Page 29 of Between Us

It was a few minutes past six, and Annika had left for the day, when Alessandra heard the front door open. She dried her hands on a towel and stepped out of the half-bathroom on the ground floor, meeting Roman’s gaze as he tossed his keys on the entry table in the foyer.

“Hey,” she said, surprised by his early arrival. Her heart thumped a little faster in his presence, an excitement she hadn’t expected buzzing underneath her skin.

“Annika leave?” he asked, glancing in the direction of the darkened kitchen.

“Yeah, you missed her by about fifteen minutes.”

He nodded, bending down to remove his shoes. “How did you like her?”

“She’s nice. Have you met her before?”

“No. She was a recommendation from someone I know.”

Alessandra watched him as she leaned against the banister. “She was asking about your food preferences. I didn’t know what to tell her.”

Roman straightened, reaching for the buttons of his shirt. “Meat of any kind works for me.”

She fought a smile because he reallywassuch a man. “Duly noted.”

Her eyes followed his fingers work on the buttons until his chest was exposed, revealing the black ink on his skin. The sight of him, so achingly male and virile made lust flare in her system. She moved her gaze up in an effort not to give herself away.

Roman’s lips curved with a knowing smile as he removed the shirt completely. “So, that movie you were talking about.”

“Yeah?”

“Did you pick it out?”

“Uh…” Her eyes flicked to his chest then up again. “It’s on Netflix.”

“Good.” He passed her as he took the stairs to the bedroom. “I’m going to take a shower. You want to order something to eat?”

“Annika left a casserole for us.”

“Order something,” he said, his voice brooking no argument. “You can have the casserole for lunch tomorrow.”

Alessandra watched him disappear down the hall and thought about what she wanted for dinner, feeling strangely pleased that he was keeping his promise of spending time together. Without much inner debate, she decided for pizza, as she had initially intended. She pulled out her phone, searched for her favorite Italian restaurant and placed a quick order for one mushroom pizza and one meatlover.

She was in the living room, the movie paused on the opening credits when Roman came back downstairs. He had changed into a pair of gray sweats and a T-shirt, his feet bare, and Alessandra tried not to stare.

“You ordered?” he asked, joining her on the couch, legs spread wide as he grabbed the remote.

“Yep.” She stood before he could hit play on the movie. “Wait a sec. Do you want something to drink?”

“What do we have?”

“Annika bought some OJ, and there was already a six pack of beer in the fridge when we moved in.”

“Beer, then.”

She smiled, walking out of the room to grab his beer and a glass of orange juice for herself. When she returned, she handed Roman his drink and hesitated on where to sit. She decided for the couch instead of an armchair, though she scooted up to the opposite end as she tucked her legs under her.

Roman stared at her profile for a moment, and she wondered if he was going to ask her to move closer. But when he played the movie and took a swig of his beer instead, disappointment washed over her.

He hadn’t even kissed her yet. She hadn’t seen him in almost twenty-four hours, but he seemed in no rush to initiate physical contact. With a quiet sigh, she propped her elbow on the arm of the couch, resting her chin on her closed fist as she turned her gaze to the TV screen.

???

Their food was delivered thirty minutes into the movie. As they sat down to eat, Roman looked at the open box in front of him, a hint of amusement coloring his face.

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