Roman

by Sawyer Bennett

  Instead, I merely snuggle in closer to him and tell him, "It will get easier, Roman."

  He surprises me when he says, "If it was hard, everyone would do it. I kind of like the challenge."

  I pull back my face, which had been burrowed into his neck. Although I can't see him in the dark, I try to imagine the look on his face. Is it open and is he saying that he wants to try to move this a little deeper?

  Without a clear answer, I can only venture forward and push at his boundaries a bit where it's warranted. "You know my birthday's next week, right?"

  I can hear the smile in his voice. "Yup. And I have the perfect gift for you."

  Okay, that makes me feel good that he's already given this thought.

  "My dad wants to have a birthday dinner for me at his house," I say quickly into the dark. "He's going to invite Georgia, and of course, Ryker, Gray, and the girls will be there. It will be my first time meeting Ruby and Violet, and well...I want you to come too."

  He doesn't respond at first, the silence heavy and oppressive. His thumb, which had been lazily rubbing against the hollow of my lower back, keeps moving, though, and finally...with a small sigh of capitulation, he says, "Sure. I'd love to come."

  "Really?" I ask, unable to contain my glee.

  "It's your birthday," he mutters. "I'll make a special exception for that."

  Hmmmm...maybe not what I would have liked to hear, but it's a start. I think once Roman is gently worked into the family dynamic, and assuming he and Gray can learn to be at least politely respectful of each other, I'm sure he'll fit in just fine.

  Chapter 26

  Brian

  "Aunt Lexi," Ruby says as she tugs on Lexi's hand. "I've got a spider collection at home. And I want to get a rat but Daddy won't let me. Do you like spiders and rats?"

  Lexi's eyes slide to the right, where Ryker's casually sitting in an armchair with a beer in his hand, and she grins when she sees his slight shudder at the mention of spiders.

  Looking back to her niece, perhaps not by blood but most definitely by love and marriage, she says solemnly, "I have to be honest, Ruby, I'm not a fan of spiders. But I'm okay with rats. I understand they're very intelligent."

  Ruby turns to Ryker and gives him a superior look. He cocks an eyebrow back at her and says, "I allowed the spiders. Not going to allow the rats."

  I suppress my laughter when Ruby rolls her eyes at her father and then turns back to Lexi to suggest, "You could get a rat and then I could come play with him at your house."

  "Oh no," Lexi says quickly as she taps Ruby on the nose with her finger, then shifts back onto the couch cushion so she can settle back against Roman, who is sitting beside her looking much more relaxed since we've finished dinner. "No rats in my house, but I firmly support you in your campaign to get your father to change his mind."

  Ruby grins at Lexi, and even Roman has a slight smile on his face. It's a bit forced looking, but at least it's a smile.

  I have to give the guy credit for showing up, especially knowing his familial background that Lexi's explained to me, as well as the expected discomfort to be dating the daughter of your bosses. Add the tensions that exist between him and Gray, I wouldn't have been surprised if he'd have declined the invitation to celebrate Lexi's birthday with us.

  Now, that's to say while I wouldn't have been surprised if he didn't come, I would have been absolutely pissed. I believe the measure of a man is how he deals with adversity, and thankfully for Roman, he's showing the backbone of a man who will make Lexi a priority. That's good for him, as I'm equally as prepared to withdraw my support for this relationship if he's not willing to put in the work as Lexi deserves.

  Most everything about her transition into this family has gone so smoothly that sometimes it's hard for me to remember that this has been stressful for everyone. Lexi's accepted us, we've accepted her, and even the public has been incredibly supportive after the announcement was made. As long as Roman toes the line, then Lexi should remain a happy woman, and that makes me happy.

  My gaze flips to the right, where Gray is sitting in an armchair opposite Ryker. Violet's curled on her lap and is resting her hand on Gray's belly. While Gray has become exceptionally close to both of Ryker's girls, Violet has practically become Gray's shadow. This is not only because she's pregnant with Violet's soon-to-be-born sister, but because when Gray stepped into that family's life, she took a great burden off of Violet, who had sort of become a surrogate mom to her little sister when their mom withdrew from their life. When Gray became part of Ryker's world, she stepped into the role of wife and stepmother with such quiet command it enabled Violet to become just a little girl again. Because of that, she's exceptionally close to Gray.

  Yes, this birthday celebration is turning out quite nicely, even if things have been a little forced between Gray and Roman. They've certainly been polite to each other, but they've not directly spoken and are essentially ignoring each other.

  Oh well...baby steps.

  "Well, I don't know about anyone else, but I'm ready for some birthday cake," Georgia says as she pats my shoulder. She's been sitting on the armrest of the couch right beside me since we retired to the formal living room after dinner. My woman--and yes, Georgia is that in every sense of the word now--cooked an amazing dinner for Lexi as well as a phenomenal-looking red velvet cake, which is the birthday girl's favorite.

  "Yay," Ruby shouts, and jumps up and down. She's been eyeballing the cake since everyone arrived.

  "Want to help?" Georgia asks as she holds her hand out.

  Ruby doesn't need to think about that and flies across the room to take Georgia's hand.

  "You too, Violet?" Gray prompts as she rubs her fingers over Violet's head. She merely nods and pushes away from her perch on Gray and follows Georgia and her sister into the kitchen.

  Lexi also stands up, but turns in the opposite direction. "I'm going to use the restroom real quick. A full bladder while blowing out candles can become disastrous."

  I laugh at my daughter and her humor.

  Roman also grins in a knowing but satisfied way, which means he adores her humor as well.

  A quick look at Gray and I see the same appreciative look on her face that we have a member of the family now who will always keep us laughing.

  "I'm going to get another beer," Ryker says as he stands up, his gaze sweeping the room. "Anyone want anything?"

  Everyone shakes their head, and as soon as he's gone, Gray turns to me and says, "I've updated the final trade report recommendations and will have them to you tomorrow."

  I keep my smile to myself, because Gray's mind is never far from business, and that means she's a chip off the old block. But I gently divert her because we are not at work, but rather here to relax and celebrate Lexi's birthday. Also, this could be a good time to get Gray and Roman to interact.

  "I'm sure you've done a thorough job and I look forward to reviewing it," I tell her before I turn my gaze to Roman. "And what are your big secretive plans with Lexi tomorrow? She's really excited."

  While we're celebrating Lexi's birthday today, it's actually tomorrow, and Roman has apparently told Lexi he has a big surprise for her. She jabbered about it to me earlier tonight with Roman watching with smug confidence he'd outdone himself.

  Roman shifts on the couch, scoots forward, and puts his elbows on his knees. His face turns stony when he says, "Well, I'd hoped for a nice romantic evening with your daughter, complete with something I've been working on for a few weeks now, but looks like instead I might be having a serious conversation with her about what appears to be my impending exit from this team. I'm sure you'll read all about it tomorrow."

  My entire body stiffens and a sweeping chill seems to permeate the room. My head snaps to the right and I see Gray has a slight smirk to her face that she desperately tries to hide before I see it.

  "Gray?" I ask in confusion at Roman's implication that he's going to be mentioned in the trade report. While it's solely within Gray's
realm to make trade recommendations and ultimately decisions after any counsel she wants to receive, I usually have a good idea what's coming down the pike. We look to trade our weak players to strengthen the team, and Roman Sykora is no weak player.

  With a nonchalant shrug, Gray merely says, "Just exploring options."

  Before I can respond, Roman says in a low but deadly serious voice, "Which includes calling my agent yesterday to 'inquire' as to whether I had any interest in making a move from the team for a good price. Clearly, you'll find my name on the report tomorrow."

  A swift burst of anger toward Gray blooms within my chest, not that she would do such a thing, because any player is fair game as the trade deadline approaches, but because she clearly wasn't making a serious inquiry. She knows damn well he's not a player we would legitimately consider releasing from this team, and this is just a way to make him aware that she's still the boss.

  Frankly, I'm a little disappointed in her at this moment, an emotion I've rarely felt toward my daughter.

  Movement from behind both Gray and Roman catches my attention, and I see Lexi heading back to the living room. She immediately freezes when she hears Gray say to Roman, "This shouldn't be a surprise to you, Roman. You've clearly not taken any of my advice to heart, and I need you to understand that you are the paid athlete, I am the boss."

  Roman gives a disrespectful bark of a laugh and says, "I take advice from people I respect."

  I quickly glance at Lexi, whose face has turned pale as she listens. She looks at me, and I open my mouth to stop this conversation before it gets any more heated, but Lexi shakes her head slightly, her eyes now narrowing as they go to Roman and then Gray, neither of whom are aware she's standing there.

  "If you'd get over yourself for just one full minute," Gray snaps at him with ferocity, "you'd understand that this is a team, and the whole is more important than your overinflated egotistical self."

  Roman's face turns red with anger and he bites back at her just as fiercely, "And if you'd get off your high horse for just a minute, and quit punishing me for a variety of offenses that are in the past, you'd probably get what you want from me."

  Gray snarls something back at him, but it's at this moment that I see Lexi's face morph into complete frustration and disappointment and she quietly turns away from the living room, passing out of my eyesight, but I know she's headed for the front door.

  I don't call attention to her impending exit but instead stand from my chair, which effectively causes the room to go silent.

  "Where are you going?" Gray asks in quiet surprise, perhaps even a little chagrined to have indulged in this pettiness.

  "Away from you two children," I snap at her, and without another look I follow Lexi.

  The foyer is already empty by the time I get there and I quietly slip out the front door, seeing her walking down the long, dark driveway, her body hunched against the icy cold.

  Trotting to catch up to my daughter, I sidle in next to her as I match her pace and put an arm around her shoulder. She stops midstride and pulls away from me, turning to me with tears in her eyes.

  "What in the hell is wrong with those two?" she asks angrily, and I'm buoyed by her spirit. She's not broken. She's pissed.

  "They're acting like brats," I tell her simply.

  "Ugh," she says in frustration, and stomps her foot. "Why can't they just get along for my sake? I mean, how hard is it to be nice to each other on my birthday?"

  I shrug, because if I knew the answer to that, this shit show would have never happened. "I suspect they both care for you a great deal, but they're letting their petty differences overshadow that."

  "Well, glad at least someone in this family has some common fucking sense," she mutters, then she dips her head in apology. "Sorry...excuse my language."

  My hands come to her shoulders and I give an encouraging squeeze. "Listen, honey...this is all new and everyone's trying to find their footing."

  "No," she says angrily. "We've had weeks to come to grips with this. Weeks in which Roman's come to care for me and weeks in which Gray has accepted a new sister into her life. They've had weeks to get over this shit, and I'm so damn tired of listening to them tear each other down, trying to be supportive so their opinions matter to someone, all while walking a fine line so I don't offend them at any given time, I want to just slap the shit out of them."

  I chuckle, then I laugh, because an image of Lexi doing just that is as funny as it is appealing.

  "Perhaps now is the time to make your feelings known," I suggest to her. "Maybe you need to quit playing so nice with them."

  Something resolute filters into Lexi's eyes and she squares her shoulders, tilting her chin, which is an exact replica of mine. "You're right. Give me your car keys."

  "What?" I ask dumbly as I reach into my pocket.

  "I'm leaving," she says sweetly, but with a tinge of menace in her voice. "You can go back in there and tell everyone I said thanks for a lovely birthday, and in case you're missing my meaning, that's me being sarcastic."

  "Okay," I say slowly as I hand her my keys. "What do you really want me to tell them?"

  "Tell them to bite me," she says as turns toward the garage that sits off to the right of the house but is attached by a glassed-in walkway. "Now, I assume you have some way to open this garage from the outside so I don't have to walk back into that house?"

  "There's a code panel," I tell her as I follow along behind her.

  "Good," she says, her voice now determined and making me now feel slightly sorry for both Roman and Gray for whatever lesson she's about to teach them. "Tell them they are both forbidden from contacting me again until they work their shit out. If they can't, then...well, tell them again to bite me and have a nice life."

  I grin to myself, because Lexi's is too damn adorable in her ire, and yet I have no doubt she means every word she's saying. This daughter of mine is confident enough in herself that she's never going to settle for anything less than she deserves, and I can't say I blame her. She deserves the world.

  Within minutes, I've got the garage opened, accepted a fiercely hard hug from Lexi, and watch as she drives my vintage Jaguar--which I never let anyone drive--away from her family, her man, and her birthday party. When the headlights are out of sight, I turn back to my house with a determined step.

  It's time for Brian Brannon to say what's on his mind now.

  Chapter 27

  Roman

  I stare at my phone, willing it to do something.

  Willing it to play "Happy," by Pharrell Williams, which Lexi had programmed into my phone as her ringtone. I thought it was ridiculous, yet loved it all the same.

  Anything other than this silence, which I hate, yet I don't expect anything different, because Lexi told Gray and me, through Brian, with some very harsh words that we were to leave her alone unless we worked out our shit.

  Needless to say, that hasn't happened, although I'm wondering why because I'm so rattled by the thought of not having Lexi that I'm willing to kiss Gray's ass in any way necessary to make things right with my girl.

  When Brian came into the living room, his face a mask of thunderous rage, I actually felt like a twelve-year-old kid who got caught sneaking cigarettes in the backyard. And he laid into Gray and me with such venom that for a moment I was afraid he'd have a stroke or something. By the time he'd finished with both of us, telling us we'd both driven Lexi off from her birthday celebration, I don't think I'd ever felt lower in my life.

  Then he promptly told everyone except Georgia to leave his house, and in his exact words, "figure our shit out" or be prepared to lead a life without Lexi in it.

  As I was getting into my car, I glanced up at the front door and saw Brian standing there with Georgia by his side. Her arm was around his waist and she was pressed against his side. Brian's shoulders were slumped in disappointment, but Georgia said something to him--I can't imagine what--and his head tilted down to look at her. His face was gentle and he no
dded before bending to give her a kiss.

  I'd like to imagine she told him everything would work out okay, and that Brian's nod of affirmation was because he had confidence in Gray and me to figure this out.

  Hope he's fucking right.

  Of course, I ignored Lexi's request we not contact her and called her before I'd even made it out of Brian's driveway. And of course, she didn't answer. I left her a short voicemail just saying I was sorry, and then...well, what else could I say. I hung up feeling completely out of sorts and lost.

  And now here I sit, nursing a glass of scotch as I sit on my couch in a dark living room and stare at my phone resting on my thigh. Desperately missing Lexi, and vainly hoping she'll call.

  When my phone does ring, it doesn't permeate my fog at first that it's not Lexi's ringtone and I jump and grab for it. It falls off my thigh to the floor, and in my haste to lunge for it, I slosh half my scotch over my stomach and crotch.

  "Fuck," I mutter as I put the glass on the coffee table and nab my phone from the carpet. I don't recognize the number but I answer it anyway. "Hello?"

  "It's Gray," I hear, and my blood turns to ice at the unmistakable panic in her voice.

  "What's happened?" I ask, because I inherently know that Gray calling me with fear in her voice means something is terribly wrong with Lexi.

  "She got in an accident on her way home," she says, her voice quavering. "The police just called Dad. Apparently a drunk driver ran a red light and T-boned her."

  "Is she okay?" I ask as I fly off the couch, my voice almost paralyzed by terror.

  "I don't know," she says, then sniffs loudly so I know she's crying. "She's been taken to WakeMed. I'm on my way there now. So is Dad and Georgia. Ryker's staying home with the girls."

  "Okay," I say as I look wildly around my dark living room, trying to collect my thoughts. "I'm on my way. I'll see you there."