"Something I need to do," I replied.

"In the cafeteria?" Reece asked once more, a confused scowl on his face as he rubbed his head.

"Yeah! Or the quad. Quit bitchin' and come on!"

Austin stepped beside me, leaving Reece trailing behind us, sulking like a toddler, and hushed, "What the fuck you up to? I know that look on your face, Rome. You're planning something."

"Yeah. Something I should've done a while ago." Austin eyed me curiously but stayed quiet as he kept pace beside me.

We strode through the quad; the place was teeming with people. The weather was still pretty damn hot, and everyone was taking advantage of it before winter set in.

Halfway down the path, I spotted Jimmy-Don, Cass, Ally, and Lexi on the grass. Cass momentarily leaned away from Jimmy-Don and that's when I saw Molly, sitting opposite them, smiling at something they were saying. She was stunning, and a bolt of happiness hit me as I watched her all relaxed, hanging with her friends.

I was vaguely aware that people were watching the three of us walk by. They always gawked at the football team, but I didn't pay any attention to them, too busy looking at my girl.

The moment she lifted her eyes from her friends, our gazes met. A tiny smile set on her face. I knew what I was about to do would embarrass the fuck out of her. For a moment I questioned if it was the right thing to do, but I decided to stick to the plan... It needed to be done.

"What you doing over here with us?" Jimmy-Don asked as we approached.

No one expected the answer I was going to give, but, honing in on Molly's gaze, I could see that she'd realized what I was about to do. "Just seeing my girl."

Molly's mouth dropped in shock. I sat down, pulled her onto my lap, and moved in for a kiss. I fucking owned her with that kiss, showing the world that we were together.

Pulling back, both of us breathless, I asked, "How are you today, baby?"

I braced myself for her to be pissed, but when she beamed and answered, "I'm good. Great, actually," I knew I'd done the right thing. She was happy for everyone to know about us, and it was the best damn feeling in the world.

"Well, I guess that answers my question of whether he likes you!" Cass let her loud mouth go, but I couldn't be pissed as my girl relaxed back into my arms.

I met Ally's gaze for a spilt second, and she winked. I knew she'd be pissed that I didn't tell her about us, but I could see she was happy for me regardless. She loved Mol to pieces; they'd quickly become best friends. She was the one girl Ally wouldn't give me shit over being with.

"Yesterday at the cafeteria, I thought something wasn't quite adding up. We all know Bullet don't do relationships, so I thought he was just being weirdly nice. But the contact lenses, Molls going missing for hours... totally makes sense now!" Cass went on, her voice getting more animated with every word she spilled. I knew my reputation, knew Molly's friends would probably worry I wasn't going to do right by her. I needed to show how much she meant to me.

"This is different. We're together, a couple, right, Shakespeare?" I said to Molly, laying kisses all over her face.

Blushing and lowering her long lashes, she agreed, "Yeah. We're together."

I pressed a kiss on the side of her neck, and she lay back against my chest. I could see the students around staring, completely shocked, but I loved it, loved people knowing I was actually in a relationship.

Reece was like a statue watching my girl and me, the horny fucker probably grieving over the fact he could no longer have my weekly castoffs. Beside him, Austin tilted his chin knowingly. Yeah, I guess I'd kind of given it away the other night, but he seemed good with it, even happy for me. Lexi, however, snapped at Molly for not telling her sooner, but she got over it and then couldn't take that damn giddy smile off her too-white face.

As we chatted, I caught several of my old conquests scowling and making fun of Molly from a distance, and my anger was gradually building. But when that basketball cunt, Michaels, the guy who hated me most, saw us, a cruel grin spread across his face. Fuck. He'd been waiting to stir shit with me for months, and he'd just been given the perfect opportunity.

I promised myself if he even came within a few feet of us, I would tear out his fucking heart.

Him and me were going to throw down at some point; that was a fact. It was just a matter of when, and the way he was looking at me, at my girl, it seemed like it was going to be today.

Michaels got to his feet, and I tensed, Molly's gaze shooting to mine as she sensed my unease. I watched every move he made, and my blood boiled when I saw him turn purposely to the path that led right by our group.

When Michaels reached us, he laughed, right in Mol's face, and said, "Fuck, Bullet, I don't believe my fuckin' eyes! You gave up all the pussy on campus for that? Tell me, does she at least suck your cock good?"

That? That? Was he for real? Mol was becoming everything to me and he had the audacity to stand there and shred her to pieces... in front of me! Letting my anger take hold, I picked up Mol and, moving her aside, got to my feet and tackled the fucker to the floor, ramming my fist straight into his face. A deep sense of satisfaction spread across my chest as I watched blood burst from his nose, but the asshole just didn't know when to stop.

"Time for payback, Bullet. I'm going to fuck your girl, see how you like it."

Edging forward, my arm pressed against his neck, and I hissed, "Like you'd even get a chance. She'd never fuck you, never even give a creep like you the time of day."

Smiling, his mouth full of blood, he whispered back, "Never say never. You'll mess up-you always do-and when that time comes, it'll be me that fucks her so hard that she'll forget you even existed."

I saw red and pounded his face, kneeing at his ribs repeatedly. Pausing momentarily, I threatened, "Don't you fuckin' dare talk about Mol like that again. You get me, asshole?"

But he just grinned and coughed out, "The geek ain't shit to look at, but she clearly fucks good if she's tamed your ass. Does she? Does she fuck like a seasoned whore?"

I lifted my arm to finally knock him out, when someone grabbed onto my wrist. When I looked back, Molly was behind me, fear in her eyes.

My stomach sank.

"Romeo, don't," she begged.

A war broke out within me. Michaels needed to pay for talking about my girl like that, but the way she was looking at me, like I was letting her down, was killing me.

Michaels laughed, and my decision was made. "Get the fuck back, Mol," I ordered and pushed her away. She let go of my arm, and my attention refocused on the smug face below me.

I lifted my arm again, but Mol suddenly shouted, "Romeo, stop. Now. You're better than this!"

Wincing at her words, I stalled, Michaels taking advantage to sneer, "Yeah, Romeo, stop. Listen to your girl."

With one last glance at Molly and her devastated face, I sagged. What the fuck was I doing? Here I was trying to be better for her, be what she deserved, so I would listen and back away this time.

But only for her.

Looking down at Michaels, I spat, "You're lucky I don't cave your fuckin' skull in, but I won't do it in front of my girl."

I stood abruptly and, seeing Molly behind me, racked with nerves, I held her to my chest, breathing in the vanilla on her skin, using it to simmer the hell down.

Glancing up, I saw Michaels being lifted off the floor by his teammates, and he brought two fingers to his mouth and spread them open, flicking his tongue toward Molly's back. It took all the strength I had not to go after him, the pervert.

"Fuck off, Michaels, and get outta my sight before I change my fuckin' mind and end you!" I shouted, commending his friends for dragging his dumb ass away.

I held on to Molly, the motion of her hands on my back gradually calming me down. After a few minutes, I confessed, "I should've beaten him good after what he said." I didn't go any further into the specifics, couldn't bring myself to repeat them.

Pulling back and meeting my eyes, Mol said, "No, you shouldn't have. What would've been the point? We both knew that you being in an 'official' relationship was going to cause some talk."

"Yeah, but he's had it coming for a long time, babe. He fuckin' deserves a good beat down."

I could see her thinking, always fucking thinking. Staring me straight in the eye, she asked, "Why was he so hostile towards you in the first place?"

Shit! I never wanted my past to affect her. I was so ashamed of the way I'd been living before she came into my life.

"What?" she asked, swallowing in apprehension at my refusal to speak.

"I... I-" Dammit! I couldn't tell her... She'd hate me, be ashamed.

Golden eyes clouded and she pressed, "You what?"

I panicked. I didn't want what we'd just found with each other to be put in jeopardy. I needed her to still want me the same as this morning, as last night.

"Just spit it out, Rome," she said, but this time with much more force.

Focusing on the ground, I admitted, "I fucked his girl a few months back."

Looking back up, I could see the disappointment in her expression and she stepped back, hands out in dismissal, rejecting me.

Fucking Michaels!

"Now you're pissed at me. I'm totally kicking his ass now!"

I couldn't take that look of censure in her eyes, but when I turned to go, a soft hand gripped mine. "Leave him," she whispered quietly.

"You're pissed, aren't you?"

"Well, I'm not exactly doing backflips on hearing that you shagged his girlfriend, am I?"

A whole load of hurt was evident in her voice, but her speaking to me so shittily, on top of everything so far today, really pissed me off.

"I'll let that go since you're clearly annoyed, and I suppose justifiably," I said moodily. And then she surprised me again by fucking smirking at me.

She was now finding it all funny? Christ almighty, I had no idea what the hell to think! One minute she was pissed, the next laughing... complete mindfuck.

"Did you hear what he said about you?" I pushed.

Shrugging, she answered, "Yes, but I don't care, never have cared what others thought of me." She was telling the truth; the bland expression on her face told me so.

"Come on, sit down with me a while longer." My girl held out her hand, but I couldn't take it. This kind of treatment was only going to continue. I'd done a lot of shit in the last few years, stuff that I'd give anything to take back at this moment. I needed to put a stop to it.

"Mol, let me just sort the fucker once and for all. It'll send a message to everyone else to leave us be. There are a lot of assholes who I've pissed off that'll enjoy ragging on us being together."

But she wouldn't have it and held out her hand again, nodding sternly for me to take it. She looked so damn cute, being all insistent. I friggin' loved this girl. "Fuck, Mol, I'll be getting a new rep-Rome Prince, newest member of Pussy Whipped-R-Us!"

We sat down under a tree and I held on to Molly tightly. She played with my fingers, softly kissing each one, and I caught our friends watching us, a mix of disbelief and happiness on their faces.

Being with Molly just made me better. She made everything in my life better.

"What the hell is this?" My eyes closed in exasperation as I recognized the voice.

"Ahh, fuck off, Shel. I've had enough of dealing with assholes for one day!" Looking up into her eyes, I could see she knew I was referring to our earlier showdown outside the gym.

"Are you seriously with her?" The surprise on her face was comical. She knew I liked Molly; she'd made that clear, maybe even expected me to fuck her, but she obviously never thought that anything had come of it, that she'd become my girl.

Smiling at her shell-shocked face, I leaned down and took Molly's mouth with my own-friggin' went for it, roughly, possessively-showing Shelly and anyone else who was still rubbernecking that she was mine.

Breaking away, I answered, "Yep, I seriously am."

"You know he won't stay with you, don't you, darlin'?" Shelly directed at Mol.

"And why's that?"

"Because Momma and Daddy Prince won't accept a money-grabbin' whore with their son, and they can be real persuasive. They want me and they'll get me, you can count on that." My heart fell at the mention of my folks, it was the one gray area I had with Mol. The one part of my life I'd kept private from her.

"Funny, a money-grabbing whore-that's exactly what Rome said about you." I almost pissed myself in laughter, but when Shelly lunged forward, fury on her face, screaming, "You're nothing! A pure piece of-"

I had to interrupt.

"Shut your evil mouth, and get the fuck on before I do something I regret."

Shelly wisely stepped back from Mol, but when she looked at me, the blood in my veins turned to ice. "I'll give it a month and then we'll see what your folks do. You'll be back in my arms in no time. Your momma's gonna flip!"

In that moment, I knew my time was up. Shelly would tell my folks about me officially being with Mol, and I, quite honestly, didn't know what the hell they would do. Shelly seemed convinced of her plan, though, and that smartass gleam in her eyes caused me to bite out, "I'd never touch you again and wouldn't be with you if you were the last person on Earth. You're a bitter, vindictive bitch. As for my folks, I'm quickly learning to not give a shit what they say anymore. I want Mol and she wants me. End of discussion. Nothing you or my folks do will make a damn bit of difference to change that. Now leave us the fuck alone."

I registered the gossiping around us, so I shouted, "That applies to everyone-leave us the fuck alone or deal with me! The next person who interferes or even breathes wrong in our direction, I won't be so fuckin' lenient with!"

Shelly quickly bailed, and the onlookers turned away. But Mol, Mol was freaking out. She'd gone all quiet, closed in on herself. "Don't listen to her, okay? What she said, they're just words. Don't mistake them for truth."

Without answering me, Mol got up and walked away to sit on her own. She'd gone from complete anonymity to being the subject of the campus rumor mill in a matter of minutes and was obviously not handling it well. The reality of being with me was smacking her right in the face, full force.

I left her on her own for as long as I could manage, then crouched before her, stating, "You've gone all quiet on me, Shakespeare. I don't like it."

"I'm good, baby. Don't worry." She tried to assure me, but I could see through her bullshit. I decided to keep going with the exposure-like a Band-Aid, ripping it off quick, showing as many people as possible that we were together. Then hopefully things would settle down.

We made plans to go out with our friends after this weekend's game, and Molly seemed slightly less tense as I led her to class, her hand in mine. I just prayed that from this point on, our lives would be less... dramatic.

17.

"Molly..." Kiss. "Baby..." Kiss. "Shakespeare..." Kiss.

I moved down the bed, pressing soft kisses along Molly's neck, her collarbone, and back up to her pouting mouth.

Groaning, she lifted her hand and pushed me away, bringing the covers back over her body-she wasn't good with early mornings. Cracking open an eye, Mol spotted me, still hovering above her, and buried her head in the pillow.

I couldn't help but laugh, and I ripped down the quilt. "Baby, I'm going. I got practice until this afternoon."

Rolling her head and sighing in defeat, she looked at me, asking, "You'll be gone all day?" as she wiped the sleep from her eyes.