Page 41 of Roman & Olivia
Sort of.
The whole time, she couldn’t stop thinking about Roman. What had felt odd about her train of thinking was that she didn’t want to tell him about how their plan was progressing. She didn’t want to tell him about how Mason had winked at her when his father had called him into his office to interrupt their conversation.
Nope.
She was thinking about their little game the other day when he pulled her into the water. It had felt so good to spend time with him like that. She’d been thrilled that they could still enjoy each other’s company in a lighthearted way like they always had.
Then her thoughts turned traitorous.
The second Mason was gone, she allowed herself to consider what it might be like if her fake relationship with Roman was actually real. And that line of thinking didn’t end. Not when she’d exited the building. Not on the way home. Not when she’d pulled into the parking lot. And not now, as she wondered what Roman would do if she stopped in to say hi.
Olivia slowed her pacing, and her eyes snagged on her car keys. She didn’t have any plans this evening. It was getting late enough that Roman wouldn’t be working. They could hang out like old times.
Except in her heart, she knew that wasn’t true. This wasn’t like old times anymore. There were feelings now.
She had developed feelings for her best friend, and she couldn’t even talk to him about it. What if he laughed at her? What if he teased her and told her that not even she could resist his charm?
Roman wasn’t against rubbing it in when he’d bested her.
So, no.
She couldn’t talk to him about the fact that her heart felt like it was being torn into two pieces. One side of her was in love with the idea of being with Mason—her crush from the moment they’d met.
The other side of her was in love with the idea of falling for her best friend and having him in her life forever.
Olivia groaned as she marched to the keys and yanked them from the table. Who was she kidding? She could pace and fret all afternoon about dropping by to see Roman, but in the end, she knew that was where she’d be. And Roman wouldn’t know the difference. He’d think she was coming to hang out like she always did.
The whole drive to Roman’s house, she tried to come up with something that sounded normal. The strange thing was—she couldn’t recall how she used to act around him. It was likethe second the floodgates opened and these feelings presented themselves, she was as unsure of herself as she’d been with Mason.
When she pulled up to the house, she closed her eyes to center herself. She could do this. Roman had taught her how to act aloof when she was around someone she might have feelings for. All she had to do was act normal. This was Roman, after all. And she could be regular old Liv around him.
A tapping at her window had her yelping as her eyes flew wide, and she turned to find a smirking Roman on the other side of the glass. Her heart hammered, and it wasn’t just from the way he’d startled her.
Those eyes. That smile. The cute dimple that only occasionally appeared on the left side of his chin when he was really amused. All of it had her heart walloping so hard that she wouldn’t have been surprised if he could hear the vibrations on the other side of her car door.
He tugged on the door, but it didn’t budge until she unlocked it. When she did, he pulled it open and rested his arm across the top as he stared down at her with amusement—though there was some concern in the depths of his eyes. “You okay?”
“Aside from the fact that you nearly gave me a heart attack?” she squeaked. “Yeah. I’m fine.”
He cocked his head slightly. “Okay… to what do I owe this pleasure?”
Her pulse stuttered. Did he usually ask her why she showed up unannounced? She couldn’t remember. Was she acting funny? Had he noticed? No, of course not. Roman was just curious why she was here. Olivia rolled her eyes and reached to start her car. “Fine, if you don’t want my company, I guess I should?—”
Roman lunged forward with a laugh and yanked the keys from her grasp. “I never said I didn’t want you here.” Fora moment he scrutinized her, all amusement fading from his features. But just as quickly as the look had disappeared, it returned, and he grinned. “Usually, I get a text that you’re coming.”
Shoot! He was right. She usually sent him a text to ask if he was available or to say that she was coming and he’d better be ready for a hang out session. The only other time she’d come over without notification had been the day she asked him to pretend to be her boyfriend for a night.
And now, look at the mess she was in.
Olivia let out a little laugh, then shrugged. Her voice was strained, and she prayed he didn’t notice. “I was bored. I figured since you don’t have much of a social life, you’d be willing to entertain me.”
The humor in his gaze returned, and he twirled the keyring around his finger. “What did you have in mind?”
She shrugged again, still staring up at him. Man, he was attractive—mouthwateringly so. He had to be one of the best-looking guys this side of Colorado. While Mason looked good in a suit and had a certain amount of grace about him, Roman was rugged in the best ways. He was the kind of guy she could see throwing his girl over his shoulder to take her off to parts…
No.
Bad Olivia.
