

Tanner nodded. “I do. I’ve always wanted a dog.”
Juliet nodded. She couldn’t imagine life without her old

man. “Why don’t you have one then?”

With a frown, Tanner shook his head. “We can’t. My

mom’s allergic, and Dad’s never allowed us to have one just
in case she ever comes back. I know she’s not going to. But
my dad, he’s not so convinced...” His voice trailed off and he
shrugged.

“That’s really sad,” she said as she bent down to rub one

of the dogs.

“Yeah, it is,” he admitted quietly.
“Juliet!”
She turned around at the loud screech as Ester grabbed

her in a tight hug. “Hey!”

“What are you doing here?” Ester asked her. “Hey,

Tanner,” she said, nodding to him.

“Tanner brought me,” Juliet told her. “You two know

each other?”

Tanner nodded. “I trained her on her first day a few

months back.”

Ester grinned at him. “Yep, and he was a great teacher.

Well, I’m off! See you tomorrow after class, Juliet!”

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Chapter Twenty-Seven

he annual caving club meeting was the next afternoon
and Juliet was really excited for the trip. She loved

caving and the excitement and danger of it always made her
happy. She drove to the spot, parked her Jeep and grabbed
her stuff without missing a beat.  She could practically hear
her  body  humming  with  happiness  as  she  strapped  on  her
equipment and joined the others at the mouth of the cave.

Until she remembered that Dean was in the club. She

wasn’t sure why she forgot that detail, especially since it was
Dean  who  had  first  introduced  her  to  caving  years  before.
But  she’d  driven  two  hours  south  to  get  there  and  wasn’t
about to turn around and go home just because he was there.

“Hey,” he said, stepping up to her. “Want me to check

your pack?”

She shook her head. “No, but thanks. I think I’ve got it

situated.”

He shrugged and stepped away. Maybe this wouldn’t be

so hard after all. If he was just going to leave her alone and
treat her like everyone else, then she could handle this just
fine. No problem.

Her phone beeped and she looked down, surprised that

she  had  missed  a  call.  Maybe  her  music  had  been  up  too
loud on the highway coming down. She sat down on a flat
rock  and  called  Tanner  back—this  way  if  the  call  was
important,  he  didn’t  have  to  wait  hours  to  hear  back  from
her while she was in the caves and had no reception. The last

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141

time she’d tried to talk to Ophelia when she’d been caving
had probably been the most frustrating conversation in her
life just because of the lack of clarity in the call.

“Hey, Tanner,” she said brightly.
“Hey, what are you doing today?”
She reached down and took a drink from her water bottle

before answering him. “The caving club is doing their
annual trip. I should be back late tonight if you wanted to
come over.”

“Juliet, get off the phone, let’s go!” Dean called loudly to

her.

“Was that Dean?” Tanner quickly asked.
Juliet nodded and started to gather up her stuff. “Yeah. So

did you want to come over later?”

“After everything he did to you, how he treated you,

you’re still spending time with him?”

Tanner sounded hurt, but really, who was he to question

her? Juliet was instantly defensive. “Yeah, Tanner, I’m out
with the caving club. Sorry to tell you this, but you don’t get
to choose who I go out with. Sometimes I do stuff just for
me. This is one of those times. I like excitement, and this is
one way that I can get it.”

Tanner was so quiet that for a moment she thought he

might have lost the call. “My life isn’t exciting, Juliet.”

“Babe, c’mon, the others are leaving,” Dean said, coming

up behind her.

She quickly held up her hand to tell Dean that she needed

a minute and to shut up. “Tanner, I know that. We’ve talked
about that. But sometimes I just need a bit more. I like
having fun, too, and caving is one of those things that I just
like doing. Can’t we just talk when I get back home? We
could go to dinner or something.”

“That’s fine. You can have all the excitement you want

without having to worry about me and my non-exciting

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142

life.” The call ended and she pulled her cell away, staring at
the screen. Had he really just hung up on her?

She tried calling him right back but he didn’t answer.
“Juliet?” Dean said, sitting down next to her in the dirt

beside her rock.

“He just...” Her voice broke as tears threatened to fall. “I

think he just...” She lost the battle with her tears and
dropped her phone into the dirt as she covered her face with
her hands.

Surprisingly enough, Dean’s arms came around her and

he  held  her  close.  She  let  herself  lean  into  his  touch,
accepting his comfort as she felt the world spin around her.
“I  think  he  left  me,”  she  whispered  brokenly  between  her
sobs.

“That’s okay, babe, you’ve got me. I’m here for you.”
The first brush of his lips against her temple might have

been an accident. She could rationalize that. But the kiss on
her cheek definitely wasn’t. She struggled and pushed him
away, forcing herself to her feet.

“What the hell?” he snapped at her.
She shook her head and wiped her eyes. “I just got broken

up with, and you’re sitting there trying to kiss me? Really?”

Dean shrugged. “So? Now that he’s gone, we can get back

together. There’s nothing more in between us.”

She frowned and bent to get her phone. “Except for you.”

Juliet climbed back down the hill, got in her Jeep and drove
home. Tanner was probably just mad. It would take her a
few hours to get back home, so he’d be fine when she called
him again when she got there. She was sure of it.

By the time she pulled into her driveway, she was feeling

nearly normal. Tanner had just been a bit mad at her. That
was okay. She’d call him and he’d come over and everything
would be fine again.

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143

She went inside and lay down on her bed, ready to call

him. “Hey, I—”

“Hey, Juliet. Look...I really don’t want to hear from you

again. Please stop calling me.”

The call was gone and she was frozen, staring blankly at

the phone as tears started to fall down her cheeks. She’d
been so sure.

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Chapter Twenty-Eight

uliet, it’s been two weeks!” her father said, scolding her
from the doorway. “You’ve barely eaten, you’ve missed

all your classes, and you haven’t left the house. Go outside
and do something!”

Juliet turned over and pulled the comforter back around

her shoulders. Her phone rang and she picked it up,
ignoring her dad as he stomped down the stairs. “Hello?”

She hoped it was Tanner, but knew that probably after

two weeks he wouldn’t be calling. Not anymore.

“Hey girl,” Ester said, sounding hesitant.
Juliet sighed and rolled over onto her stomach. “Hey. I

don’t know when I’m going back to class. But it’s not today,”
she said, quickly repeating the gist of the last few
conversations they’d had.

Ester chuckled. “Yeah, I’m not calling about that.”
Juliet blinked. “You’re not?”
“No. See...oh, how do I put this?”
“Just say it,” Juliet said, wondering why her best friend

was suddenly sounding nervous talking to her. It was very
weird and not at all like Ester to act this way.

“All right, so I want to ask out Tanner.”
Juliet’s mouth fell open. Her best friend wanted to ask out

her ex? What the hell? She wanted to say no way, that wasn’t
going to happen. He was hers.

“Juliet?”

“J

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145

But he wasn’t. Not anymore. She’d screwed that up

royally. And now Ester wanted to ask him out.

“It’s fine,” she said quickly, trying not to snap at her best

friend.

“Really? You don’t mind? It’s just that, well, we’ve sort of

gotten closer in the past few weeks. I’ve been volunteering
here more since you haven’t wanted to hang out, and he’s
been here a lot with his brother and—”

“Totally fine.” Juliet pressed her face into the pillow,

hoping Ester couldn’t hear her tears. “Look, I’ve got to go.
Things to do and stuff. But it’s fine. I’ll talk to you later.
Okay, bye.”

She hung up quickly, not caring that Ester hadn’t said

goodbye too or that she’d pretty much just hung up on her
best friend. Who was probably now going to start dating the
only  guy  who  had  ever  really  cared  about  her.  What  little
desire  to  get  out  of  bed  had  quickly  fled  with  that  latest
news.

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Chapter Twenty-Nine

et up, Juliet,” her dad said, barging noisily into her room
the next day.

She turned over and glared at him, especially when he

started  pulling  clothes  out  of  her  closet  and  tossing  them
onto  the  bed  next  to  her.  “What  are  you  doing?”  she
groggily asked him.

“I got you a job. You’re starting today. Now get dressed.

No more staying inside. No more moping. I’m sorry for
whatever happened with Tanner, but you’ve got to get out
of this house.” Her dad put on his best stern teacher’s face
and she frowned.

“We’re all very worried about you, sweetie,” her mom

said from the doorway. “You’ve got to get up and get going.
This job is a good one. Your dad stuck his neck out on this
one, so to speak.”

Juliet reluctantly sat up, the comforter falling off her

shoulders and disrupting Iago’s sleep. “Where’s it at?”

“The literature department on campus. You’re going to be

helping  students  with  their  assignments,”  her  dad  filled  in
for her. “And we leave in an hour. It’s just  for a few hours
today. Low pay, I’m afraid. But it’s something. And it’ll get
you  out  of  the  house  and  being  around  people  again.  That
has to be worth something. Right?”

She slowly nodded and forced her unused muscles to

move. “Thanks. I’ll go get ready.”

“G

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147

She tried not to feel guilty at her parents’ identical

expressions of relief.

* * * *

Six  hours  later  Juliet  stretched  her  arms  over  her  head  and
glanced  at  the  clock.  Her  first  day  in  the  department  was
almost  over.  “Think  you’ve  got  it?”  she  asked  the  student
across from her. The freshman nodded, though his face still
looked  pinched.  “What  part’s  troubling  you?”  Juliet  leaned
closer to him, getting a look at his essay as well.

He pointed to the reference page. “I just don’t understand

where all these periods go. And then I’ve got to reference
stuff in the actual essay too?”

She nodded. “Yes, you do.”
“It just seems like a lot of work. And it’s sucks. It’s

boring.”

Juliet laughed. “Yeah, it is. But it’s the way to get a good

grade.  Plenty  of  professors  will  mark  you  down  for  not
having  the  correct  formatting,  even  if  your  actual  paper  is
stellar.  It’s  horrible  but  that’s  the  rule.  So  let’s  get  you
through this. Okay?”

He nodded, sighed and tried again. She smiled as he got

better this time. After the fourth time of rearranging things,
checking the style guide, and touching the details up again,
she thought his paper was ready to turn in.

“Looks good,” she said, leaning back. “Ready to print it?”
The freshman nodded. “Yeah. And Juliet?”
“Yes?”
“Thanks. Your dad is a really hard teacher and I wasn’t

sure about coming here today once I saw your name on the
list of helpers, but this wasn’t so bad.”

Blushing, she smiled at him. “Thanks. I had fun too. It

wasn’t so bad.”

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148

She helped him print off the paper and showed him out of

the study area. Her dad met her in the hallway as she was
locking up. “How’d it go today?”

“Pretty well, actually. Thanks for getting this for me. I

know I’ve been a mess these past few weeks, and I’m going
to try to be better. Tanner and I had fun but maybe that’s just
all it was meant to be,” she said quietly. Her dad didn’t need
to know she was  just  trying to put on a brave face, or that
she’d barely stopped thinking about him since her dad had
dropped her off that morning. She’d dreaded seeing Tanner
again,  hoped  he  wouldn’t  come  to  the  department  for  any
reason. And she’d been lucky enough that he hadn’t.

Maybe she could avoid seeing him for the rest of the

semester, too.

Her dad smiled at her, appearing fooled by her act. For

now at least. “That’s great, honey. Really great. Maybe
someday you can double date with Tanner and Ester.” Her
stomach clenched at that idea and she hoped it didn’t show.
“I need to run to class, but can you drop this book off at the
elementary school on the way home?”

“To Kill a Mockingbird?” she asked, taking it from him.

“Don’t they have their own books?”

Her father chuckled. “Yes, but this one has all of my notes

from when I taught it. Mrs. White is waiting for it, so run
along and I’ll see you tonight. Your mother is making a
quiche for dinner.”

Juliet nodded and tucked the little book into her purse.

“See you tonight.”

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149

Chapter Thirty

rs. White wasn’t hard to find, and five minutes after
arriving at the elementary school, Juliet was ready to

head home. Until she heard Drew’s voice coming from the
open door of a classroom.

It couldn’t be him. She was sure of it. But still, she

stopped just long enough to make sure it wasn’t.

“Open your book,” the teacher said, turning to the dry

erase board in front of the class. Most of the students did.
But Drew was busily being focused on something else.

“Drew, open your book now,” the teacher demanded.
Juliet frowned. He wasn’t doing anything wrong. Not

really,  anyway.  The  teacher  just  didn’t  have  his  attention
and  wasn’t  talking  to  him  like  she’d  seen  Tanner  do.  He
continued to scribble  on a piece of notebook paper even as
the rest of the class began whispering amongst themselves.

“Drew!” the teacher said, sounding angry now.
Juliet had seen enough. Screw it all. She walked into the

room and knelt down next to Drew, quickly covering his
hands with her own. His bright eyes instantly turned to her
and she smiled up at him.

“Hey, Drew,” she said softly. “Let’s open that book up.

Okay?”

“You! Get out of my class right now! You don’t belong

here,” the teacher snapped at her. “Take your hands off that
child.”

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150

Juliet rose up but kept her hands on Drew’s. “I’m his

friend. Please calm down, take a breath and try not to get so
aggravated with him. It’s not his fault. Here, if you just—”

“Well, if he wasn’t so stupid I wouldn’t have to yell at

him,” the woman retorted nastily.

“That went well,” Juliet said, slipping her hand into

Drew’s. “C’mon hon, let’s go get something to eat. I’m
starving.”

He hopped out of his little seat and followed her to the

front of the classroom.

“You can’t just take him,” the teacher said, stepping in

their way.

Juliet’s mouth thinned into a hard line as she stared the

woman down. “Call his brother, then. But it had better be
before I do. And after I talk to him, my next call will be to
the principal, then the board of education, which my father
is a member of. I’m sure they’d love to hear how you called a
little autistic boy stupid in front of an entire class of
students.”

“Well, I’m calling the police,” the woman continued.
Juliet shrugged. “Okay. But Drew and I are still leaving.

I’m  not  letting  him  stay  with  a  teacher  that  is  verbally
abusive  to  him.  There’s  no  way  in  hell  that’s  going  to
happen.  So  get  out  of  the  way  or  I  start  screaming  about
what  an  awful  teacher  you  are  and  everyone  in  the  school
will know what you did.”

The teacher’s bony face paled and she stepped a few

inches  to  the  left.  It  wasn’t  much,  but  it  was  enough.  With
her  heart  pounding  and  a  smile  on  her  face,  Juliet  helped
Drew get his backpack and slide into the Jeep.

She called Tanner and left a voicemail as she pulled into

the parking lot of her favorite pizza place.

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151

It took him a whole thirty minutes and two slices of pizza

to join them. Seeing him there, so close she could touch him
but knowing that she couldn’t, made her heart ache.

“Are you going to have me arrested for kidnapping?” she

asked him as she took a large bite of her pizza. Beside her
Drew was carefully nibbling on a slice of pepperoni.

Tanner shook his head and sat down next to his brother.

“One of the kids called his mom while the teacher was at the
principal’s office, probably trying to explain herself. His
mom called me while you were trying to call.”

“So why didn’t you call me back?” Juliet asked him.
He shrugged. “I knew he was safe with you. And I was

too mad right then.” He took a breath and met her gaze.
“You helped him today. But that doesn’t mean you can take
him whenever you want to.”

She snorted and rolled her eyes. “Of course not.”
He grinned. “But I’m glad you were there for him today.

It means a lot to me.”

She shrugged. “Didn’t do it for you,” she said as she

stood up. “Bye, Drew. I’ve gotta get to home.” She kissed
him on the top of his head and turned away, but before she
could get her purse on Drew tackled her in a tight hug.

“G’bye,” he said quickly before releasing her. Juliet

ruffled his hair, waved goodbye to Tanner and then left
before she risked touching him.

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Chapter Thirty-One

fter her third day helping students she came to an
epiphany. As soon as she got a break she called her

mom. “I want to take some early childhood education
classes,” she said before her mom could even say hello.

There was a pause and Juliet frowned. “Mom?”
“Are you sure that’s wise, dear? You had such trouble

with statistics last semester. There’s a lot that goes into being
a teacher.”

Her heart sank. Her mom didn’t think it was a good idea.

She’d had so much fun helping the students, and with Drew
on her mind the past few days, it had seemed to click. “And
you don’t think that I can do it?”

“Now I never said that,” her mom said hesitantly. “It’s

just that—”

Juliet angrily shook her head. “But that’s what you were

thinking. I’m smart too, Mom. I may not be a freaking genius
like Ophelia, but I’m still smart. I read Tolstoy and get it. Les
Mis is one of my favorite stories. I’m not dumb. Not by a
long shot.”

“Well, I never said that. Stop twisting my words. I just

think that maybe you should stick to what you’re good at.”

Too upset to say anything more, Juliet hung up on her

mother. She’d probably get an earful about it when she got
home that night. But she just couldn’t deal with the woman
right now. Her phone rang—she saw that it was her mom
calling back and she ignored it. By the time Ophelia tried to

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153

call her she was looking at the classes she’d need to get her
degree in special education. On her father’s fourth attempt at
getting her to pick up she’d already registered for her first
semester of classes.

Sitting back and feeling pretty proud of herself, she

smiled at the computer screen in front of her. All of her
general education classes would still apply, and for the first
time in a few semesters, she was actually looking forward to
the classes she’d be taking.

She reached for the phone, wanting to tell Tanner about

her  new  decision  and  how  Drew  had  really  influenced  her
choice.  But  then  she  remembered  that  they  weren’t  really
friends and he had no reason to want to talk to her again.

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Chapter Thirty- Two

uliet was about to start up her Jeep the next afternoon
when Ester called. She frowned and ignored it. She’d

barely spoken to Ester in weeks and didn’t want  to expose
that  nerve  again.  Besides,  what  if  her  best  friend  told  her
about  her  dates  with  Tanner?  Though  she  hadn’t  heard  if
they were officially dating or not, Juliet had imagined it very
well. Up to them getting married and Ester being pregnant
with Tanner’s baby, even. That thought especially had made
her cry the hardest.

Ester called back two more times before Juliet finally

answered her phone. “Hi,” she said, hoping she didn’t
sound as cold as she felt.

“Why didn’t you answer?” Ester asked, sounding frantic.
“I was driving.” It was only a half lie, since she was

actually driving even if that wasn’t the reason she hadn’t
picked up. A voice in the background caught her attention.
“Is that Drew?”

“Yes. And he’s driving me crazy. Can you come get him?”
“Huh? Why isn’t Tanner there with you?”
Ester huffed loudly. “He’s working at the store right now.

I told him I could handle it. But Juliet, I don’t really like kids.
Not really. Maybe for a little bit. Like five minutes. But I
can’t do this. He’s making me crazy. Can you come get him?
Just for a few hours. Then I’ll come get him when Tanner is
getting off and no one will know.”

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155

“Except Drew,” Juliet said coldly. “But yes, I’m on my

way. Where are you?”

“My house. Thank you for coming. You sure you don’t

mind hanging out with him for a while?” Ester asked.

Juliet shook her head. “I adore him.” They hung up and

Juliet was pulling into Ester’s driveway less than ten
minutes later.

“I’ll call you in two hours to bring him back,” Ester said,

pulling him out of her house. “He needs to be clean and
happy—I don’t want Tanner knowing I couldn’t handle a
little time with his kid brother.”

Juliet rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I’ll have him back to you in

time. But maybe next time you might want to tell him the
truth.”

“Like you did?” Ester snapped.
Juliet stopped getting Drew buckled in to turn and look at

the woman who she once thought of as her younger sister.
“Huh?”

“I asked you if you minded me asking Tanner out. Then

the next day you started ignoring my calls and avoiding me.
Why didn’t you tell me?” Ester asked.

Juliet’s face fell. Of course her best friend would know her

better than that. “Because I didn’t know how much I loved
him,” she quietly admitted.

Ester nodded and stepped back. “Good answer. See you

in a few hours.”

Juliet nodded and she backed the Jeep out of Ester’s

driveway. Once they were back on the road she dialed Mrs.
Banks. “Hey, can I bring a young friend up to meet the
horses today?”

Mrs. Banks laughed warmly. “Of course you may. You

know I love having you over here. See you soon?”

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156

“Yes ma’am.” As the call ended she turned and smiled at

Drew. “I’m taking you to my favorite place in the whole
world,” she told him.

“Where?”
She winked at him. “You’ll see.”
A little while later she pulled into her usual spot by the

barn  and  turned  to  see  Drew  looking  around  wildly.
“C’mon,  Drew.  I’ll  show  you  around.”  She  held  out  her
hand and he quickly took it.

* * * *

An hour later Juliet was in the middle of helping Drew
guide Ginger around the small arena when Ester called.

“Hello?”
“Tanner’s getting off early and wants to pick Drew up

now!” She sounded frantic and Juliet couldn’t really blame
her.

She continued to keep a close eye on Drew to make sure

he was safe as she answered her. “Stall him and I’ll get Drew
back to your house as soon as I can,” she said quickly. It was
the best she could do. They weren’t nearby at all. And she
wasn’t about to rush out and leave Ginger with all her tack
on. It would take all of the original extra hour that she was
supposed to have had with Drew to get everything put away
and get him back to Ester’s house before Tanner showed up.

“That’s not good enough,” Ester snapped.
Juliet sighed irritably. “Then tell Tanner the truth.”
“All right...all right. I will. Where are you?”
“Mrs. Banks’ farm,” Juliet said quickly. “And Drew’s

riding Ginger. He seriously loves it, Ester, you should see his
face. He’s laughing and happy.”

“You took him way up there?”
Juliet nodded. “You said I had two hours.”

Give Me Fever

157

“Yeah, I did. You’re right. Sorry, I’m just—”
“It’s fine. Just come get him or tell Tanner where we are

so that he can come get Drew,” Juliet said quickly.

“Will do. Bye.”
“Bye.”
Juliet put the phone back in the pocket of her jeans and

walked up to Drew. “Having fun?” she asked, walking
alongside him. He nodded quickly, his wide smile telling her
everything she needed to know about how much he was
loving this. “I’m glad. You look really good up there. Totally
natural.”

“I do?”
She nodded and patted Ginger on her shoulder. “Thanks

for coming out here with me today. I really needed your
help.”

The kid beamed brightly and she smiled up at him.
Twenty minutes later she heard a truck pull up and saw

Tanner  get  out.  He  looked  upset  and  she  turned  away,
ignoring  him  in  favor  of  the  smiling  child  next  to  her.  He
could be pissy all he wanted—it wasn’t her fault Ester lied to
him. Sure, maybe she should have called him to tell him she
was  taking  Drew.  She  realized  that.  But  it  wasn’t  as  if  she
was a stranger to either of them.

She heard the arena gate open on its rusty hinges and

looked over to see Tanner coming in with them. “Go ahead
and stop her, Drew. Sit back in the saddle and pull back just
slightly on the reins.”

“Can I tell her whoa too?” he asked.
Juliet laughed. “Yeah, you can cowboy it up and say that

if you want to.” She walked toward him, ready to help him
stop her if he needed.

But Ginger stopped easily for him, especially after his

loud “Whoa!” that caught the attention of the rest of the

Caitlin Ricci

158

horses in the barn nearby. She came to his side and held
Ginger still as he dismounted.

“You did great, buddy,” she said, high-fiving him. She

helped him pull the reins over Ginger’s head and handed
them to him. “Here you go. Lead your horse to the rail and
tie her up.”

He grinned and happily did as he was told.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen him that happy, or that eager

to follow directions,” Tanner said, quietly coming up beside
her.

She nodded. “I think he had a great time. Mrs. Banks, the

woman who owns these horses, said he’s welcome to come
out anytime. So if he wants to, just let me know and I’ll bring
him. I try to get out here a couple times a week.”

“Thanks, for picking him up and spending time with him

again. You didn’t have to,” Tanner said.

Juliet nodded. “You’re welcome. But I didn’t do it for you.

I like Drew. I like spending time with him. I know you and
Ester are together now, and that’s fine. But I still want to—”

“We’re not together,” Tanner said quickly.
Juliet looked over his shoulder to see Ester getting out of

the truck as well.

“You’re not?” she asked, clearly confused. “But I

thought...” She shook her head. “You’re really not together?”

Ester came up to them and nodded. “We’re really not,

Juliet. I asked you if I could ask him out because I wanted
you to think about it, to see if you actually wanted him after
everything with Dean. Then when you said it was fine I
thought maybe I’d misjudged your relationship with Tanner
completely.”

Juliet’s heart started to speed up. “You didn’t,” she

whispered, looking up at Tanner.

Ester laughed. “I know. You ignoring me for a few weeks

really helped solve that one. But no, Tanner and I are

Give Me Fever

159

friends. I wanted you to know what you were missing out
on.”

“But...” Juliet shook her head.
Tanner slowly slipped his arms around her. “I was upset

when you were with Dean. I was worried about you, afraid
that he’d won you over again and that he was going to hurt
you again. But then I saw you with Drew and I saw how
much you care about my brother.”

Juliet came closer, leaning into his touch. “I care about

him a lot. He’s a great kid. But what about us?”

“Us?”
She nodded. “Where does that leave us? I’m not dating

Dean, you’re not with Ester...I know we hurt each other, but
do you think...” Did she dare to ask? Dare to hope?

“I never stopped caring about you,” he whispered,

leaning down so that his face was only inches from hers.

She smiled. “Me neither. Care to try again?”
“Absolutely.” He leaned down and quickly kissed her.

Juliet smiled and hugged him tightly.

Ester patted them both on their shoulders. “Take care of

my girl, Tanner. I knew you two would work it out
someday.”

Juliet pulled back and laughed.

The End

About the Author

Caitlin  was  fortunate  growing  up  to  be  surrounded  by
family and teachers that encouraged her love of reading. She
has  always  been  a  voracious  reader  and  that  love  of  the
written  word  easily  morphed  into  a  passion  for  writing.  If
she  isn't  writing,  she  can  usually  be  found  studying  as  she
works  toward  her  counseling  degree.  She  comes  from  a
military family and the men and women of the armed forces
are  close  to  her  heart.  She  also  enjoys  gardening  and
horseback  riding  in  the  Colorado  Rockies  where  she  calls
home  with  her  wonderful  fiancé  and  their  two  dogs.  Her
belief that there is no one true path to happily ever after runs
deeply through all of her stories.

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