Page 3 of Loving Roman (The Summer Twins #3)

–roman–

I can’t say I like this feeling moving through my body.

The deep loneliness is like an ache seeping into my bones.

I never realized how much of my time and energy is focused on the kids in my care until I stepped away from them.

I love the busyness of my life with them in it, but now I’m wondering if I should find a hobby or something that’s just for me.

A way to build connections away from the group home and the kids.

Pushing through the heavy ornate door into the Broadwater Inn, I spot Cristina, the hostess, and head in her direction. Her smile is instant as I get close, as if she loves her job. “Good morning, Roman. How was your run? I saved you some breakfast in the dining room.”

Now I feel like shit. “I’m sorry, I already ate at the café.” I thumb over my shoulder, gesturing in the general direction from where I came.

She waves off my apology. “That’s fine. Derek makes the best waffles and bacon around. On occasion, I’ve been known to sneak over there for breakfast myself,” she whispers, like she shouldn’t share such information, putting me at ease. “Is there anything I can help you with this morning?”

I rest my hands on my hips. “I was wondering if there were any activities you’d recommend?” I need to keep busy, or I’ll go crazy with too much time on my hands. I was hoping to spend some time with the stunning brunette on the beach, but I guess it wasn’t to be.

“Certainly. We have several I always recommend, and guests always tell me how much they enjoy them.” She pulls out a brochure and explains each activity in detail.

I point to the third one down the page. “Any chance I could get on this one?”

“I’ll check for you. Please give me a moment.” I nod and step away, admiring the watercolor paintings of local scenery and wildlife on the wall. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Cristina step next to me. “You’re in luck. They had one opening left,” she tells me with a smile.

I’d better hurry if I’m going to make it to the surf shop in time. “Thanks. I’ll just head upstairs to shower.”

“You’re welcome.”

When I walk into the crowded surf shop overlooking the quiet bay, there’s a group of college-age boys most likely enjoying the end of their vacation. Great. That’s all I need—a bunch of teenagers horsing around non-stop.

Standing off to the side is a familiar figure that I won’t soon forget, and my lips tip up before I remember how she brushed me off this morning.

Women are so confusing. She seemed interested, if the way her eyes roamed over my body was any indication.

I was thrilled when she agreed to share breakfast with me until she suddenly changed her mind, making my head spin.

I wasn’t sure if it was something I said, but her change of heart left me confused.

Maybe I should come back tomorrow to do this. Alice obviously didn’t want to spend time with me, and I don’t want to make her uncomfortable by being here.

I turn, ready to leave, when her sweet voice stops me in my tracks. “Roman?”

Spinning back around, a tight smile on my lips, I dip my head. “Alice.” I look back at the door. “I was just … uh … leaving.”

Her arched brows dip over her stunning cornflower eyes as she peers up at me. “You’re not here for the kayak tour?”

I shove my hands deep into the pockets of my shorts and shrug. “I thought I’d come back tomorrow.”

“You’re here now, why not stay?” she asks, confusion written all over her pretty face.

How do I tell her I got her message loud and clear this morning?

Her expression changes to one of understanding, and guilt washes over her delicate features. She brings her hand up and rests it on my forearm; her touch sending electric pulses up my arm. “I’m sorry about this morning.”

I try to play ignorant, schooling my expression and tilting my head to the side as if I don’t know what she’s talking about.

“I’m sorry about the way I suddenly changed my mind about breakfast this morning. I … uh … I wasn’t sure it was a good idea to share breakfast with a married man.”

I take a giant step back in surprise. Married? I laugh humorlessly. She couldn’t be more wrong. “What gave you the impression I’m married?” I jab my thumb into my chest to ensure she understands I’m asking about myself.

She tucks her hair behind her ear, drawing attention to the bold white shock of hair across the front, which is a stark contrast to the rest of the soft brown strands.

“Well … you said you weren’t used to eating alone.

So I assumed …” she shrugs as she leaves her sentence unfinished. “I’m sorry if I was mistaken. ”

“Well, I’m not,” I rush to reassure her, watching her shoulders drop and her face crumple with hurt.

“I mean, I’m not married. I would never invite a woman to breakfast if I were married.

I would never cross that line.” Her eyes widen, and so do her lips.

Should I admit I’ve never been married because I’ve always been married to my job?

Is that some kind of red flag these days?

Maybe I’ll leave that information unsaid.

“Oh.”

Loud claps break through the chatter and draw our attention to the front of the shop.

“Welcome to The Surf Shack . I’m Brenton; your guide today.

I’ve been doing guided kayak tours since 2015, so let’s get started.

” A young woman walks between everyone, handing out papers and pens.

“Please take a moment to read through our waiver and sign it. I’ll give you five and meet you outside. ”

He steps out, and we all spend a few moments reading through the document. I find a flat surface, complete my details and sign it, before handing it back to the young woman behind the counter with my payment.

We move outside, and Brenton explains the importance of water safety as he hands us each a life jacket. Alice struggles to adjust the straps, so I step closer. “You need some help?”

She smiles up at me with appreciation, and I swear my heart twists in my chest. “Please.” The nylon webbing is stiff from being in salt water, and it takes brute force to pull it through the fasteners, but I get it adjusted to fit her properly.

Brenton tells us to pair up, and it makes sense for Alice and me to share a kayak, seeing as we’re around the same age and everyone else is part of a group.

I hold our designated kayak steady while she climbs in, a little wobbly on her feet, and takes her seat at the front.

She reaches back shakily when I hand over her paddle, then balances it across the kayak.

A light breeze blows her hair around her face, and she smooths it behind her ear. Geez, she’s pretty .

She smiles nervously at me again, showing a dimple in her left cheek I hadn’t noticed before. I trace her soft features, pausing on the lines around her eyes and mouth that tell me she smiles often. “Thank you … again.”

I grin back. “You’re welcome.” Climbing in, I dip low to maintain balance and keep the kayak as steady as I can, trying not to frighten Alice.

Her hands shoot out with the paddle to grip the sides of the kayak when it rocks, a nervous chuckle escaping her lips. “Oh!”

“Sorry. I was trying to keep it as steady as I could.” I push my hair out of my eyes. I really should have gotten it cut before I left on vacation.

“That’s okay. I’m just not a great swimmer,” she chuckles humorlessly.

I snap my eyes to hers in confusion. “And yet, you’re taking a guided kayak tour?”

She shrugs. “I try not to let my fears rule my life.” She tucks her fingers inside her life jacket. “I figure these work pretty well, and I researched the tour … we don’t paddle too far from shore. I guess I felt the risk was minimal.”

Pride for this woman I don’t even know fills my chest. It’s a feeling I experience regularly for my kids, so it’s easy to identify. “Good for you. Too many people let their fears rule their lives.”

“Absolutely.”

We’re quiet for a few minutes, both of us working to synchronize our paddling so we can move through the calm water of the bay in a straight line.

Even though I’m only one hour from home, the landscape is very different here.

The rugged rocky outcrops jutting from the glistening water offer a stark contrast to the bright blue of the sky and the deep blue of the water, while the breeze off the ocean provides a cooling reprieve from the blistering sun .

This would be an even better experience if it were just Alice and me kayaking at sunset. As it is, the rest of the group are behaving exactly as I expected.

Alice’s hair blows in the breeze as she chuckles at the antics of the college kids. “Oh, to be that young again.”

I glance around and see that one of the boys has removed his jacket and is balancing on the edge of his kayak. The boy in front is trying to coax him to sit and follow the rules laid out by our guide.

“Hey, take a seat and put your life jacket back on!” Brenton calls, causing the kid to spin around and lose his balance.

He topples into the water as his friend shouts his name, then frantically looks around. “Fuck, he can’t swim!”

Damn it! I rip off my life jacket and drop into the water, careful not to rock the kayak too much and send Alice into the bay.

We don’t need two people who can’t swim floundering in the water.

With powerful strokes, I swim to where the kid fell in and, after taking a deep breath, dive under the water, thankful my job requires me to have my lifeguard certification among several other certifications.

I locate the kid and drag him to the surface by the back of his T-shirt. He’s not moving, which is concerning. When I breach the surface, Brenton is waiting in his kayak and helps me to position the teenager across the deck so we can get him to shore quickly and get him the help he needs.

“Are you okay, sir?” Brenton checks with me.

“Yeah. You’d better head into shore. I’ll follow.”

He nods sharply, and then surges through the water at speed. The other college kids follow him in, worried looks clouding their faces, and I swim to Alice and carefully climb into our kayak, so we can follow suit.

“Are you okay?” Alice asks, her eyes wide and breaths coming fast .

“Yeah, I’m okay.” I grab the paddle and drag it through the water swiftly to get us moving.

“Oh my gosh. Everything happened so fast. He was in the water, then you were in the water. I didn’t even realize what was going on at first until that boy was shouting that his friend couldn’t swim. He’s lucky you acted so quickly.”