CHAPTER 21 ROMAN
ROMAN
The last week has flown by. After the run-in with Felix and the fact the other lads were embarrassing Fae, I decided it was best that we stayed at hers.
Minus the fact I do not have my experiment room there, it has been nice living with her.
It’s easy, domesticated in a way I never knew I wanted until she came along.
Waking up in her sheets, covered in her scent, will never get old to me.
We dance around the kitchen at night, we laugh as we eat breakfast together, we share each other’s cutlery and mugs.
It feels like practice for our future, like I’m already fitting myself into the shape of her life.
I like knowing where she keeps her things, that she doesn’t flinch when I reach for her in the dark, that she is vulnerable around me.
I still can’t get over her face when she realised I was the one who fixed her room.
I’m not sure if it was the features I added to her bed frame or the fact I managed to get in without a key that surprised her more.
I don’t know why she thought I would drop her home after the beach to a destroyed room.
As soon as I saw it when I picked her up, I sent a few texts, got a cleaner in to fix what they could, and had a delivery company replace the rest.
My little one deserves everything in life, an easy life, one where she is not constantly having to survive and plan and plot. That’s what I’m here for. Did I need to add the chains to her bed? Probably not. But it wasn’t going to stop me and she hasn’t complained… much.
Our bodies have been together more often than not.
It’s instinctive for her just as much as it is for me.
As soon as I get her in a room, my hands find her hips, her thighs, the curve of her neck, anywhere I can touch.
I haven’t gone heavy on the bondage yet.
The things I want to do take a certain level of trust and whilst she trusts me more than she used to, I still see the hesitation in her eyes when I talk about the future.
I curse myself again for not telling her I have bid on her.
Nobody unsettles and rebuilds me quite like Fae does.
I wouldn’t say I’m scared of telling her, I’m not scared of anything, but I am…
anxious. Maybe. I want to take my time with her and rush her all at once.
The oxymoron of our life is not lost on me.
The Company always has us on timeframes and whilst I want her forever, I want this innocent peace we have to last just a little bit longer before initiation.
Besides, she has enough to worry about. Atlas has hit a dead end on who owns the warehouses.
The paper trails he keeps finding just fold in on themselves like one large origami figure.
Whoever owns it is a ghost and it’s getting us all worked up and stressed.
Tonight, after uni, we are finally heading to one of the warehouses.
It’s the first time we’ve all been together like this and we are utilising it.
Felix has been planning nonstop to make sure the logistics work.
I have been mass producing a muscle drug to stun anyone we come into contact with, Atlas has finally hacked the outside CCTV for eyes in the sky, and Fae, Victor and Riggs have been working closely with Felix on a covert operation.
So many things could go wrong tonight and that tightening in my chest spreads to my stomach.
I love that Fae is a killer. I love that she is trained in so many types of warfare.
It means that if I am not with her, she knows how to protect herself.
But what I also love is something I hate.
If I knew she wouldn’t try and slit my throat in my sleep, I would tie her to our bed tonight and leave her there.
“Roman!” My name is barked by Professor Haarstad.
“Yes?” I drawl.
At this point, being at university feels stupid. I am more intelligent than every person in this room combined. If it were not for my dad and the pressure of our image, I would have long forgone these lectures.
Professor Haarstad is a mean bastard. Old as fuck too.
I am not sure how he has survived this long with The Company, but it’s not my business to know.
That is, until he gives me a reason to make it mine.
His swollen pot belly, white hair and dark sweat patches make me feel nauseated.
Every time I look at him, my irritation spikes.
“Mr Longstaff,” he says, peering at me over his Harry Potter glasses. “Explain why a tertiary alkyl halide favours an SN1 reaction over SN2, and what factors would increase the reaction rate?”
A few students shift in their seats as someone behind me sighs.
Jesus Christ… see? I knew this stuff when I was 10.
“Steric hindrance,” I reply easily. “A tertiary carbon blocks backside attack, making SN2 unfavourable. SN1 proceeds because the carbocation intermediate is stabilised by alkyl groups through hyperconjugation and inductive effects. Reaction rate increases with a polar protic solvent, a good leaving group, and heat, though that also raises the likelihood of elimination.”
Haarstad blinks once. Then twice.
“And,” because I cannot help but take him down a peg or two, “if elimination competes, Zaitsev’s rule predicts the more substituted alkene will dominate unless bulky bases are introduced, which shifts it.”
His mouth tightens as he nods sharply, clearly annoyed he didn’t catch me out. Has he not learnt yet?
“Correct,” he says, already turning back to the board.
I lean back in my chair, my jaw tight as my thoughts drift straight back to Fae.
I check my phone for what feels like the thousandth time, but there are still no last-minute messages.
I cannot help the alarms screaming that something is going to go wrong, but I think I am just overly cautious because Fae is in the firing line.
My leg bounces beneath the table as my energy coils tight in my chest. I stare blankly at Haarstad and the whiteboard full of equations I could solve half asleep.
I just want this lesson to be over. I need Fae back in my arms and to feel her breath on my neck.
Soon, I reprimand myself. I had a late lecture today, so I know everybody is waiting for me at the church.
Once I arrive, it will be all systems go.
I glance at the clock again; it’s still moving too slow.
Willow sits beside me, her dirty blonde hair pulled back in a loose knot.
Her eyes are a clear, watchful blue, too sharp for how gentle the rest of her appears.
She wears thick, black-rimmed glasses and holds her notebook against her chest, her fingers curling around the edge like it’s armour.
She does not say it, but she is petrified of me. Most people are.
I turn my head slightly, keeping my face neutral as I check her body language.
I curse myself for not checking in with Victor about her.
Her body trembles slightly when she notices me staring.
I’m half tempted to fuck with her just because I can, but as I go to open my mouth, the professor calls the lesson to a close.
With a sigh of relief, I pack up and move towards the car park.
Nodding to a couple of the other recruits, I weave my way through people until I reach my car and start the engine.
Whatever we find tonight better be good.
I am ready for Fae to stop being so anxious.
I want to give her answers, but more than that, she deserves them.
I fight through the school traffic as I make my way towards Coggeshall.
The church always looks so different in the daytime than it does at night.
Luckily, my dad is not here today. It was another element I had to track.
He knows we meet here, but I think he presumes we use it for parties.
I am not sure how he would react if he saw all six of us walking out in full tactical gear.
Walking through the church is not feasible anymore. I need to get hold of the maps in his office and see if there is an exit tunnel we can use. With the number of bodies I am willing to cut up for Fae to get her answers, I need to find a covert way to do it.
I hear them before I see them. The light gets swallowed by the walls down here; it is so dark.
As soon as I see her, all the tightness in my chest disappears and warmth floods me.
She looks beautiful. Black leather trousers mould to her hips and her apple bottom, her cropped tee showing off her flat stomach.
She would give Lara Croft a run for her money.
“Look what the cat dragged in,” Riggs jokes as I step into the light.
Fae turns her head so quickly and her eyes light up as she smiles.
Ignoring Riggs’ comment, I walk straight over to her and pull her tight.
I am so addicted to her scent it is a joke at this point.
The tension leaves my body as she tips her head back and grins.
I lean down and kiss her. She opens for me as her tongue meets mine.
“Okayyy,” Felix claps, she pulls back slightly, giving me a mischievous look. It is one of my favourites. “Get dressed, Roman. We’re leaving in thirty.”
I begrudgingly pull away as Victor throws me a backpack and I start changing into black jeans and a black shirt.
I keep sneaking looks at Fae while she pretends to listen to Felix and I cannot help but notice the heat in her gaze as she watches me do my buttons up.
I wink and her cheeks flame as she finally looks away.
There is something so alluring about how shy she gets around me.
I have seen her in action as a Swallow more times than I can count.
When she is taking out an enemy, she is nothing, but sex and confidence personified.
With me, it is like she is learning her body all over again and it gives me a sick thrill knowing I am the one who causes it.