Page 20 of Roman & Olivia
Her lungs seized, unable to bring in the oxygen she so desperately needed.
“Now,” Cammi emphasized.
Olivia blinked. Roman did too. Then he grinned at her and raised his eyebrows suggestively. “How do you think he felt about seeingthat?”
She laughed, though it felt more strained than anything else. Then she gave his shoulder a shove. “Ease up, Romeo. We don’t want to make him think he doesn’t have a chance.”
When he chuckled at her words, she finally took in a deep breath. That—had been—intense.
Olivia blew out her ragged breath and jogged to catch up with Cammi. Her friend leaned in close and whispered, “Wow. When he commits, hereallycommits, huh?”
Tossing a look over her shoulder, Olivia sought Roman out. His eyes met hers briefly, and then he winked. A flutter kicked up in her chest. Her heart was singing with the modicum of affection he was showing her that was so out of character. “Yeah,” she mused. “He really does.”
A warm handrested on the small of her back as the hostess led them toward their table. Olivia glanced back to find Mason behind her.
She sucked in a sharp breath of surprise.
They were all in a single file, with Cammi to her front, Mason to her back, and Roman bringing up the rear. Mason’s gentle touch had her stomach knotting and twisting. He was so close that she could smell his cologne with a mild hint of musk that only belonged to him. He flashed her a smile when he noticed her staring, then jerked his chin forward.
Shoot! She’d stopped walking.
Heat crashed beneath her skin as she hustled to catch up the few steps she’d gotten behind. She nearly barreled into Cammi’s back when she stopped to thank the hostess for leading them to their table. It was a booth that was situated beside a large window that overlooked the property where the equine therapy services took place. Below, there were people already out with horses and their therapists.
“This is amazing,” Cammi said, her face nearly squashed against the glass.
Mason leaned over her to get a look. “Yeah, it really is something. I remember when the owner of this place bought the property. Everyone was so worried he was going to turn it into some joint that resembled the country clubs in the city.” He settled back in his seat, and his eyes found Olivia’s like he was only interested in speaking to her. “You know, with the rolling golf courses and all that.”
“Well, I for one am glad he chose to do something unique. The dancing. The restaurant. The therapy. Seriously, the owner must be a saint,” Olivia said.
Roman draped an arm around Olivia’s shoulder. He had the menu in one hand and his fingers were tracing circles on her shoulder, sending waves of goosebumps along her body. He wasn’t speaking much. But he perked up when Cammi brought up what she did for work.
“I train service animals. I’ve actually been considering talking to the guy who runs this place to see if they could use my services for the veterans struggling with PTSD.”
Olivia snuck a side-eyed glance in Roman’s direction as he leaned forward, his arm dropping to his side. “What dogs do you work with?”
Smiling, Olivia met Mason’s eyes across the table for a brief moment before she dropped his gaze. His foot nudged hers beneath the table, and she stifled a gasp. While Roman and Cammi spoke details of training dogs, Mason leaned over and whispered, “My dad’s hosting another event soon. It’s for a local charity.”
“I know,” she said with a snicker. “I’m his assistant.”
“Right.” He cleared his throat, and if she wasn’t mistaken, he’d begun blushing. “I don’t know how I forgot.”
She laughed quietly. “It’s fine. Sometimes I can’t believe I’m working so closely with him.”
“Have you always wanted to work in government?”
Olivia tilted her head. “No, not really. It’s been a recent change.”
“Why’s that?”
Roman’s arm dragged her in close to him again, disrupting their quiet conversation as he inserted himself. “She wants to change the world—for the better.” Those last words almost sounded like a threat. And if Olivia had glanced up at him, she wouldn’t have been surprised to see Roman with narrowed eyes and a sharp edge to his tense jaw.
Mason seemed unfazed, though. His focus remained on Olivia. “Well, you’re in the right place. I can see you going places with the right connections.”
The arm at her shoulders seemed to tighten. This time Olivia did glance at Roman. She flared her eyes, warning him once again that he needed to ease up. But he did no such thing.
Dinner continued with much of the same. By the time they’d pulled up to her apartment in Romans’ truck, she was elated. “Did you see how he guided me to the table? He touched me. It was gentle and like?—”
“Yeah,” he ground out. “I noticed.”
