“I can’t today, man. Sorry.”
He turns to her when he hears the stool scrape against the tile, and he seems to forget that he’s on the phone when the person on the other line yells at him.
“Yeah, I have to go,” he says as he drops the call, throwing it down. Jahlani lets out a small chuckle.
“Who was that?”
“Nobody important,” he says, looking her up and down. She looks past him at the food, licking her lips. She scrunches her nose.
“That’s a lot of food—are you expecting more people?”
This seems to snap him back to reality. He turns back to the food, dropping the plates on the island in front of her. He scratches the back of his neck.
“I might have gotten carried away.”
Both her eyebrows shoot up as she drowns her pancake in syrup, then creates another dipping pool.
“Hmm.”
“In my defense, I usually cook for myself plus a baby.”
Jahlani cuts a piece of the pancake before shoving it into her mouth. She can’t help the moan that follows, and her eyes snap open to praise him when something dawns on her.
“You don’t cook for people?” she asks
He shakes his head.
“Like ever?” she asks, reaching for the orange juice he poured for her.
He shrugs. “No one comes over.”
She sets the drink down and wipes her mouth with the back of her hand. “What do you mean ‘no one comes over’?”
He pops a piece of bacon into his mouth, chewing. “I mean, no one comes over. I always go to them. Danica comes over every now and then, and mom and Taylor, but that’s about it,” he says, brushing off his hands.
Jahlani works through a swallow, licking her lips. “No guy friends?”
Roman shrugs. “We text every now and then, but I got busy when Lucy came around.”
Jahlani nods. “And no other friends?”
Roman snorts. “You mean women, Jahlani?”
She nods, bracing herself for the number, but he shakes his head. “No. No women.”
Jahlani narrows her eyes. “Except me.”
He nods, his expression solemn. “Except you.”
Suddenly, her mouth is dry, and she reaches for water. Setting the glass down, she meets his eyes again.
“So, I’m the first and only woman you’ve ever brought back here?”
Roman folds a hand over his mouth, nodding.
“Huh,” Jahlani says, nodding, sliding from the stool.
“What, you don’t believe me?” he says, his eyes following her as she scrapes the remaining food from her plate before setting it in the sink.
