Page 70 of Roman and the Hopeless Romantic
“Well, I’ve always thought this house was too big for the three of us.”
“What?”
Both Hadley and Laura snapped their eyes to his.
Jack didn’t seem to notice. He swiped his finger in the leftover pie and licked it off as he thought. “Hadley likes you, Roman, and she’s the best judge of character I know. You’ll move into one of the guest rooms. But I have a condition.”
Roman’s heart pounded in his chest. Was he really inviting him to live there? Did people like Jack Gibson really exist? “What’s your condition,” he rasped.
“You have to come clean with this Cassie. Whether it works out or not, she deserves to know how you feel.”
Could he really move out of the Carrigan house? Leave Jesse and Will and Eli? It was the only house that had ever felt like home to him. The day they’d offered to let him stay instead of moving to a foreign country was the lifeline he’d desperately needed.
Maybe this was another.
“Can I think about it?”
Jack patted him on the shoulder. “Of course, son. I’m going to give you some more advice though, and you have to listen because I’m old.”
Hadley laughed. “But I never listen to your advice.”
“That’s because you’re a disobedient ingrate.” His eyes twinkled with affection. “Roman, you’re young and a lot of people will tell you that means what you feel doesn’t matter. But in my experience, love always matters. Whether it lasts forever or only a short time, it’s real. It’s also impatient and doesn’t wait forever. So, take your time to consider your options, but just make sure you don’t wake up one day and realize you waited too long.”
“Thanks, Jack.” He looked at each of them in turn. “I’m not used to having people in my corner, and you don’t even know me.” First the Carrigans, and now the Gibsons. Was it only his parents who didn’t think he was worth their trouble?
Hadley hopped off the counter and looped her arm through his. “I’m going to get Roman out of here before you scare him away, Papa.” She pulled him toward the front hall, out of sight of her mom and grandpa. “Paps met my gram when he was fifteen. They were married for forty years before she died. So, you could say he’s an advocate for the young love thing. I, on the other hand, think you’re dumb.” She punched him.
He jumped away from her. “Ow! Why?”
“Oh, it’s not because of the Cassie thing. Just a general Roman is dumb thing.” She flashed her teeth as she opened the front door. “Only in part, because you should have already had the talk with Cass.” Her expression grew serious. “It’s never a bad idea to tell someone how you feel, Roman.”
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Sure.”
“Your grandfather invited me to come live here without a second thought. Will he wake up tomorrow regretting that?”
“Papa never does anything without thinking it through, Rome. And for the record, it would be cool to have you here. I’ve never had any siblings, so it’s always just been me and them. Do you know how often I watchWheel of Fortune?”
He shook his head.
“Every. Freaking. Night.” She paused. “But if you tell anyone that, I’ll super glue your lips shut in your sleep.” She waggled her fingers at him. “See you later, housemate.”
The door shut in his face, and he stood on the stoop just staring at it. How were they so sure he’d accept their offer?
Maybe they were right. He had no other choice.
Cassie said she didn’t have feelings for him, but everything hinged on that being a lie.
* * *
Planningto get the girl of his dreams took time. First, he needed to be out of the house, and he couldn’t do that alone.
That was what scared him. Telling Jesse.
He waited a couple days after going to Hadley’s to broach the topic. A couple days of Cassie avoiding him and Roman throwing himself into hockey practice, needing something to erase the doubt in his mind.
Loving someone was new to him, a foreign terrain, and he was stuck with no map.
