Page 4 of Rebound
I feel more of a connection to him than I do my ex right now. It’s that sense of connection which makes me speak up. Ormaybe when I look at Roman, all I see is my childhood friend who I used to play hockey with me.
“What if it’s me?” I voice the thought which has been circling my brain since I received Josh’s message. “Do you think there’s something awful that I don’t know about myself?”
Roman watches me quietly and the longer he stays quiet, the more I think I’m right. How can’t I be? Roman also ignored me and I thought we were friends. Maybe my family doesn’t see my flaws anymore, and that’s a hard pill to swallow.
THREE
ROMAN
I stare at the most perfect woman I’ve ever met and all I can think is, how is she this stupid. Seeing her in that wedding dress knocked the breath out of me. I’ve never been so surprised in my life. God, she’s beautiful. A hockey playing, Disney princess brought to life.
I don’t even know why I showed up today when I wasn’t invited. Maybe to talk to her? To tell her…I haven’t been able to stop thinking about her since Josh brought her around two years ago. Is it a shitty thing to confess your…feelings? thoughts?...to someone hours before their wedding? Probably. But if there’s something I’m known for, it’s for breaking the rules and testing the boundaries.
I never expected her to demand that I take her away from there. For a second, I thought I was dreaming. Because yes, I’m the idiot who dreams Lavinia Callahan wants to run away with me when in real life, she probably wants to run away from me.
“You’re quiet,” she says now. “That means I’m right.”
Her voice has this husky, phone sex quality that goes straight to my cock. Shit. She definitely doesn’t need me lusting after her right now. Maybe in a couple of months when she’s realized that Josh is truly an asshole.
How the hell did she not see it before? “You’re an idiot, that's what you are.”
Vin gasps, her perfect mouth opening in shock. “Damn Roman, tell me how you really feel.”
“Oh, I’m fucking about to. You agreed to marry a fucker like Josh and now you’re surprised he’s a fucker? You’re Lavinia Callahan. There are a million Josh’s out there. There’s only one Lavinia Callahan. Does Josh have any Olympic medals? Is Josh a role model for every little girl who dreams of playing professional sports? Fuck, no.” Vin’s eyes widen at my tirade but I’m too far into it to stop.
“The only thing special about Josh is that he can handle a stick. He’s got the personality of a wet blanket. How he got you to date him and then agree to marry him is beyond comprehension. The dude must have made a deal with the devil or something. Let’s hope the devil comes to collect his due soon.”
Lavinia blinks at me, her mouth opening slightly, though no sound comes out. Any other person in my situation will be embarrassed by her non-reaction because they’re normal. Embarrassment is not an emotion I recognize.
“Roman, don’t take this the wrong way, but you should really be more loyal to Josh. He’s your team captain,” Vin finally says.
I roll my eyes so hard I see the back of my head. This woman. “Josh hasn’t done anything to earn my loyalty and I’m morally against being loyal to absolute degenerates for arbitrary reasons.”
Vin’s nose twitches and I think she’s fighting off a smile. The gesture is familiar and reminds me of our childhood. Because our fathers played on the same team, Vin and I spent a lot of time together, with her twin brother Andrew hanging over us like a shadow. He’s probably tearing up the resort looking for Vin. That’s a funny image.
“Josh is not a degenerate.”
“He’s a degenerate, and you agreed to marry him.”
Vin breathes out, placing a hand over her chest. “Roman, be a little gentle.”
I pick up a piece of her copper hair and rub it between my thumb and forefinger. It’s softer than I expect. I lift my eyes to hers and find her staring at me. There have been very few moments that I can remember looking directly into Lavinia’s eyes.
“Are you telling me you can’t handle it rough, Callahan?”
Her mouth tilts up into a devastating smile. “I’ve had rougher.”
I place a hand over my heart in mock hurt. “Take care of a man’s ego, Blossom. He doesn’t want to hear he doesn’t give it to you rough like you need.”
She scoffs, her eyes sparking with fire. “As a woman, the last thing I want to be responsible for is a man’s ego. If it’s so fragile, maybe you should go play with other little boys.”
I feel my mouth turning up into a smile which feels as unfamiliar as any kind of happiness does. I’ve had reporters question why I’m not happy after a win and the honest answer to that has always been that I don’t know what happiness looks like.
Except when I’m around Lavinia. Because if there’s one thing I know about her, it’s that she’s going to give it as good as she gets it.
She’s an athlete; competitiveness is woven into her DNA.
“There she is,” I say softly. “The Vin I know is not someone who doubts herself because a man fucks up.”
