Chapter 19
MOTHER KNOWS BEST
ROMAN
“Seriously, thank you again. I owe you big time,” Roman says, easing the car out of the campus lot. He adjusts the mirror, watching as Lucy’s head rolls to the side, her lips puffed as she breathes out. He’s trying to distract himself from the fact that Jahlani is in his car.
Finally.
“Roman, please. It was nothing.” She leans back against the headrest, closing her eyes. “Besides, we had a great time. She’s incredible.” Jahlani opens one eye to look at him from the side. “She’s smart. Makes me wonder where she gets it from.”
Roman shakes his head, shifting in his seat as he rolls the car to a stop. “Funny.”
She laughs softly, looking out the window at the darkened streets. The dashboard reads half past seven, and he wonders how he can drag out this ride. His eyes flit to the navigation on his phone.
The streetlights are blown out on some of the roads, making it difficult to see, and he catches her squinting. She leans forward until her nose is pressed against the glass.
“Roman, where are we?” she asks, turning back to look at him. His hands tighten on the steering wheel, and he puts his foot back on the accelerator.
“Made a wrong turn,” he mutters under his breath, not looking at her. “Sorry. We should be there in another … fifteen minutes?”
He watches from the corner of his eye as she chews on her lip, her forehead creasing.
He clears his throat. “Penny for your thoughts?” he asks, glancing over to read her.
She tugs on her bottom lip, smiling. “Nothing. Just thinking about how nice it was hanging out with your daughter today.”
He hits a pothole, and they jerk forward. She turns to him with wide eyes, and he clears his throat again, his hands tightening.
“Shit, sorry. I didn’t see it.” He looks up in the rearview mirror to see if Lucy is still asleep and notices that Jahlani has turned to check on her too.
Fuck.
Jahlani shakes her head, and a strained chuckle escapes her. “Floridians really don’t know how to drive.”
“Guilty.”
“Your poor daughter,” she says, turning to look at her again. “How does she sleep so well?”
“Hey, I’m not that bad—I didn’t see it.”
“Sure,” she says, not sounding convinced as she leans back in the chair. They drift into comfortable silence for a few minutes before Jahlani sits upright, turning to face him.
“Can I ask you something?”
He gives a subtle nod, unable to trust his body to do anything other than focus on the road.
“You’re majoring in software engineering … but you work in a bar,” she mutters, more to herself.
“Are you asking me or are you telling me?” he asks, pressing on the brakes as they come to a stoplight. His eyes glide to the navigation before moving to hers.
Eight minutes.
She shrugs, toying with the necklace on her throat. “When I saw you at the bar that night, you were different. You seemed to enjoy doing that. Why not get a degree in hospitality or business management?”
He nods, rubbing a hand across his jaw. “My mom is pretty traditional when it comes to success. In her eyes, it comes from the job title you have.”
“And you disagree?”
He scoffs. “Of course I do.” The light turns green, and he moves the car forward again, cutting his eyes to her. “To me, success comes from being happy. I should … feel something in what I do. It’s not about the title or the money. It’s about the people. It’s about the little things.”
“I’m confused. If you feel that way, then why software engineering?” she asks, completely turning her body to face him.
Roman’s eyes flick to the rearview—to Lucy—then back to the navigation system. She must notice, because she lets out a soft “oh.”
“What?” he asks, looking at her briefly. “What was that for?”
Seven minutes.
“Nothing. I was just thinking about how wrong I was about you,” she murmurs, twisting the jewelry on her neck.
“Hmm. Not sure I follow. Care to elaborate, Jones?”
She huffs, rolling her eyes. “Nice try.”
“Come on,” he urges, his voice a low rumble. “It won’t hurt my feelings.”
The headlights from a car passing by cast a sharp light over her face and he sees the knot in her forehead as she deliberates. She huffs, her mouth twitching as she stares at her hands.
“Okay,” she says, her voice soft. “I thought … that you were just another privileged pretty boy—”
“You think I’m pretty?” he says smiling broadly as he turns a corner, narrowly missing a stray cat.
“—but you’re not,” she continues, ignoring him.
“You worship the ground that Lucy walks on. You take care of your sister. You’re so loyal to your mom that you would jeopardize going after what you want just to keep her happy.
You’re a … good guy, Roman. You’re probably one of the best people I know. ”
His throat works through a swallow, unsure of what to say. He’s so used to his mom’s criticism of his choices, her words feel like a cure. A soothing balm that spreads throughout his body.
Five minutes.
“Roman?”
“Hmm.”
“You missed the turn again.”
He exhales, glancing her way. “I know.”
From his peripheral vision, he sees her squint. “Why?”
Removing one hand from the wheel, he runs a hand down his jaw.
“I’m trying to spend more time with this really infuriating woman I met over a month ago who claims she wants nothing to do with me, but says some really nice, really thoughtful things about me that make me think otherwise.
Any advice you can give me? I’m dying over here. ”
He doesn’t look over at her, knowing that he’s said more than he should have, but not giving a shit.
Three minutes.
“I don’t know,” she murmurs, looking out the window. “You’d have to tell me more about her.”
He inhales deeply, drumming his fingers along the steering wheel.
“She’s … incredibly smart. Organized. Very Type A.
Logical and driven. Honestly, the complete fucking opposite of me,” he says, unable to stop.
“She has this … great laugh. It drives me crazy when I get to hear it, but she’s also pretty closed off, so I don’t hear it as often as I’d like.
She doesn’t like asking people for help or letting them know when she’s struggling.
She actually quite … stubborn, but fuck if I don’t like the thrill of changing her mind. ”
This time he does look her way as he gets caught by a red light, the glow casting beams within the car. She faces him fully, a pained expression crossing her face, before turning away as the car starts moving again.
“She sounds … like a lot. Are you sure she’s worth the hassle?” Her voice comes out quiet as she toys with her fingers in her lap.
One minute.
“Yeah, she’s worth it,” he says, drawing to a stop in front of a one-story house. He puts the car in park, before turning to face her. For a while, they both just stare, then he clears his throat. The cabin of his car has somehow increased in temperature despite the air conditioning being on.
“Roman,” she says, her eyebrows pinched together in thought.
He leans forward, resting his elbow on the console. “Jahlani.”
“What are you doing?” she asks in a whisper as she looks up at him. She licks her lips, and his eyes mark the motion, his patience running thin.
He knows the answer she wants but decides to tell her what she needs to hear.
“I’m trying very hard not to cross this line that we have here,” he murmurs, tracing a finger through the air between them, “but the longer you stay in here with me, the harder it’s becoming.”
She shuts her eyes, her head shifting slightly as a sound of disdain climbs its way out of her throat. “I knew this was a bad idea.”
His head falls to his shoulder as he watches her take several deep breaths. “But you came anyway.”
Her eyes open, her lips parting. “You … stole my bag,” she murmurs. “I didn’t have a choice.”
He laughs, running a hand down his mouth. “You always have some kind of rebuttal.”
She shrugs, turning to grip the door handle. “Thanks for the ride. Let me know if you need help again. I really didn’t mind. I’ll see you—”
Roman’s hand shoots out before he can stop himself and he’s pulling her closer toward him by her wrist. She lets out a sharp exhale, as she catches herself with a hand to his chest, a few inches from him.
He wets his lips, his pulse punching against his skin as he draws himself further to her, their noses brushing.
“Jahlani.”
“Don’t,” she says, her breath ghosting his mouth as she curls her hand into his shirt and he wonders if it’s to restrain him or to restrain her. “Don’t do it. You’re a mess. I’m a mess. This won’t work. The rules.”
“Fuck the rules.”
He sighs deeply, a low rumble in his chest, his jaw clenching as he grazes his nose across hers.
A discreet exploration of what she’s willing to give.
The skin on the right side is slightly raised, a tiny ridge that tells a story.
He makes a mental note to ask her about it next time.
She lets out a shuddering breath, a tremor that flows through her body when his lips continue to trail along the bridge of her nose and begin a deliberately slow descent down the side of her cheek before he presses a soft kiss to it.
It’s gentle. Feather-light. A toe in the deep end of the pool to test the waters.
He sucks in air and pulls back, letting her wrist go. She blinks back at him, pupils skimming across his features.
“Thank you again,” he says, his voice coming out thick. “For watching Lucy.”
Her fingers trail across her cheek as she gives an absentminded nod. “Sure,” she says, clearing her throat. “Goodnight, Roman.”
He watches as she slips out of the car and walks toward the door. She spends an alarming amount of time with the key, and he rolls the window down.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah,” she calls back, but her breath is shaky. “Just an old lock.” He sees it land on the floor and a string of curses fall from her lips. He unclips his seat belt and cranes his neck.
“You need me to—”
“Nope. I got it.”