Page 58 of Born Free

“How long are we going to let this stretch out for?” Mason asks as he piles food onto a plate. “Because I know there’s a process to this so we don’t get caught, but I can’t stay dead for long. Elena and I need to get back to work.”

“Sebastian is supposed to be investigating,” Roman says as he leans back against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. “I don’t think we dare move forward until tomorrow. And I don’t know if Orlando will leave immediately after he thinks Juliet is dead, but I’ll do my best to get him on a plane.”

“This guy is a serious pain in the ass,” Elena says, annoyed, as she shakes her head. “I feel like he keeps teasing every other day that he’s going to leave, but then he never does.”

“For real, though,” I say.

“And you still don’t remember him?” Mason asks. “Or anything else from before your Resurrection?”

Roman shakes his head. “No, and I’m glad for it. Have either of you heard of any troubles from the House toward the gifted?”

They both shake their heads. “Everyone is laying low. I don’t know how they have this much patience. After everything that has happened in the last year, I’m surprised anyone is still here at all,” Elena remarks.

An ache forms in my chest. Sigrid is one of the people I trust most on this planet. She was kind to me. And when she knew my secrets, she never made me feel bad about them or tried to pit them against me. I haven’t visited my distant aunt in too long. I miss her witchy-feeling house and her warm smile.

“Let’s try to keep it that way,” Roman says. He steps forward, wrapping his arms around my waist as I get my food. “When you’re finished, I have a surprise for you.” He whispers the words into the shell of my ear, his tone low, seductive.

My entire body turns electric. I look over my shoulder with an arched brow.

I pick up the pace. Who needs to chew their food anyway?

Ten minutes later, Roman and I are seated in his SUV, and he pulls out onto the main road. “What’s with the secrecy? I thought we didn’t do secrets between us.”

Roman reaches across the console and takes my hand. Confidently he raises it to press a kiss there. “Surprises and secrets are far from the same thing. It’s been all work and no time for the two of us. I can’t take another day of it.”

My face flushes, and my chest breaks out into a swarm of butterflies.

Roman’s words… they will never cease to consume me in the very best way possible.

“I think I like surprises,” I say, a fact that has never been true before this moment.

Roman takes us across downtown and pulls up to the Nocturne. He parks and walks around the vehicle to open my door for me. And it means everything in the world when he intertwines his fingers with mine without hesitation. He stands tall, confident. He’s so grounded in us that it kind of takes my breath away.

He leads me up the stairs and unlocks the door. It’s silent when we step inside. I wonder where Jon has been hiding these last few days.

“Your father has made some incredible progress,” Roman says as he leads me up the stairs. “Who knew a pirate could transition so smoothly into general contractor?”

I laugh, but it fades off when we step out onto the top floor.

The space has been demolished but in the cleanest way possible. Everything that’s needed structurally is still in place, but everything extra? Gone. It’s a blank canvas ready for the vision of my father.

I was seriously here only three days ago.

“Jon has been working almost non-stop since the idea of fixing this place up came to the table,” Roman says as we circle about. There’s a table in the middle of the space and I see the plans lying on it. But I kind of don’t want to spoil the surprise. “I think he’s trying to keep himself occupied so he doesn’t go into war mode with my brother.”

I nod with a chuckle. “He’s fought a few Royals in the past. But this is amazing.”

“Come on,” Roman says, leading me back down the stairs. My excitement builds as I walk down the floors, imagining what it could be like. A home for us all. A central place where we’re all one big family. Where we laugh and cry and come together.

We step out on the third floor.

My face flushes when I remember what Roman said.

“I haven’t had a chance to make many plans yet,” Roman says as we step forward. “But I wanted to find out what you’d like first.”

A home. Roman said he was going to turn this into our home. Together. The two of us.

He asked for this floor, for us. I don’t know who would ever tell him no, because we’re both council members, and this building belongs to the council.

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