Page 177 of Burning Daylight

That she’s still mine, and I’m still hers, and our entire lives aren’t commandeered by people whose greed for money and power overshadow empathy and love.

“Sweetheart.” Merrick nudges me with his shoulder. “You’ve got that tortured, broody look on your face again.”

I break out of my trance and blink at him. Shit, how long have I been staring at her?

Merrick has a knowing glint in his eyes. And I consider telling him everything, because I want to have somebody on my side I can trust.

But can I trust him?

Sighing, I run a hand through my hair. “Just don’t like being in these stiff-ass penguin suits.” I pull at my cuff link to get my point across.

“Well, whatever ails you, I don’t think you’ll be able to solve it here.”

My chest aches, knowing he’s right. He steps in closer, slinging his arm lazily around my shoulder, and moves me farther away from our group. “Then again, if it’s love you’re looking for, it seems you may already think you’ve found it.”

My heart stops in my chest.How the fuck does he know that?

I quirk a brow. “Merrick, I’m not in the mood for your riddles.”

He chuckles. “Just be careful, Roman. I told you I’d always have your back here, and I mean it, so when I tell you that throwing away whatever it is you’re about to gain, all for a girl you lust after… It’s not worth it.”

This feels like an important moment. My eyes flick to Juliette’s again, like I can’t help but seek her out, and my stomach flips just from the sight of her.

“Why do you think I’d be throwing anything away?” I ask, suspicion rattling through my bones.

He shrugs. “Just a guess.”

“What if it isn’t lust?” I ask him.

He chuckles. “So, you’re a lover, Roman? You fall to the whims of it as easily as others?”

I quirk a brow. “You don’t believe in love?”

He shrugs. “I believe in a chemical dependency that our brains create, and I believe in hurt feelings and missed opportunities once it wears off.”

He waves his arm toward the Calloways. Toward Craig and Martha, who both look stiff and polished on the other side of the WayMont Ballroom, but donotlook like they enjoy each other’s company, and then toward Paxton Calloway and the strawberry-blond woman on his arm. Polished. Perfect.

But none of them look at each other the way I look at Juliette.

“Agree to disagree,” I say to Merrick.

Merrick leans against the edge of the bar and dips his chin. “There’s a lot of love here in Rosebrook Falls. Love of money. Love of notoriety. Love of…greed. But love of another person over everything else? I think you’ll only find disappointment.”

46

JULIETTE

The VU Founders’ Gala is the event of the year—everyyear—in Rosebrook Falls.

The who’s who from all over Connecticut and beyond make an appearance, spending ungodly amounts of money for a table and then even more money on the silent auction. I’d love to think they do it for the charity portion, and Iusedto be naive enough to think so when I was younger and still believed in everything Calloway, but now I know it’s mainly to show off their wealth and get a nice tax write-off. A proverbial pat on the back so everyone can go home and sleep at night with no guilt over the wealth disparity that lines the streets of this country.

It’s also one of the only times I can guarantee that my entire family will be all at the same place, at least for a few hours.

I feel a presence at my side and glance over to Felicity sliding into the chair next to me, her gown glittering like a blood-red chandelier. She looks both stunning and annoyed, which is par for the course when it comes to her and events like this.

“Please tell me I’m allowed to openly mock the people here,” she mutters.

“Haven’t you been doing that since we walked in?”