Page 56 of Breakaway

“I still don’t thinkthis is a good idea.” Nevaeh purses her lips and pets Happy, who sits on her lap.

Glancing at her, I reach over and ruffle the dog’s smooth fur. “There’s no way I would’ve fit in your car.”

She rolls her eyes. “You make it sound like you’re so big.”

“I am.”

Her gaze darts to me, and an adorable pink hue spreads across her cheeks. Why am I not even surprised that she’s thinking about my dick?

With a clipped exhale, she starts to grin. “Sorry I don’t believe you, Roman. I need proof.”

“Don’t worry. You’ll get it,” I tell her, knowing it’s a bad idea. Fucking her would complicate everything, open the door for inevitable heartbreak. It would be another brick in my wall of reasons to hate myself. As if that wall’s not high enough already.

“Looking forward to it,” Nevaeh murmurs, a seductive smile lifting her lips. Looking down at Happy and then out the window, she turns to me. “At least stop the car away from Travis’s building. Please.”

“Fine.”

Once my BMW is parked, I put my hand between Happy’s ears and pet him tenderly. He’s a good boy, playful and friendly, and it was really nice having him around, taking him out for walks and just playing with him.

“I think you should get a pet,” Nevaeh blurts out, and I meet her gaze, looking at her skeptically. “I’ll be home when you’re at away games.”

Something happens to me when I hear her call my apartment home. A long-forgotten warmth envelops my whole body. I haven’t felt that in quite a while, even at my parents’ apartment. Everything changed when Maks died. The word “home” lost its meaning, and the apartment turned into just a place I spent time between hockey and sleep.

Nevaeh makes it feel different. Brings up emotions I thought I’d never feel again.

“Roman, what do you think?” I blink and squint at Happy, still perched on her lap.

Is her suggestion tempting? Yes. Will I go for it? No. Our marriage is only temporary. When summer comes, she’ll leave me, probably hating my guts and cursing the day she agreed to go to Vegas with me. I’ll be lucky if she’s still talking to me after this.

Making her fall with me into the pit of my self-loathing isn’t something I plan to do. She’s so much better than I’ll ever deserve.

“Nah, I don’t think I’m ready for the responsibility.”

Nevaeh narrows her eyes, studying me in silence. With the quickest shrug, she unbuckles her seat belt and opens the car door. “I’ll change your mind.”

As if I don’t have enough problems without any pets.

Getting out of the car, she holds Happy close to her chest. “Say bye to Roman, Happy,” she chirps, raising the dog’s pawand waving it at me. “Who knows, maybe next time we’ll have a little kitten for you to play with.”

My jaw drops, and I just blink at her. This girl…I swear, she drives me crazy. Not only with her beauty, but with her wit and her smart mouth. Laughter spills from her lips, and she winks at me, closing the door and putting Happy down on the sidewalk. They stroll away from my car and head toward her ex’s building.

Realization dawns on me. Before now, I hadn’t really thought about where she’s going. Memories from the first time we met flash in my head, when I watched her walk to this building and disappear behind its closed doors. Venomous jealousy finds its way under my skin, fueling my veins and poisoning my thoughts. It’s not like I don’t believe her when she says she’s over him…I just don’t trust him.

I don’t think someone can turn off their feelings like magic. I never could. No matter how much I tried.

To distract myself, I take out my phone and send a message to my mom. I need to tell her about my marriage. Once the season starts, I’m sure the news will get out. Maybe even earlier, as soon as preseason rolls around. I’m running out of time, and the longer I wait, the more disappointed she will be. And I truly hate making Mom upset; she’s been through enough with Maksim’s death and my father’s. I don’t want to add more worries onto her already full plate.

Me:

I have some news :) any chance we can talk today?

Instead of an answer, my mom decides to FaceTime me.Ochen’ v maminom stile?1.

“Hey,” I say, plastering a smile on my face.

“What news?” Her eyes, the same color as mine, are narrowed, a deep wrinkle between her brows.

“Gotta love your approach, Mom.Srazu k delu?2. No excuses,” I joke, my cheeks suddenly feeling hot. Okay, I don’t think I’ve ever been this nervous…not even when Mom caught me and Maks smoking our grandpa’s cigarettes one summer, when we were ten.

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