Chapter 87

Tip-Top's Diner was the place we stopped off next. Being at the other end of town, it was quite a drive, but we needed it in order to calm ourselves down. Once we arrived, we stepped in and the little bell tinkled to announce our arrival.

"I think we order up front, what d'you want?" Roman questioned as we reached the bar.

"Cheeseburger and fries." I replied, taking a quick glance at the special's written on the blackboard up front. "I'll find us a seat."

"Cool." He replied and walked up to the waitress at the bar.

I slid into the cool, red leather booth and rested my hands on the white table lined with a pastel blue colour, making it pop. Taking a deep breath, I rested my head back on the seat and closed my eyes.

It was only noon and I felt utterly shattered. Who knew my Sunday would turn out like this, huh? Still, I wasn't complaining. It was the most excitement I'd had in what felt like forever.

Roman returned with two bottles of Coke and slid one over to me. "Thanks." I took it and gulped the bubbly sweetness down in large gulps.

He chuckled and slid opposite me. "I don't think I've ever seen you so tired."

I placed the bottle down and let out a long sigh. "I don't think I've ever ran so much in my life!"

"Fair enough." He smiled and popped off the top of his bottle. Carefully, he placed the bag of books on the table. I snatched them away by my side before anyone could see.

"I don't think I've ever felt so guilty for doing something." I chuckled anxiously.

"If it makes you feel any better, they were probably going to sit there for several more years." True. I snuck a peak in and smiled at the beauty of them.

"Maybe I'll make them into a family heirloom of sorts." I joked, tying the bag back up so no one could see.

"If your kids ever get your love of reading, I'm sure they'll be thrilled." He teased.

"And if your kids ever get your thieving ways, I'm sure they'll help them in stealing more." I bit my lip to contain my giggles.

"'Thieving ways', hmm?" a little glint sparkled in his eyes as a grin broke out across his lips. "I've never heard that one before."

"Well, now you have." I shot back, smiling like an idiot.

Our food arrived quickly after and my mouth watered at the crisp looking fries and juicy cheeseburger. Roman seemed to get the same with another side order of chicken nuggets too. The boy was a boxer and could probably eat half his body mass in a matter of minutes.

"You know," I dipped a fry in ketchup. "You could probably put all those bad boys to shame with your rebellious act today." I raised a brow and teased. Roman wasn't that amused however as he cringed.

"Out of all the consequences I could get from what happened, that seems like the worst."

I laughed and took a bite of my burger. "Thank you, though." He looked up at me like my gratitude needed explaining. "Thank you for taking me there. I loved it." I noticed a faint blush heat up his neck and he gave a small smile.

"I'm glad."

"Maybe we should go there again during the summer – not to steal books, but to explore."

"Really?" his eyebrows shot up in surprise. He must've not expected me to say anything like that.

"Yeah." I nodded, taking another bite of my burger. "I mean, it was interesting. Plus, you can tell me about all the other Greek Mythology stories you know." He seemed to like the idea of that as I caught his wide smile before he popped a chicken nugget into his mouth. Fuck, now I wanted chicken nuggets. Me and my rashness didn't bother to look closer at the menu and see them on there.

"You look like you want to break my fingers off." Roman commented as he wiped his hands on a napkin.

"I should have gotten chicken nuggets too." I pouted. Amusement lit up on his face as he took a nugget, dripped it in ketchup and handed it to me. Just as I was about to reach for it, he pulled it away and raised a playful eyebrow. Catching on, I leaned forward and bit it out of his fingers, not letting my eyes leave his and, feeling a boost of confidence, I wrapped my lips around his fingers and sucked them clean, making a popping noise as they came out of my mouth.

"You are insatiable." He whispered lowly, a lust staring to cloud his eyes.

"And you are so turned on." I threw back feeling the same desire rise in me. Just then, his phone went on and I noticed the contact name 'Mom' flash up.

"Hello?" he picked it up and I heard his mom's voice quietly speak through the other line. "... Yeah, I'm out with Sienna." He rolled his eyes as his mom said something and held the phone away to tell me, "My mom says 'hi'."

"Hi, Samantha!" I exclaimed happily so she could hear me. Roman rolled his eyes once more but I didn't fail to see the small smile pulling up the corners of his lips.

"... where are you going?" he then continued the conversation through the phone, and I decided to finish the rest of my burger. "... Okay, I've got house keys anyways... Bye... love you too." He shoved his phone in his pocket.

"What's that?" I wiped my mouth with my napkin.

"Just my mom giving me an update on what's happening with my relatives round." He explained.

We finished up the rest of our meal and Roman insisted he'd pay. In all fairness, the three dollars I had in my pocket didn't do that much but I still would've given them to him.

As he finished paying at the front desk, one of the older waitress came up to me a smiling kindly, "Sorry to be out of the blue, but I have to say that you and your boyfriend look very cut together."

My eyes widened and I was at a sudden lost for words. "Boy... B-Boyfriend?"

The old waitress sweetly laughed, "You remind me of when my husband and I first started dating. So full of young love. Anyhow, have a nice day!" I was glued on the spot as she gave me a little wave and wandered back into the kitchen. Boyfriend? Love? I stared back at Roman stuffing the change into his jacket pocket. Did we look the way to others? In love?

Love was such a strong word and I'd only ever used it to describe what I felt for Adam, but I now know that that wasn't love. It was comfortably, all I ever knew. But I wasn't in love with Roman. Sure, I thought he was an amazing guy but love? It was such a scary word. So intense and passionate. Did I share that with Roman? No. I couldn't. Roman liked Emily. So, even if there were a smidgen of those feelings, I wouldn't jeopardise that for him. Besides, I wasn't in love with him. I wasn't.

"What did she want?" Roman asked me as we walked back to his car.

"Hmm?"

"The woman talking to you?"

"Oh, nothing." I answered a little too quickly. "She just liked my outfit." I brushed it off with a lie. I climbed into the passenger seat and fiddled with my hands in my lap, anxiously staring at the window. Did we look like a couple in the museum today? Is that what everyone thought? I didn't think twice about it, us hanging out felt so... natural. Did I like Roman? Did I? No, get it together, Sienna.

"Where to now?" I pushed down those thoughts and questioned when he started the engine.

"My house." He answered before looking back at me. A mischievous grin teasingly glimmered in flickers of desire across his face. "No one's home."