Roman - Lane Hart Page 0,40
around me in a hug. “Take care of yourself, okay? I know you’ll look after Tessa, but someone needs to look after you too.”
I nod my agreement before he pulls away. “Someone will,” I assure him, because I have no doubt that Roman will be there for me.
Roman
I head home earlier than usual in the afternoon, eager to see Charlotte, who I know will be waiting for me. I can’t wait to see her after being away from her all day. I missed her. It’s ridiculous but true. And while the circumstances for why she’s staying in town aren’t great and I wouldn’t wish them on my worst enemy, I’m still glad she’s here.
After years of watching her from afar, checking up on her surreptitiously, I’m finally able to get a chance to talk to her as much as I want and to see her up close. To kiss her and touch her.
I park my bike in the garage next to Charlotte’s car, then close the doors before I go over to try the doorknob that leads into the house to see if she remembered to lock up when she got home. She did, which is a relief. I live in one of the wealthiest, safest neighborhoods in town; but after what happened to Tessa and the other girls, nowhere feels entirely secure.
“Hey, it’s me!” I call out as I take the steps up to the kitchen so that I don’t sneak up and scare her, even though she probably heard the garage door open and my bike rumbling inside.
“Hey,” Charlotte says in greeting from where she’s sitting in one of the chairs at the dining table, working on a bottle of wine with the glass to her lips.
“Rough day?” I ask before grabbing a bottle of beer from the fridge and taking it over to join her at the table.
“You have no idea,” she mutters before refilling her glass when I take a seat across from her.
“Tessa okay?”
“Tessa is…adamant that she’s not only calling off her wedding but that she doesn’t want to be with Paul.”
“Wow,” I mutter while taking a sip of beer. I may have only talked to the little rich dude a few times, but it was obvious he loved Tessa and was worried sick for her.
“And I was the lucky soul who had to break the news to him,” Charlotte adds. “I’m not upset with Tessa for putting me in that position. I would do anything she asked of me, literally anything. It’s just…Paul was devastated. And he had questions that I couldn’t give him an explanation to. Or hope. I had no hope to give him that Tessa will one day change her mind.”
“Do you think she will one day change her mind?” I ask.
“I don’t know,” Charlotte replies between sips of her wine. Actually, I think gulps would be a more accurate description of how she’s chugging the liquid down. “What if she doesn’t change her mind and she never gets her happily ever after because of what happened?”
“That would be awful,” I agree. “And while I don’t know Tessa very well, I get the feeling she’s a tough girl who can overcome this with time. Hopefully.”
“Hopefully,” Charlotte agrees. “But what if she doesn’t?”
“Let’s not go down the pessimistic road just yet,” I suggest. “What do you say I fire up the hot tub and we try to soak away some of your worries?”
“I can’t. I can’t relax with you half naked in a tub or stop worrying!” she says through a few hiccups that tell me she’s three sheets to the wind.
“Why can’t you?” I ask.
“Because it’s not fair! Life is not fair. And that’s not…that’s not…” Now she’s crying.
“Fair?” I offer.
“That’s the one,” she agrees with an emphatic nod before pouring the last of the wine in her glass down her throat. When she goes to refill it again, I jump up and take the bottle from her hand gently. It’s nearly empty and that’s not a pessimist view, it’s just the truth, not much more than three sips remaining.
“What are you doing? Give me back my wine!”
“I think you’ve had enough for tonight. If you don’t stop now, you’re gonna have a horrible hangover and not feel like going to see Tessa tomorrow. And that will only make you more depressed.”
“True. Very true. Sometimes…you’re a very wise man, Roman.”
“Well, I try,” I joke. After throwing the bottle away, I go and sit back down at the table where Charlotte now