I watch the pain scrunch on my dad’s face. “Lola…”
I don’t have to explain myself to him, but I realize I want to because even when I was screwing up, he was there. Picking up the pieces.
“I meant to tell you, I really did,” I say. “When I enrolled, I wasn’t even sure business was what I wanted to do and if I started and then changed my mind, I knew how that would look. And then I wanted to wait until I was sure I’d pass. Everyone already saw me as a failure. I didn’t want to add fuel to the fire.”
Next to me, Roman scowls but it’s my dad who steps forward and plants his hands on my shoulders. “Enough of that now. You are not a failure. Everyone doesn’t think that,” he presses. “Your mother and I do not think that.”
I stand up. A tear ignores my stubborn brain and slips through. “I’m a loose cannon. I know that. But I can do this. I can make the coffee shop work. And I can turn around in six months and say I told you so, but I don’t want to. I want you to believe in me now.”
“Oh, Lola.” My dad shifts his hand to the back of my neck, the callouses he gets from marking papers rough on my skin. “I’m sorry. I do believe in you. Sometimes the worrying just gets in the way.” He breathes in through his nose and presses a kiss to the top of my head. “You save a cup of coffee for me, okay?” he says as he draws back and the tightness in my chest releases.
He bends down and picks up his hat. “Top of the class, eh?”
My teeth scrape my lip, not quite believing I finally got to tell him that. Or well, that Roman got to tell him that. “Yep.”
My dad’s eyes sparkle. “You get that from me,” he jokes, and I smile. Then he says, “I’ll leave you two love birds to it then,” and I groan.
My dad grins as he tugs his hat back onto his head before pointing at Roman. “You keep her safe, you hear me?”
Roman dips his chin. “Yes, sir.”
I grumble that I can keep myself safe, but no one pays me any mind. That’s okay though, because a lightness is floating in my heart and little bubbles of excitement fizz in my body. I’m not sure I realized how much my parents’ disapproval was weighing on me until right now, but I should have known my relief was premature.
As soon as the door clicks shut, Roman pins me with a dark gaze. “You went to the MC compound?” he asks, his voice calm. Too calm.
I jut out my chin. I know going there by myself wasn’t the smartest idea, but I refuse to be chastised for it. “Yes.”
Roman prowls forward, backing me up against the wall of T-shirts. “Why?”
I wince, knowing he’s not going to like what I say next. “Rob Carson is out of prison.”
“What?” One sharp word.
“I saw him yesterday.”
“Lola.” Shrapnel eyes. His hand curls into a fist. “You should have called me.”
“I know, but I panicked.”
Roman sighs. “And the MC compound?”
I run my tongue around my mouth. I should tell him. About the threatening messages. About why I needed to talk to Max.
If there was anyone in the world I could tell it would be Roman, but I chicken out.
I’m not proud of everything that happened six years ago. Roman already discovered one secret I had about that night, and I can’t bear the thought of how he would look at me if he knew the other.
I fiddle with the tarnished silver button on his shorts. “I just needed to see whether Rob was back permanently, but Max said he’s living over in Mount Bush.”
Roman’s jaw ticks. “Still too fucking close.”
“I know. Believe me I know.” I let my head fall back against the wall and Roman softens a little.
“You still should have called me. I would have gone with you.”
I shrug a little. “I didn’t want you to worry. Or you know, go all psycho and beat him up.”
Roman’s laugh is harsh, a rumbling sound as his gaze cuts to me. “Oh, sweetheart, there is nothing you or anyone could do to stop me from doing whatever the fuck I need to keep you safe. Leaving me in the dark won’t help.”
