Page 178 of Rebound
I let the pathetic tears overcome me. There’s a lot of emotions inside me right now and the only way to get them out is to cry. Who would’ve guessed that when I got left at the altar, I was going to find the love of my life?
Roman pulls me in against him, wrapping his arms around me as he places gentle kisses all over my face. In soft words, he keeps telling me that he loves me.
I absorb his words into my skin, into my psyche, letting them become a part of my soul.
He falls back, pulling me with him, and I giggle into his mouth. We are lying on the floor, laughing and crying, and if this isn’t the best description of love, I don’t know what is. The world is quiet around us, hushed in a way that feels like we’re the only two people left.
Roman turns us onto our side, a lightness in his eyes that I’ve rarely seen before. “Now you know how desperately in love with you I’ve been. How much I’ve wanted you and obsessed about you.”
I keep my arms wrapped around him tightly, gently stroking my fingers through his hair. “If it makes you feel any better, I think I’m a little obsessed, too.”
We stay like that, wrapped in each other’s arms, until our children demand to be fed. And I swear when we get up, it’s like the world has changed. Because there’s no way we had something so monumental happen to us and the world remained the same.
FIFTY-THREE
LAVINIA
Life has a funny way of making you its bitch. Some days you’re going up, some days you’re going down. Roman and I are blissfully happy. People don’t know what being blissfully happy feels like. It feels like fear.
I’m kidding. Mostly. I mean, everyone who’s ever been really happy in their life knows that that feeling isn’t going to stick around. Roman doesn’t believe me because he’s suddenly an optimist.
I’ve not been able to stop grinning over the last week. I’ll be doing something completely mundane, like brushing my teeth, drinking coffee, and I’ll start smiling like a clown. I swear people can tell I’m in love, like there’s a vibe I’m giving off. I was grocery shopping yesterday and everyone was smiling at me, and not because I was wearing something idiotic.
I’m putting bright happy feelings into the universe, and the universe is giving them back.
I feel a kick against my leg under the table, and I startle, looking up at Jules in question. She’s leaning back in her chair away from the range of the camera and mouthing at me to focus. We’re live streaming our current episode, something we’ve never done before.
Jules shifts in her chair and groans quietly. “You know you’re getting old when you’ve been sitting for too long, you move and your body creaks.”
“No.” I blink at her.
She scoffs, rolling her eyes. “Everyone who isn’t an athlete understands me.”
“It’s not about being an athlete. Exercise is so important for your body and your mental health.” It’s an argument we’ve had before both on the podcast and off it. “I’m trying to make sure that in fifty years my best friend is still by my side.”
Jules leans towards her mic, a glint in her eyes. “Since you’ll be writing my eulogy, what will you say?”
“Probably something about you not wanting to exercise, followed closely by your love of books and your hatred for athletes.”
“I don’t hate all athletes,” Jules corrects. “I don’t hate women athletes. I only hate the male ones. Except when they’re cute, and then I like to admire them from afar.”
We laugh quietly as her phone dings. We usually keep our phone on do not disturb while we’re recording because we don’t want any outside noises. Jules must’ve forgotten to put hers on DND today.
Our feed is flooded with comments that I can’t read because they’re going by so fast. My eyes are scanning the computer screen, and I happen to catch glimpses ofJoshandpodcastas my phone starts to ring.
My phone is definitely on do not disturb, so when it starts ringing, it means I’m getting a call from one of my emergency bypasses. My heart drops to the pit of my stomach because the only thing I can imagine is something’s happened to Roman.
“And that’s a wrap for today,” I say in a rush. “Thank you so much for listening to Unscripted.”
I slammed the laptop screen down, not bothering to finish off like we usually do. I turn over my phone and see the call’s coming from Roman. I breathe a sigh of relief and answer.
“Hello?”
“Vin, oh my god,” Jules says, her voice panicked. She has her phone in her hand, and her thumb is swiping up, up, up as she reads whatever is on her screen with a look of absolute horror on her face.
“Baby, where are you?” Roman asks, his voice deceptively calm.
That relief I felt a moment ago pops like a balloon. “I’m at my apartment. Jules and I just finished recording.”
