Cupping his hand around her elbow, he tugs her forward until she’s out of the car. The palm trees loom like shadows and the crickets are loud in his driveway. It’s a familiar scene and she’s annoyed by how much comfort that brings her. He shuts the door with his free hand, not letting her go as he gently steers them into the house. She watches through parted lips as he bends down to undo her laces, slipping off her shoes before placing them neatly next to his own. Her stomach burns and he leaves her there in the dimmed hallway to walk toward thekitchen. She stands, blinking, warring with herself before she pads in softly after him. She stops at the edge of the island, his heated gaze stalling her.
“What are we here to talk about, Roman?”
With one hand braced on the edge of the kitchen sink, the other holding a clear glass ofsomething, he looks like a man on the brink. His hair sticks up in every direction; his eyes a storm. Pushing off, he rounds the island, sinking into the stool farthest from her. Setting the glass down, his eyes don’t leave hers. Neither says anything; a low chime signals the dryer is done.
Jahlani breaks first. “I think your laundry’s done,” she whispers.
“Come here,” he says softly, with a tilt of his head. She hesitates, only briefly, before she moves forward, until she’s an arm’s length from him. He exhales, leaning forward to grip the bottom of her shirt, pulling her the rest of the way. She braces her hands on his shoulders, taking a soft inhale when his palms move to her thighs. Her eyes close as he drags them slowly up and down the length of her jeans. Her eyes snap open.
“Roman?”
“What happened back there?”
“What?” She asks, looking down at him.
“Why did you try to leave without saying goodbye?”
“I told you. You were busy with Lucy and?—”
“Bullshit,” he whispers, pausing his movements.
She clenches her fist, eyebrows furrowing. “No,” she murmurs, “Not bullshit.”
He removes his hands from her, leaning back in the chair his expression softening.
“Tell me what happened.”
Dropping her hands from his shoulders, she takes his glass from the table and finishes it.
“Do you want more kids?” she asks, finally.
He doesn’t miss a beat. “I don’t know. Maybe.”
“I grew up an only child, you know. It was lonely,” she says, rotating the cup in her hand.
She steps closer into him, and he lays his hand on her waist, rubbing slowly as she continues, not really knowing where she’s going with this, but knowing that she needs to say it.
“Audrey seems nice—pretty, smart, good with kids. She’d make a good mom.” She watches his face for something, anything.
He shrugs. “Sure. I guess. Never thought about it.”
“What happened between you two?”
His sigh is sharp as he pushes her back slightly, standing from the chair.
“You’re angry at me,” Jahlani says, watching him pace, her stomach doing a violent flip.
“No.”
“Is it because I’m asking about her? About Audrey?”
His laugh is humorless. “No.”
She stands, walking up to him. “Then what? Do you want me to go?”
He stops pacing then, running both hands through his hair before looking at her.
“No, Jahlani. That is thelastthing that I want from you.”
