Chapter 64

Selene’s POV.

“Hello Nathaniel,” I smiled at him then thanked them both for the flowers Roman handed me.

“Hey sweetheart,” He leaned over to kiss my cheek. “I’ve bought the chocolate Anya asked for, it’s in the bag there somewhere. I’ve also added some treats and gifts for you and Roman. I made sure to label everything and no, you can not give them back to me or anything,” Nate explained as he looked at the bag and then looked at me. His blue eyes softened as they moved to Roman.

Roman hadn’t wasted any time. He dug in right away with excitement because he loved presents, of course. After twenty to thirty minutes Roman was done showing Nathaniel his puzzle and asking him tons of questions about where we went, all of which Nathaniel calmly answered even the annoying and repeated questions. No joke, Roman sure was building up one's patience. Everything went according to plan, the family breakfast– which turned out to be a lot messier than anticipated, the movie, nap, and getting ready for the park.

Deciding to go to the park after Roman’s nap was a risky decision but it was paying off. He wasn’t grumpy or anything so it all went according to plan. I think since Nathe was here Roman didn’t want to act out at all, he was on his best behavior and was sweet and kind all around.

We were all there together at the park and Roman ditched us to go play ball with some kids. It was always nice to see him play with others, he’s mostly surrounded by adults and I feel like he doesn’t have enough friends his age, or even have any. Even at school, he doesn’t specifically have friends, just a few kids he greets and sometimes plays with and that’s all.

“It’s so nice to see him play with others,” Nathaniel leaned back in his seat and crossed one leg over the other as he looked at Roman. My eyes followed his with excitement too.

“Right, I feel like he doesn’t have any friends and he’s such a sweet boy but he gets a little shy around others,” I admitted and pouted.

“We could befriend a parent and then be invited to playdates,” Nathaniel suggested. “It’s what my mom did,” He laughed which made me laugh too and shake my head.

We continued to chat until at some point we saw this known handsome man walking over to us. He was wearing some jeans and a T-shirt, all of which clung to his body perfectly. He had a beard that was neatly taken care of and for the first time, I saw this man wearing jewelry. He looked as if he had a mild wardrobe change but then again he could just be in character.

“Selene, is that you?” He asked, then smiled.

“Oh my god, James? Long time,” I jumped up and hugged him tightly.

I hadn’t seen James in weeks to be quite honest. I had let him know I wasn’t interested in him romantically. He told me that was fine, that I was a great friend to him but right at that time, he accepted a role abroad. I didn’t jump to conclusions and I was happy I didn’t.

Seeing him here meant he wasn’t ignoring me because he could’ve gone by without greeting me.

“I know right, where’s your little one? Romie?” He asked and looked around the park, searching for Roman but he couldn’t find him. Roman then ran over to us then he saw James and launched himself at the man, hugging him tightly. “Hello Mr. James,” Roman grinned as he looked into the man’s eyes.

Roman only met James twice but he liked him– probably because he brought him a rocky road.

“Hey, buddy, damn you’ve gotten so big,” James teased.

“Thank you! I like this,” Roman played with his beard and grinned. He did that with Kai too so it was typical Roman. He was put down on the ground and Roman picked up his red ball, “Come play ball,” He asked and gave his sweetest look to James. James just couldn’t say no. He gave me a quick hug then went off to go play with Roman.

“Where were we again?” I looked over at Nathaniel. He stared at his phone and didn’t answer me. I was about to open my mouth when Nathaniel decided to make a call, right there beside me. I sighed and let it go, perhaps it was business.

After Roman was tired out from playing we changed his muddy clothes for clean ones and got back in the car.

“We have a surprise for you,” I turned around and looked at Roman. Nathaniel had been moody since his phone call so I hoped spending the night as a family at his palace would cheer him up.

“Actually, I’m too tired and I think it’s best if I drop you two off at your house,” Nathaniel cut in before I could talk further. I frowned and looked at the man. He had been wanting this for so long already and now he cancels it?

“Oh…” I mumbled and stared at Roman who waited for me to tell him about this surprise I was talking about.

“I’ll buy some dinner on the way though, so what would you two like?” Nathaniel offered and started the car, closing the windows and turning on the AC.

“I don’t care,” I mumbled and turned back into my seat, staring out the window.

“Chicken nuggies!” Roman clapped his hands and grinned at me.

“Chicken nuggets it is,” Nathaniel confirmed and typed in the location of the nearest fast-food place.

Nathaniel dropped us home after buying us dinner. He gave Roman a hug, got him ready for bed then kissed his cheeks and was out the door. He didn’t even bother properly saying goodbye to me so I knew something was up with him.

I just wondered what the phone call was about, that clearly bothered him. Was his family ok? Did something happen to his business? I pushed everything aside and decided to give this man some space, when he was ready he’d come and tell me what was going on.

In the meantime, I needed to look after this little rascal that was full of too much energy. Even all that playing in the park hadn’t tired him out. We’re officially laying off the chocolate milk, it gave him too much energy. In all honesty, even I was feeling a little down with all our plans canceled. I missed him so much I truly was looking forward to spending the night with him.

It had been three days since Nathaniel had acted weirdly at the park. Nathaniel had been acting quite distant towards me, I couldn’t quite figure out why. I thought back to what I could’ve said or done to make him act this way but nothing came up. I didn’t deserve to be pushed away like this, however, I was happy he managed to stay the same exact guy for Roman.

He hadn’t pushed off his duty as a father. I suspect perhaps this relationship was rushed or perhaps he is no longer interested in me. If that’s the case we should address it as soon as possible and just focus on co-parenting. I know now that I did not want Roman to grow up without his father. He deserved his father in his life.

Roman had been super happy with all the attention Nathaniel was giving him, all the puzzles and play kit they used together. I was happy to see my boy happy, truly. I just didn’t understand why Nathaniel became so short with me.

Maybe he was having second thoughts about me, about us. Perhaps this might not be the life he wants after all. I’ll mention it later.

“Is Daddy still coming?” Roman asked, holding onto the skirt of my dress to get my attention.

“Of course he is, why?” I looked down at him and put down the tomatoes I must’ve been washing for minutes. I got a little distracted there but luckily Roman pulled me out of my deep thoughts.

“He isn’t here yet,” He pouted and puckered out his bottom lip. Those baby blues still focused on me.

“That’s because it’s still too early,” I laughed and looked over at the black digital clock on the counter. The digital clock made cooking a little easier for me. Cooking was never easy for me but when I found out I was pregnant I began to learn how to properly cook so when my child is growing he wouldn’t have to constantly eat fast food and such and could enjoy a warm home-cooked meal made by his mother.

This made me miss my father’s steak and mashed potatoes and not to forget the broccoli he’d make. The way he made it was the only way I’d eat it, the crispy broccoli just held a close place in my heart, and seeing Roman love it as much as me just warmed my heart.

“How much time?” Roman stared at the clock as if he could read the time. He could read numbers but couldn’t tell the time yet.

“Hm, twenty to thirty minutes,” I pursed my lips as I stared at the time.

“What?!” He groaned dramatically, throwing his hands up in the air. Waiting five minutes alone was a lot for Roman so I can imagine the thoughts running through his head when he heard a whole twenty to thirty minutes. Poor baby.

“Yeah, you’re done early, let’s go play with some bubbles outside,” I reminded him. Usually, He’d take much longer to play and get dressed but today he must’ve not wanted to play.

“Okay,” Roman grinned. I quickly chopped the tomatoes for the salad I planned on making then dinner would be finished, the chicken was in the oven and should be done in thirty minutes or so.

“Did you finish the new puzzle Daddy got you?” I wondered, watching as Roman looked at the tomatoes with a questionable look on his face. I knew he’d barely eat the salad but a mother could be hopeful.

“Yes! I’ll show you later and I’ll show daddy too!” He grinned. He really kept standing by my side. Since little Roman was born I realized the thing called personal space didn’t exist for people like me.

“I think if it’s super duper pretty we should frame it,” I winked at him, pouring some dressing over the salad then closed the lid securely and gave it to Roman to shake it up.

“We should! It’s super duper pretty,” He grinned and began to shake the salad, his hips moving more than the actual Tupperware in his hands.