As amazing as it seemed, even to him, he was ready to make a commitment now—one that offered more than he’d envisioned after losing the coin toss. But before he approached Charlotte with the idea, he needed to convince her that he could and would make a good father and husband, that he wanted more than a long-distance marriage of convenience. Exactly how much more, how much he was willing to sacrifice in his career, his travel, he still had to think through. He had commitments, people relying on him, and a real enjoyment of his job he didn’t want to lose when this leave of absence was through.
But his goal now was personal. His mother’s grandchildren would be the by-product of that goal, but not the reason for Roman’s marriage. He felt light-headed and dizzy, much like the day of his first AP assignment.
“You could have told me you were going away with Charlotte,” his mother said, interrupting his thoughts.
“And have you questioning the poor woman? I figured I’d spare her.”
An amused gleam lit her gaze. “Well, I can still do that despite your intent to keep me in the dark. But I won’t. She has enough on her hands now.”
His inner alarm went off. If Alice had been crazy enough to crawl into his bed, who knows what else was going on in this town? “Why’s that? Another panty theft?”
His mother shook her head. “No, and Rick’s plenty annoyed that no one got you off the hook last night, that much I can tell you. Not that the police consider you a suspect, but with Alice and the ladies in town still in an uproar—”
“Mom, what’s wrong with Charlotte?” He interrupted her rambling.
“Sorry. I got carried away.” She flushed.
He didn’t like the sound of her voice or the frown on her lips. “What’s going on?”
She sighed. “Russell Bronson’s back in town.”
Roman muttered a curse.
“Behave yourself,” his mother said, but the sympathetic look on her face told him she understood just why he was upset.
The timing of Charlotte’s father’s return couldn’t be worse. Just because Roman had come to terms with himself, his past, and his future didn’t mean Charlotte had. He’d been struggling with himself from the moment he’d come back to town and lost the coin toss. Despite his attempts to stay away, Charlotte was the only woman he wanted in his life. The only woman he wanted to sleep with, the only one to have his children.
Originally he’d made that choice due to losing the coin toss. It’d been a selfish, unemotional decision because he’d still been running. Still thinking of himself more than Charlotte, no matter how much he’d attempted to convince himself otherwise. He’d had a need. She’d been the one he’d chosen to fill it. So simple. So stupid. She deserved so much more—a man who loved her, who’d be there for her, and who would give her the family life she’d been denied as a child. Roman wanted to be the man to provide her with all those things. But she’d never believe him, especially not now.
Raina rested her chin on one hand. “Do you have a plan?”
If he did, he wouldn’t share it with his mother. But as things stood now, his mind was as blank as his laptop screen on a bad day.
“Well, I suggest you come up with something,” she said in the wake of his silence.
He shot his mother an annoyed look. “That much I already figured out. But unless Russell’s not the scum of the earth the town thinks he is, I’m in trouble.”
“I don’t know what Russell is.” His mother shrugged. “He’s been gone too long. You’re the reporter, you ferret out the facts. Just remember, there are three sides to every story: his, hers, and the truth.”
Roman nodded. He just hoped the truth was enough to secure their future.
* * *
Charlotte floated into work Monday morning, light on her feet and happier than she’d been in ages. For as long as the euphoria lasted, she intended to enjoy it and not dissect all the reasons why she shouldn’t get too used to Roman or his attention. He’d asked her to keep an open mind and he made her feel too good to argue. He made her think anything was possible after all. Even them. She shocked herself with her new, enlightened attitude, but he’d given her no reason to doubt him.
“I smell coffee,” Beth said, coming out of the back room.
“You smell chai tea. Norman hasn’t progressed to iced lattes, but he has gotten this tea in and it’s delicious. Hot, cold, doesn’t matter. I went for hot today. Here, taste.” Charlotte handed Beth her own cup. “It’s very sweet,” she warned Beth in case she was expecting a more bitter taste.
Beth took an experimental sip. Her eyes opened wide. “It’s like a mix of honey and vanilla. Yum.”
“It’s originally from India. First time I had it was in New York last year.”
“I don’t even want to know calorie count.”
Charlotte shook her head. “Me neither, but this is pure indulgence and I refuse to do anything but enjoy.” A motto she seemed to have adopted since reuniting with Roman. “I’ll just eat a light salad for lunch.” Charlotte closed her eyes and inhaled the fragrant spiced tea before drinking some more. “Mmm.” She drew out the sound.
“What did you do this weekend?” Charlotte asked.
“Well with you and Roman out of town Saturday night, Rick and I hung out. We played darts with my most recent picture of the good doctor as the target—”
“Did he call?”
Beth’s eyes filled with tears. “I called him and when he rushed me off, I called back and ended things—and you’re interrupting.” She abruptly changed the subject.
Charlotte recognized the avoidance technique but couldn’t remain silent. “You ended it?” She rushed around her desk to hug her friend. “I know it couldn’t have been easy for you.”
“No choice.” Beth shook her head, obviously choked up.
Charlotte stepped back and sat on the corner of her desk, dangling her legs off the side. Now that she knew to look, she realized Beth no longer wore the sparkling diamond on her left hand. “And he just let you break up with him?”
“I think he was relieved.”
“That asshole.”
Beth laughed, but tears filled her eyes. “Well, I agree, but I’m the one with the bigger problem, you know? I let myself get involved. I never looked deep enough or admitted this was a tendency he had.” She shivered. “Let’s change the subject, okay?”
Charlotte nodded. She didn’t want to add to her friend’s pain.
Beth leaned forward, resting her elbows on the arms of the chair. “So let’s talk about you and how those flushed cheeks and sounds of pleasure have nothing to do with the chai tea.” Charlotte rolled her eyes, but Beth ignored her.
Leave it to Beth to turn the tables and put Charlotte in the hot seat. She held up both hands in front of her. “I take the Fifth.” Anything involving herself and Roman was too personal to discuss. Even with Beth.
“Aha!” She sat upright in her seat.
Charlotte narrowed her gaze. “What?”
“Taking the Fifth means you have something to protect. Something private.” Interest sparkled in the depth of Beth’s eyes as she leaned forward. “Come on, fill me in. You had more than a date, right? Please let me revel in your good news. I have so little of my own.”