Good Night, Roman

Good Night, Roman
Chapter 289: Good Night, Roman 
Savannah 

I hated silence. Not the peaceful kind that settles after laughter. Not the quiet that wraps around two people who understand each other without speaking. This silence was sharp-edged and heavy. It was so suffocating that it literally pressed against my ribs until breathing itself felt like dying.

It came the moment the words left my mouth—words I wasn’t sure I was strong enough to stand behind. 

Pick.

Even now, standing there in front of him, I could feel the tremor buried beneath my resolve. Leave Roman? Walk away from everything we had built together? Start over alone with a child and a shattered heart?

I didn’t know if I could do it.

I hadn’t planned to say it. The ultimatum hadn’t been waiting in the back of my mind, rehearsed and polished. It had erupted out of something raw and wounded inside me—something that had been tightening for days, maybe weeks, maybe longer. 

Hearing him speak about his past, about her, about responsibility and justice and unfinished vows…something in me had snapped. The fear had spoken before love could stop it.

I had always believed—with a certainty so deep it felt like instinct—that Roman would choose me without hesitation. That the man who held me like I was the only solid thing in his world would never risk losing me.

But seconds passed. Then more. 

He said nothing.

He didn’t move toward me. Didn’t argue. Didn’t reassure. Didn’t even deny what I had implied. He simply stood there, staring. And something cold began to creep into my chest. 

His gaze felt unfamiliar, like he was looking at a stranger wearing my face. There was confusion in his eyes, yes—but also something wounded. Something searching.

Is this who you are? The unspoken question hung between us.

The silence stretched until it became unbearable. I could feel panic rising, clawing up my throat. Every instinct screamed at me to take it back, to run to him, to bury my face against his chest and pretend none of this had happened.

But pride rooted me in place. Fear held me still.

River was the first to break. “Savannah…” Her voice trembled, barely more than a whisper. “You don’t really mean that, do you?”

I couldn’t answer. If I spoke, I would break. If I admitted doubt, everything would collapse. So I looked away instead, wiping a tear that betrayed me by slipping free.

Reese let out a harsh exhale, dragging a hand through his hair. “You two are unbelievable,” he muttered. “Of course she doesn’t mean it.”

And then Roman spoke. “Yes, she does.”

My heart stopped.

The certainty in his voice didn’t sound angry. It didn’t sound defensive. It sounded… tired. Certain. Like he recognized something in me I hadn’t wanted him to see.

“Roman, no—” River started.

He lifted a hand slightly. She fell silent immediately.

“Is this what it’s come to?” he asked quietly.

I could feel his eyes on me, heavy with meaning. I couldn’t look back. If I saw too much pain there, I would crumble.

He didn’t wait for an answer, he continued. “How did we get here?” he continued. “How did we fall to this level of… pettiness?”

The word struck like a slap.

“How did you come to threatening me with a child?” he went on, voice still low, still controlled. “How did things go so wrong between us, Savannah?”

Anger flared—bright and defensive, fueled by fear. “Yes,” I snapped. “This is exactly where you pushed me. You and your obsession with a dead girl.” A humorless laugh escaped me. “I can’t even believe we’re having this conversation.”

He shook his head slowly, disappointment etched into every line of his face. 

“No. Don’t do that,” he said, voice rising slightly. “Don’t twist this into something else. You can’t say what you just said and then pretend innocence. No. Don't pretend you don't know what you did.”

River stepped between us, hands raised slightly. “Please,” she pleaded. “If you keep going like this, you’re both going to say things you can’t take back.”

Roman never took his eyes off me. “It’s already been said,” he replied quietly. “She’s made her position very clear.”

Something in his voice made me look up.

His eyes were red. Not from anger. Not from fury. From hurt. From exhaustion.

“Tell me something, Savannah,” he said, voice tightening. “What exactly haven’t I done for you? What lengths have I not gone to prove myself? What other proof do you still need? In what category do I fall short? What have I failed to give you that you believe you must compete with a ghost?”

The question struck deeper than any accusation.

“What else is left for me to do?” he demanded, louder now. “Tell me!” 

I flinched.

“Tell me if what you need is for me to rip out my own heart and lay it at your feet,” he continued, pointing violently at the floor between us. “Tell me if that’s what it will take to convince you that I am only yours. That I have always been yours. That I will always be yours till the day I die.”

Reese groaned under his breath and turned away, pacing toward the window. “Oh my God,” he muttered, rubbing his temples. “I hate this.” 

Roman didn’t stop.

“All I have ever done,” he said, voice breaking through the anger, “is love you. Stand by you. Defend you. Fight for you. Be there for you. Choose you. Again and again and again. And somehow it’s never enough. Fuck, nothing I ever do is enough.” He let out a harsh breath. “You say you’re tired… but Savannah, I am exhausted.”

The words landed heavily.

Exhausted. Not angry. Not resentful. Worn down.

For a moment, doubt crept in. Was I pushing him away instead of protecting him? Was I fighting the wrong battle?

But the fear returned just as quickly. Fear of losing him. Fear of living forever in competition with someone who would never change, never falter, never age. 

Fear that no matter how much he loved me… part of him would always belong elsewhere. With her. 

I straightened, forcing steadiness into my voice. If we were both breaking, then we needed truth, no matter how much it hurt.

I walked toward him until only a breath separated us. “If we’re both exhausted,” I said quietly, “then this conversation is exactly what we need.”

My voice trembled only once.

“Pick. A. Side.” The words came out measured. “It isn’t complicated. You either choose Savannah…or you choose Dahlia. It really is that simple.”

He didn’t blink. Didn’t step back. Didn’t reach for me but I continued, because if I stopped, I would never finish.

“I’m giving you until the wedding day, Roman.” I said. “You choose—or I walk away. I will not live in the shadow of a dead woman.”

For a long moment, neither of us spoke. Then Roman asked softly, “So you would leave me, my love?”

The endearment almost broke me. It felt… final in a way that was intentional. 

My throat tightened. A tear slipped free despite my effort to stop it. I wiped it away quickly, forcing strength into words that felt like knives against my own heart.

“Yes,” I said. “I will walk away from you, Roman… and I will never look back.”

Time seemed to stop.

We stood there, locked in silence, neither of us willing to move first. The space between us felt wider than any distance I had ever known.

Then he nodded. 

“Good night, Savannah.” The finality in his voice felt colder than anger.

“Good night, Roman,” I replied.

He turned without another word. The door slammed behind him, the sound echoing through the room like something breaking beyond repair.

Only when he was gone did my strength collapse. My knees buckled. The sob tore out of me before I could stop it—raw, uncontrollable, devastating.

River reached me first, arms wrapping around me as I cried into her shoulder, grief and fear and love crashing together inside my chest.

And somewhere deep within the sound of my own breaking heart, one question remained unanswered.

Had I just saved him… Or lost him forever?