Page 29 of More Than Nothing
While they finished their beers and started on another three, Roman gave them the rundown. Though his expression never changed, underneath he seethed, quietly and coldly. If Perry was the cause of Elenie’s bruises, he would find out.
Bone-weary from a night of broken sleep, he ate a late dinner when he got home. Not in the mood for silence, Roman flicked on the TV and slumped on the couch, stretching out across the cushions.
He watched a soccer game, commentary droning in the background, with one eye on his phone. The temptation to answer Elenie’s earlier message tugged at him, but he couldn’t think of a suitable reply. Professional boundaries were a minefield in his line of work. Although he could and would argue his right of free association with anyone who wasn’t a known felon or a drug user, Roman hadn’t ventured onto shaky ground before this. It took him aback to feel so conflicted now.
When his cell pinged with an incoming message, he knocked it straight off the arm of the couch; it skittered across the floor. He hit his elbow on the coffee table. “Crap, damn, and double fuck!”
Zena:
We need to talk.
Great. The phrase every man, everywhere, most wanted to hear.
Roman couldn’t think of a single reason for Zena to get in touch and had no interest in knowing. She’d made her feelings clear the last time they’d seen each other, and he was fine with that. Just six weeks into being home, his life in the city with Zena was already beginning to feel like it had happened to someone else.
No, we really don’t
It was remarkable how fast his ex-fiancée had faded from his mind—how wrong she seemed for him now. He hadn’t opened up to her when he was crumbling in Detroit, when every day was a pit of horror and he woke each morning soaked in sweat. They should have been able to talk about it, but he could never get the words out. And somehow she hadn’t noticed the difference in him, even when he saw the dread written clearly on his face in the mirror.
Zena had reacted to his secondment like he’d chosen to do this just to mess with her, when the choice hadn’t been Roman’s at all. Her lack of empathy and understanding was the death knell in their relationship. He’d been desperate for someone to catch him, but she’d stepped back and let him fall. His head too full of ghosts to spare room for her disdain, he’d felt nothing but a numbed relief when they parted ways.
Throwing his phone down onto the coffee table, Roman headed upstairs to grab a shower. He was on another early shift tomorrow, so turning in soon would be a good idea. Zena was out of his mind before he hit the top step.
A chance meeting with Otto the next morning gave him enough distance and an unexpected reason to send a simple text to Elenie.
How are you today?
There was no answer until mid-morning, when his cell pinged just as Roman was mulling over timesheets and staffing rosters. He opened her message and a slow smile lifted his lips.
Elenie:
Feeling a little better, thank you. I might still make the Unicycle Championship qualifiers next month. Fingers crossed.
Why use two wheels when you can use one?
He beat a tattoo on his thigh with his pen and waited. She must have been on a break because his phone pinged almost immediately.
Elenie:
My thoughts exactly.
Milo had a unicycle. Neither of us could stay on the damn thing. What’s your secret?
Elenie:
A good breakfast, the right shoes and a little magic.
Roman rested his forearms on his desk, enjoying her quirky humor.
We went with balance and determination.
Elenie:
Naive
With a chuckle, he decided to grab the moment he’d been leading up to, even as he remained torn over the wisdom of the suggestion he was about to make.
I saw Otto in town this morning. You up for pizza on his deck tomorrow night?
