Page 16 of Yours Suddenly

The only person I can ask for help is his sister.

“I want to surprise Rome wherever he is right now,” I say to her as we sit down at the dinner table, the kitchen staff bringing in the supper. It still feels weird to be served dinner by other people. In the first days, I was very much content with getting my food from the kitchen by myself.

“Well,” Adrianne says, “it's a Friday, so he could be anywhere. My best guess is he’s in a meeting with his investors. So… the Ipling?”

I nod. She nods, watching me carefully.

“Okay,” I say. “Blake is off duty because no one really expects me to go out at night.”

“Freddy and I will take you, only if Freddy doesn't know what Blake discusses with Roman,” Adrianne says. “So if Roman wants to keep you away from him, Freddy probably wouldn't know. Only Blake would.”

“Okay, let's go then.”

Upstairs, I change into a stunning, form-fitting pink Versace dress since I don't want to give my dear husband a bad image when I unexpectedly join him for dinner. Adrianne remains in her jeans and sleeveless top because she doesn't plan on coming inside with me.

Freddy drives us through a balmy New York night to the Ipling.

“We'll be waiting in the parking garage,” Adrianne says from the front seat, and Freddy gives me a nod.

Nervously, I step out of the car, walk through the glittering revolving doors, and ask the receptionist where the bar is. When I step inside the alcoholic space full of well-dressed, expensive-smelling people, I scan and search, not sure if I’m going to find him here. Adrianne said if he isn’t here, we'll try other places he could be.

I stroll deeper inside the bar, attracting glances from the patrons… and see him at the far end of the room.

He's sitting at a table, relaxed, and nonchalant, and next to him is a woman.

Blonde and beautiful.

Men also sit at the table around him, laughing and leaning towards him. Roman looks very young compared to all of them in their forties and fifties trying to get his attention.

I step forward, my entire body shaking. Maybe she's not with him. Maybe she's with one of these men who always feel like they need someone young at their elbow. With each step I take, the music of the bar becomes more of an echo.

And then the woman leans to say something in his ear. He cuts his eyes lazily to her, his face expressionless. The woman says something again and then he smiles. I don't think I've seen him smile in a while now.

She throws an arm around his shoulder, caressing his back.

The music comes back sharply to my ears. I walk quicker. He pulls his gaze away from her and to me. For a fraction of a second, his eyes widen and then they go back to being lidded and bored-looking.

“Roman?” I ask.

The woman’s arm is still around him and I can't fucking breathe. He doesn’t even shrug it off.

“What the fuck is going on here?” I say, my voice coming out shaky.

The men around my husband turn to look at me, and even though they are older, they let out immature whistles and start to giggle amongst themselves like schoolboys caught doing something bad. Roman regards me. He sits up, placing his elbows on the table, slightly leaning forward, the woman’s armstillon his shoulder.

“What are you doing here, honey? I'm in the middle of a meeting.” He gestures to the papers strewn on the table.

“Does a meeting require you to have another woman caressing you?”

I glance at her. She’s turned slightly pink, removing her arm from Roman then, but smirks at me. I want to slap her, and then slap him, but I'm too shocked to move.

“Who is this?” I ask him, voice shaking.

“Her name is Allison!” one of the men around the table shouts.

“It's Katie!” she says, faking annoyance. “Katie is not even close to Allison, guys!”

The men laugh. They’re clearly drunk. My husband is not. I know what he looks like when he's not sober. His jaw starts twitching a lot. For a moment he regards the men around him with mild distaste and then swings his gaze back to me.

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