Page 26 of Roman & Olivia
She pushed open her car door and shut it. The dogs perked up when the door opened, and Roman followed at the thudding sound. His broad smile faded. It wouldn’t have been noticeable to anyone but her. Olivia was a whiz at reading Roman, and that look he gave her had a melancholy hint to it.
He got to his feet and brushed the dirt from his pants. The old Roman wouldn’t have thought twice about darting toward her, pulling her against him, and leaving his dusty mark all over her body.
Yes, everything was changing. And she hated it.
Olivia placed her hands on her hips and scowled at him.
“What’s wrong?” he asked immediately, the dogs nearly tripping him as he headed for her.
“Something’s changed,” she snapped.
“What? Did Mason?—”
“No, withus.”
His happy expression faltered further. “What?”
She pointed first to herself, then to him. “Between you and me. You’re not treating me the same.”
For a moment she thought she saw worry etched in his eyes. But that couldn’t be right. Because he wouldn’t worry unless he knew he was guilty of something. “Liv?—”
“You don’t treat me the same way you used to.”
“What are you talking about?” There was hurt in his voice now, but it was also guarded to the point that she couldn’t tell if he actually felt guilty or not.
She sighed. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter. Everything will go back to normal?—”
“No, Liv.”
Snapping her mouth shut, she stared at him. His curt tone elicited a shiver she wasn’t prepared for.
“You’re going to tell me what you’re talking about, and we’re going to work through it because that’s what friends do.”
“Exactly. That’s what I’m talking about. We’refriends,and you’re not treating me like one.”
He let out an incredulous laugh. “What are you talking about? Would someone who wasn’t a friend jump through the hoops you’ve asked me to jump through without complaint?”
“Oh, you complainedplenty.” She couldn’t help her smirk. “No, I’m talking about who we were before all of this started.” Then she gestured toward his disheveled frame. “The old Roman would have dragged me into his arms just so he could share the dirt he wore.”
And that was when she realized her mistake. The glint in Roman’s eyes said it all. It was entirely possible he’d simply been distracted lately and had forgotten what made their friendship fun. It took all of a second for his stance to change, and he stalked toward her like the predator he was.
She yelped and backed away. “But not today. I’m wearing my favorite dress.”
“You can’t get mad, Liv. You brought this on yourself,” he growled.
Olivia squealed and darted from him, but in her heels she didn’t get far. Two strong arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her flush against his chest. She squirmed and laughed—and absolutely loved the sound of his laughter rumbling behind her ear.
Then without warning, he spun her around and tossed her over his shoulder.
She screamed and kicked her legs. “Roman! What?—”
“Remember, you asked for this.” He chuckled low, and her heart leaped into her throat.
Olivia saw what he had planned the second they entered the barn. They’d been busy refilling the stalls with fresh straw. When they’d been younger at the ranch where his parents worked, they’d played in the straw like it was a pile of leaves.
Roman tossed her into a large pile that hadn’t been spread out. Then he darted toward her and tickled her until she squirmed and rolled away from him.
By the time they were both laughing and out of breath, she had straw sticking out of places where it had no right to be. They were both leaning against the wall, smiles on their faces. She dipped her head, resting her cheek against his shoulder, and he took her hand in his.
