Chapter 19
Roman
It’s not until a little after eight o’clock that Eloise finally texts me. Mazie’s in the bathroom with bubbles up to her eyeballs, but since she always requires me to stay close in case she needs help, I lounge in the hall on my back with Steve sniffing around my ear.
Sunshine
What do you call an angry baker?
***
Sunshine
A sourdough!
Was that a joke?
Sunshine
Don’t be rude.
It was a terrible joke.
Sunshine
No. This is a terrible joke…
Sunshine
Want to hear a joke about pizza? Never mind, it’s too cheesy!
Don’t quit your day job.
Sunshine
Speaking of, I owe you a lifetime of cinnamon rolls for coming with me this weekend.
You don’t owe me anything.
Sunshine
Stop being a gentleman and just say “You’re welcome, Eloise. I’d like my first batch delivered tomorrow morning.”
What did your mom have to say?
Sunshine
Way to bring down the party.
Sunshine
She said I should be ashamed of myself.
I sit up so quickly, Steve startles, darting into the bathroom, Mazie shrieking in delight. But I can’t concentrate on them with the blood rushing in my ears.
You should be ashamed of yourself?
It’s a while before she finally replies. A long enough time that I complete a couple laps of the hallway.
Sunshine
She said I was acting like a hussy. I didn’t even know people still used that word.
Maybe she’s been watching too many old Westerns or something, but either way, I don’t think I was a hussy.
Right? I’m not a hussy. I was acting like your girlfriend.
You were acting like my boyfriend. Granted, a possibly overattentive one BUT STILL.
I didn’t do anything wrong. We didn’t do anything wrong, but she went on and on and on about how I made a fool of myself in front of the entire family and how disappointed she is in me.
It takes me a few tries to type out a response that makes any sense because my brain is on overdrive, imagining telling her mother off once and for all. It’s not very good, but it is the truth.
She fucking sucks.
Sunshine
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
Sunshine
Yes.
I really wish you would’ve let me tell her off. Tell them all off.
Sunshine
No. She already doesn’t like you.
Sunshine
Shit. No.
Sunshine
I didn’t mean that.
Of course she doesn’t like me. I never expected her to.
I don’t want her to.
Sunshine
Why wouldn’t you want her to like you?
Because I don’t need her approval. Or anyone else’s. If I gave a shit about what every person thought of me, I’d still have my head stuck in a bottle.
Sunshine
But you’re my boyfriend. She should like you.
Sunshine
Fake boyfriend, I mean. IF THIS WERE A REAL RELATIONSHIP I WOULD WANT HER TO LIKE YOU I KNOW YOU ARE NOT MY REAL BOYFRIEND IT WAS NOT A FREUDIAN SLIP JUST FORGET IT
I stop pacing at her all-caps message and sit back down on the floor, holding my left hand out for Steve to come back to me as I type out the text with my right hand.
You think you have some magical abilities? You can’t make me forget anything you say.
Sunshine
I’m not delulu. I know you’re not my real boyfriend. I just have fat thumbs and my mind’s going too fast for my fingers to catch up when I text.
The idea of being Eloise’s boyfriend doesn’t freak me out. After this weekend, I know anyone would be lucky to have the privilege of being hers. But I am not delusional enough to think a woman would want to be strapped down with my baggage. Let alone making my sunshine girl carry the weight.
Nah.
I couldn’t—wouldn’t—do that to her.
But instead of ending the conversation here, like I should, I text her back.
What are you doing right now?
She sends a picture of a full laundry basket.
Sunshine
Ignoring this. What are you doing?
I send her a photo of Steve cradled in the crook of my left elbow, burrowed against my bare chest.
Sunshine
OH MY GOD MY HEART YOU HAVE TO WARN A WOMAN DID YOU KNOW THE NUMBER ONE KILLER OF WOMEN IS HEART DISEASE AND HERE YOU ARE TRYING TO GET ME TO HAVE A HEART ATTACK AT HOW SWEET THIS IS OMGGGGGGGGGGG
Sunshine
Also. I never got to tell you, but I think your nipple piercings are super hot.
LOL
Sunshine
Shut up. Did you literally laugh out loud?
No.
Sunshine
Then why did you say LOL?
Isn’t that what people do when they think something’s funny?
Sunshine
Yeah, but I’ve only seen you laugh one time.
But I do think you’re funny.
She sends me another picture. This one of her face, her hand covering half of it, a pink blush on her skin.
Goddamn, you’re pretty.
Sunshine
Okay. I seriously am putting my phone down now because you’re going to make me fall in love with you, and I know you don’t want that to happen. So goodnight, Conan. See you tomorrow with your pastry!
I toss my phone down to pet Steve, shifting him up higher so I can breathe into his soft fur, nuzzle his tiny flank.
She is right. I don’t want her falling in love with me.
I…
Fuck.
I’m not surprised by much, but receiving a phone call from Camden Long manages that. He’s the starting tight end for the Philadelphia Founders and recently signed one of the biggest contracts in the league, and he apparently likes classic cars. That can race.
If I were in his position, I wouldn’t be risking it all with fucking drag racing. But then again, I wasted my chance in the bottom of bottles. So what do I know? I’m just the mechanic who agreed to soup up his Camaro ZL1.
By the time I hang up, I hear Luis call out, “My queen” and glance over my shoulder in time to see Eloise sashaying toward me, a burst of sunshine even on this gray October afternoon.
My heart does that thing it always does when I see her, like it’s trying to leap out of my chest and into her hands.
It’s ridiculous, really, how smitten I am.
She’s carrying another one of her pink boxes from Sweet Cheeks, like she has been every day this last week.
I truly didn’t need to be repaid for the wedding weekend.
Not like fucking her into another universe was a hardship.
But she insists, and since I can’t eat a pound of pastries a day, Luis and Shawn have been benefiting.
Luis intercepts her, taking the box from her hands, even as she playfully pushes him, jokingly calling him an asshole for stealing my treats. He merely winks and takes the box over to Shawn’s corner, where they both help themselves to my payment.
I check the time on my phone and note her visit is later than usual. She’s been coming in around lunch, but it’s after four.
“Hey, Roman,” she says, approaching me with a smile like I’m the best thing she’s seen all day. I want to kiss her right here, right now, but I hold back. We’re not alone, and I don’t want to make her uncomfortable.
“Hey, sunshine,” I reply, straightening up. My eyes drift down to her lips, then back up to her sparkling green eyes. “You’re late.”
“I didn’t know I was on the clock.” She plays it off like she doesn’t understand my meaning.
Like we haven’t fallen into a pattern where she comes to see me at the same time every day and where we don’t text each other every night.
“I came to see my favorite munchkin,” she says before spinning around to Mazie, who’s doodling on coloring pages. “There you are!”
My daughter tackles her with a hug, and Eloise lets herself be bowled over then listens intently as Mazie prattles on about school and Halloween.
She twirls in her pink costume. When it arrived in the mail yesterday afternoon, she pitched a fit about wanting to wear it to school, so I made her a deal that she could wear it after. Which is why she’s a fairy queen now. Crown and wings included.
“Gorgeous!” Eloise coos, admiring Mazie’s costume. “Are you excited to go trick-or-treating?”
She nods enthusiastically, then asks, “Are you going trick-or-treating?”
Eloise laughs. “I’m gonna hand out candy.”
“Come with me!” My daughter points between herself and me. “Come with us! It’s fun!”
Eloise’s brows shoot up as she slants her gaze up to me, a question in her eyes.
I shrug. “Yeah.”
“Really?”
“Not the fun part, but for you coming with us… Yeah.”
She rolls her eyes at my fun comment. “You aren’t going with your family? Don’t Taryn’s and Griffin’s kids usually go together?”
I shrug. “I guess they used to, but the kids are going on their own now. No parents.”
I’m in no rush for Mazie to grow up, but I can’t wait until she’s old enough to do all this shit on her own. Eloise must be able to interpret my grunt, but she snickers then turns back to my daughter. “I’d love to come with you. Thanks for inviting me.”
My kid throws her arms around Eloise’s neck, and it’s so natural. It’s like they’ve known each other for a lot longer than two months. Feels the same for me too.
She’s slipped so easily into my life… Or maybe, it’s the other way around. Mazie and I have slipped so easily into life here in West Chester, into Eloise’s life.
Eloise stands and fixes her shirt in place, taking away my great view of her tits, then drops a kiss to my daughter’s head before looking to me. “I guess I need to figure out a costume. What are you dressing up as?”
“I don’t dress up.”
She socks me in the arm. “Come on!” When I shake my head, she pouts. “Why not?”
I arch my brow, asking a silent question. Do I really give off the vibe of a guy who dresses up in costume? She giggles, tugging on my T-shirt, and I let myself be pulled to her.
Careful not to touch her, I shove my hands into my pockets, until I notice the smudge of flour on her neck. I swipe my thumb over it, and since I already broke the rule, might as well take advantage, so I pinch her chin. “I’ll text you my address.”
She licks her lips, the tip of her tongue too tempting to ignore, and I follow the path with my thumb. Her eyes go soft as she releases a long exhale, a silent sigh. She’s tortured.
Me too.
I force myself to back up. “Come over around six.”
“Sounds good,” she says, folding her arms over her chest, covering her pebbled nipples.
A shame.
“See everyone later!” She scoots out through the shop, to the front door, and I pretend I don’t understand the looks Luis and Shawn shoot me. As if we’re not fooling anyone. I’m clearly not fooling anyone. So I don’t try.
Instead, I go back to work.