Rise (Roam Series, Book Three) (18 page)

I picked up the bag, recognizing
The
Rise of Rome
immediately. “I actually came here… just for this book,” I said, gesturing to my car. “You don’t have to do anything. My dad is calling for a tow truck.”

He bent over the unfamiliar car-guts, groaning. “
It may be the transmission line… it looks like the fan may have sprayed the oil… there’s a shop near here that I use.” He lowered the hood with a soft snap.

“Do you think it’ll take long to fix?”

“I don’t know.” He brushed his hands together. “Let’s clean up, and let me buy you lunch. We’ll catch up.”

I remembered my embarrassing profession of love in his living room, flushing. “Thank you so much for offering, but I’ll be fine… I’ll find a hotel around here, and figure out a rental car. No big deal.”

His eyes swept over me once. “Logan broke up with you, huh?”

Fresh pain severed my heart. “I think he’s just projecting his nerves about going overseas
on our relationship. Understandable.”

“And he had you drive all the way from New Jersey to North Carolina to tell you something he could have told you over the phone?”

The accusation in his voice prodded my defenses. “I insisted on coming. He’s leaving for an eighteen month tour.”

He continued to hold my gaze. “Let’s eat lunch while we wait for the tow. My daughters and I are staying here for the summer, and my house has plenty of space. You can stay with me until we can get you back on the road. Okay?”

My romantic, school-girl alter-ego gripped her Nicholas Spark’s novel to her chest and did a giddy spin. “That’s so nice of you,” I admitted, really not wanting to charge my new credit card with a hotel room.

“We can sit outside and watch for the tow truck while we eat.”

His tanned skin contracting over his muscled arms distracted me thoroughly. “I… okay. Thank you,” I moved to the car for my purse, but he held up his hand.

“You don’t need anything. Restroom
s are inside the restaurant. Wash up, and I’ll meet you on the patio.” He gestured to the restaurant in the plaza behind us, and I nodded, thankful for his authoritative direction.

As I scrubbed the grease from my hands in the restroom, I willed myself to cool off in the air conditioning. Make-up free had been a good choice for the morning; as the tears dried on my cheeks, they left no mascara streaks in their wake.

He’s here with his daughters. He’s being nice. Don’t embarrass yourself again,
I chided my reflection, thankful I’d worked on my tan with Morgan all through June.

“
So, how’s Princeton?” He asked, standing as I joined him on the patio. He slid my chair out for me, and I smiled in surprise.
So charming.

“It’s going well. I made the right decision,” I acknowledged our conversation in his house after graduation. “Thank you,” I responded to his polite gesture with my chair.

“You’re welcome. I’m glad you feel that way,” he added, settling back into his own chair. His watch drew my attention to his left arm.
Coordinates
. I stared at the taut, tattooed skin on his forearm, and shifted in my seat.
What is wrong with me?

“It was hard, at first, to be away from my dad and Morgan for so long, but I’ve made friends, and I like my professors. Not as much as I liked your class,” I rushed, nearly tearing my napkin in half as I unrolled the flat wear inside.

His blue eyes fixed on me intently. “Well, that’s flattering.”

“You talk about history… like you’ve been there, and you made me feel like I was there, too. That’s a gift. I don’t think I could ever teach like that.”

Reaching for the glass of water, he took a long drink before responding. “You will be a wonderful teacher.”

“That tattoo is really intriguing. I never asked you the location,” I blinked in the sunshine, focusing on the numbers on his arm.

“Here… Emerald Isle. Where Eva was born.”

“Oh… very sweet.”

Silence fell between us for a few seconds, and I was thankful to find that it wasn’t the least bit uncomfortable. “How are your daughters? Eva and…,”

“Violet.
They’re well. Violet goes to Lake Erie College, and she’s off for the summer. Eva starts kindergarten in the fall.”

“Aw. Is she excited?”

“Not really,” he chuckled, his smooth voice appealing to my ears. “She’s so smart, but she doesn’t understand why I can’t be her teacher. A little separation anxiety. She misses her mother.”

“Poor baby...,” I whispered. “I understand. After my mother passed away, I really didn’t want to leave Morgan’s side for a minute. It was hard to be away from her, but it helped that we
were only two years apart, so she was in school with me for most of the time.” I softened my voice. “Did her mother… die?”

“No,” he looked down at the menu. “We’re separated. It’s been very hard on her.”

“Does she spend much time with her? I’m sorry, that’s so personal,” I corrected, shaking my head and looking at the menu myself.

“You’re fine, Roam. No
, she doesn’t.”

I tried to imagine a woman who wouldn’t want to be with her child. It made no sense to me at all. “Is it too personal if I ask about
… Violet?”

“Not at all.
Her mother and I were divorced… actually just this year, it was final.”

I held my tongue, not asking about their ages.
He can’t be over thirty. Impossible.
“Oh.”

“I’m thirty-four.”

“Oh,” I repeated, nodding. “I have no idea why I’m prying into your life like this. Please excuse me,” I rushed, smiling as the waiter approached. I ordered a BLT, and he copied my order to the waiter for himself.

“You’re not prying,” he corrected as the waiter walked away. “I wouldn’t offer anything that I didn’t want to.”

I straightened, rolling my shoulders back and lifting my chin proudly. “I want to officially apologize for my behavior at your house, after graduation last year. I was having a lot of problems sleeping, and I acted very immature-…,”

“Wait,” he held his palm up, indicating that I stop. “Don’t apologize. I value a person who is brave enough to admit how they’re feeling, and ask for reciprocation. If anything, I respected you even more after you left that day.”

“Really?” I smiled, raising my eyebrows.

“Really.
And I’m sorry that you and Logan have parted ways… for now. Life takes many twists and turns. You’re right to not give up on him.”

Sighing, I sipped my water. “I think… he’s right. Our relationship was… strange. Like best friends, trying to force a romantic relationship. We never got… very far,” I gathered my hair, nearly breaking into a sweat. “I’m just so scared for him over there.”

He watched me carefully, his knuckles nearly turning white with the force of his grasp on the table’s edge. “He’s a really smart kid. I have a lot of respect for him. He’s… resourceful. He’ll be fine, I’m sure,” he promised.

The tow truck arrived at that moment, and West stood. I started to follow, but he pointed at the table. “No, stay and eat. I’ll take care of everything.”

“Are you sure?”

“I know my way around the island. I’ll let him know where to tow it. Why don’t you call your dad, let him know you’re okay? I’m sure he’s worried.”

“I will,” I reached for my phone, watching West as he walked to the tow truck driver. In seconds, my father picked up. I let him know that Mr. Perry and his daughters were on the island, and he’d offered me a room until my car was up and running.

Minutes later, our food arrived as
West sat back down. “So,
The Rise of Rome
. I’d have thought you’d read it the moment it was released.”

I smiled, glancing at the bag on the empty chair at our table. “I’ve been busy with Morgan’s wedding. She and Jason May are getting married at the end of August.”

“Really,” he sat back in his chair, a far-away smile touching his lips. “I’m so happy to hear that.”

“Jason’s a great guy. He’s hilarious. They just work… perfectly together.”

“And where are you headed next, Roam?”

I pushed at my food, anxiety stealing my appetite as it always did. “You mean, after I go back?”

He leaned forward as a warm breeze swept past us on the patio. The smell of his shirt, some fabric softener, combined with what I guessed was his after-shave, nearly melted me into a puddle of lust.
Control yourself!

“
I mean, in this life.”

I drowned in his eyes. “
I want to graduate… and teach…,”

“
Roam
.”

I remembered his words.
I value a person who is brave enough to admit how they’re feeling.
“I want a family.
Children
. It’s
overwhelming
how much I want to have a child. I think that scared Logan away.”

Our intimate conversation, so inappropriate for
our acquaintance, chased the world away around us. “There’s nothing wrong with that.” He said softly.

“I’ll only be nineteen tomorrow. Logan thought there was
everything
wrong with that.”

“You don’t have to want what Logan wants… and he doesn’t have to want what
you
want. Maybe he understood that.”

I considered his words,
leaving my food untouched on my plate. “You’re right.”

He smiled
warmly, nodding at my plate. “Eat. We’ll hit the grocery store before we head to my house, and I’ll get some things to make you a special birthday dinner tomorrow. What’s your favorite meal?”

“You don’t have to do that-…,”

“Then I’ll grab some seafood, then? Crab legs?”

I watched his
innocent expression, surprised. “Oh… I don’t care for seafood, but if that’s what you want…,”

“I’m
teasing you. Steak, then?”

“Sounds really good,” I replied quickly.

“And a cake, but it will have to be a
Disney
Princess theme. Are you going to be okay with that?”

I laughed, registering the urge in my fingers to thread through this thick, sandy-blonde hair. “Not necessary- but perfect.”

West’s three-story home could only be described as a beach castle.
Unlike the other colorful duplexes that lined the ocean shore for vacationers, this house was white with black shutters, comparably adding to the elegant appearance.

I
climbed out of his silver Lexus SUV, wondering about a public teacher’s salary.
He must come from family money,
I guessed, moving to the back to help with the groceries.

“
I can’t believe you live here. This is a mansion.”

“It used to be a tiny, two-room cottage. I had the place razed and rebuilt last year. The girls deserved a little luxury after all they’d been through,” he added, slinging multiple plastic bags over his strong arms.
“Like I said, plenty of space. The entire second floor is yours, and the view is unbelievable.”

“
Thank you so much, West. Really… you’re definitely my hero,” I grinned at him, shifting a package of paper towels in my arms.

He winked. “That’s my goal in life,” he answered, sounding so sincere that I had to laugh.

“Do you rent the place out in the off season?”

“No,” he responded, leading me down a walkway to the door. A giant, wooden sign hung from the two, center windows.

Roam West.

“W
hat?” I widened my eyes at the sign, my heart battering against the inside of my chest. “Did you name this place?”

“Coincidence,” he assured me, hitting the doorbell with his elbow. Footsteps sounded from inside, and a small voice came from the other side of the door.

“Speak your name, state your purpose.”

“Daddy.
Groceries.”

“Password?”

“White rabbit.”

“Daddy, wrong password!
I changed it this morning!”

He shifted uncomfortably beneath the weight of the grocery bags. “Eva, please open the door. My hands are full.”

“Password!”

Sighing and struggling with patience, he cleared his throat. “Um… magic slipper?”

“Ding ding ding!” She threw the door open, her eyes fixing on me immediately.

“Hi,” I burst cheerfully
, holding a warm smile. “Eva, right? I’m Roam. You probably don’t remember me.”

I’d forgotten how green her eyes were, so like my own.
Her mass of red curls tumbled down her shoulders, and she wore a ruffled, white bathing suit with small, pink drip marks on the front. She smelled so familiar, like sunblock, and cherries…

And something
wonderful that I just can’t place.