“What do you mean?” I asked, my breaths still quite heavy as I squinted up at him.
“You and exercise do not mix, mate. Unless it’s fucking, and then it could be an Olympic sport.” He grinned.
As I gripped the edge of the poolside I smirked, “So have you come out here to bust my balls or was there actually a reason?”
“I saw you out here, thought it’d be better joining you than having to go over images of myself. I can leave that to Paisley.”
His leg swung over the sun lounger, and he sat down with his elbows settled on his knees. I briefly looked toward the sliding windows and back again. I knew I needed to broach the idea of me getting somewhere else to live, but I wasn’t sure how he'd take it at all. It wasn’t that he wouldn’t want me to live in my own place, I just wasn’t sure he trusted me to do the right thing.
“Hey, Rome,”His head lifted slightly as he looked over, his chin lifted in acknowledgement. “I’ve been thinking,”
His mouth pulled into a grin, ‘Not too hard, I hope.”
I ignored his need to take the piss, and sighed heavily before I carried on, “I thought that maybe it was time I found a place to live.” He sat up straighter, and the smirk fell from his lips. “You know I’ve been here for six months; it was supposed to be temporary, remember.”
“Yeah, but Nikki’s here all the time. Rhys is here all the time.”
“Rhys has to be. He’s security. Nikki, well she doesn’t like to miss anything, and spends more time here than she does her own apartment, but that’s up to her. I'm a lodger.”
“Gav, don’t start. You’re more than a lodger you’re my best mate. I told you when we came out here, you’d stay with us.
“It’s not that I don’t appreciate that, I do. I more than appreciate everything you have done for me in the past, and what you're doing now.”
“But…? I know there’s one coming.” Roman questioned, his eyes wide as he waited for an answer.
“But I need my space, and so do you and Pais.” I nibbled on the inside of my mouth.
“How far will you go?” His brow furrowed as he asked the question,
“I’m not gonna fall back into old habits, I promise.” I looked him in the eye, “But at the end of the day, Rome, you're not my babysitter. You’re my mate, and you’ve babysat me for way too long.”
His hand brushed at his hair and his teeth ground together. “I know that. I just… I just don’t want to see you back that way.”
“We’re friends yeah, have been since high school?” He nodded but confusion swam in his eyes, “then you have to trust me, because friends trust one another. And anyway, very soonthe baby will be here. You guys need some time alone. You’re going to be a family.”
“You’ll always be my family.” Roman added sullenly.
With my hands flat on the side of the pool, I pulled myself up and sat on the edge. I swung my eyes around to his as my hand wiped the water from my face, “Then trust me to do this.”
Roman lifted himself up from the lounger and came over, crouched down at the side of where I sat and dug his elbows into the top of his knees, his hands clasped together between his parted knees, his determined gaze found mine as he nodded slightly, “I do trust you, Gav.”
I shook the excess water from my hand and held it out for him. ‘We going to shake on it?” He smiled, and this time his eyes rolled, a loud exhale left his lips as he clapped my hand and gripped it, his fingers were tight as he held my hand. I gave him the same grip back and we shook, but I tugged sharply. He swayed a little, rocked on his toes that he was balanced on. “Don’t you fucking dare…” Too late I thought as I tugged harder. He’d hit the water headfirst before he could utter another word. A loud laugh broke from me as I watched him break the surface, gasping to let out the breath he had to suck in before he went under.
“Cockhead.” Roman spluttered.
“Just all fun and games, ain’t it. And anyway, you’re getting too serious. I don't like it.”
It’s not like he’s ready for a shoot or anything, or even suited up for a meeting, that would’ve been even funnier. He was only in jersey shorts, and a T-shirt, oh and sliders. He grabbed his shoe and chucked it over onto the side as he yanked his T-shirt off; he threw that too, as it joined his shoe, he swam into the corner of the pool, stretched his arms out along each side of him, and his head fell back so he could soak up some rays.
The life of a Hollywood star.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Karen
Iwatched from the window as Gav pulled Roman into the water, his lips tugged into a grin. I loved how playful they were, even with Roman being a star, he still knew how to let his hair down. “I’m going to get going, guys. I have a few things to do today.” I said as I turned back to the girls.
As I moved to the open door panel, Nikki stopped me, “We should go out this weekend. Let our hair down. We’ve worked way too much.”
