Page 3 of Falling for You
She turns on her heel and with more flare than before she storms out of my brewery once more.
This time she doesn’t come back. Even though I wait like a fool.
It’s been three months since I’ve been home to Balsam Cliffs. I left the day after the Valentine’s Day dance and I’ve used excuse after excuse to stay on campus instead of going home since.
I can’t face Roman. Not after he rejected me that night. My brothers didn’t help by trying to pummel any guy who dared to look in my direction. I’m still fucking pissed at them. If they weren’t so damn protective, Rome might have felt like he could tell them.
I’m embarrassed too. Embarrassed that I dressed how I did to get Roman’s attention, embarrassed that I let all those men touch me and dance with me to make him jealous, embarrassed that I threw myself at him and he rejected me. And pissed he won’t just man up and tell Hunter we’re together.
But mostly, I’m so fucking hurt. I had to go through all of this alone. Never telling a soul what happened after I left the dancethat night. Never telling anyone what happened weeks later. I suffered alone. Because I couldn’t tell anyone that I fell into bed with the man I’ve had a crush on since I was still in braces, and thought blue glitter eyeshadow was cool. Or that it exploded in royal fashion in my face.
I never acted on my crush until he showed interest last year at a bonfire we had on our family’s private beach at the inn that I help my brother, Liam, run.
That was the first night I slept with Roman Thomas. And the night my whole life changed. I knew then and there that I would fall hard and fast, and I’ve just been biding my time until he realizes all of this and falls too.
What we shared couldn’t have been one sided. There’s no way he doesn’t feel what I feel. It’s electric, a magnetic pull.
Today though, my safe haven of being at college is closing in on me. It’s graduation day. My whole family, including Roman, is coming to see me graduate with my Master of Business Administration.
I have to face them all and then move home to Balsam Cliffs. Live with the pain of seeing Roman everyday, and not one of them knowing my secret.
My name is called from the speaker on the stage, and I follow my spot in line. Climbing the small set of steps with the thick polyester gown sticking to my legs, crossing the stage, shaking sweaty hands, getting my diploma, and smiling for all the photos before sneaking out of my row and finding my family. Why are these things so long? And it’s so hot under this damn polyester cape.
I finally give up on looking for my group in the sea of faces and text Mom.
Me:Going to Starbucks on campus. I escaped. Meet me there.
Mom:You got it. Be there in a minute. Want me to bring everyone or just me?
Me:Just you, please.
Mom knows part of why I haven’t been home. She knows that I’m tired of my big brothers thinking they get to run my life. And that I need a break from them. I’ve only really spoken to Liam and that’s because I have to so I can do the books for the inn. If it weren’t for the inn, I wouldn’t be talking to him either. So I appreciate Mom not bombarding me with the whole family and giving me a minute with her alone.
But she definitely doesn’t know about Roman, and I don’t know if I’m ready to see him at all. A small part of me hopes he didn’t come today, but the other part of me will be hurt if he doesn’t show up.
I take a seat facing the door so I can see when she gets here. Thankfully it’s pretty dead since everyone is still at the graduation ceremony.
My thoughts of Roman run wild as I wait. The hissing of the machines is the only thing that interrupts my thoughts and brings me back to the present.
Mom swings the door open, her silver locks blowing behind her with the gust of wind swirling as she opens the door. I stand up quickly as she runs to me for a hug.
“Hey, Mom.” I squeeze her back. I’ve missed her so much these last few months.
“Your brothers aren’t happy,” she says, chuckling. I roll my eyes, not caring if they’re happy or not.
“They can handle waiting five minutes for me since they want to control everything else,” I scoff.
“You know they just want what’s best for you, honey.” She tries to soothe me but I don’t fall for it. Mainly because I’m not going to tell her that they want to keep everyone away from me, scaring Roman into hiding our relationship, then ending it before it could even start.
She levels a stare at me, making me squirm. “Fiinnnneee. Let’s go. They can meet us at my dorm. I’m not going back to meet them.”
“Emma,” the barista yells out to the empty coffee shop. I grab our drinks and hand one to her.
I need a few minutes to prepare for seeing Roman, so I walk slowly next to Mom.
“He didn’t come,” she says once we step back out into the sunshine.
“Who?”
