I shake Roman’s hand and respond with a smile. “Sienna. It’s nice to meet you. They’ve been perfect gentlemen.” Impressing Roman is first on my to-do list for this trip.
A familiar snort-laugh comes from my left. “Speak for yourself. What’s with that one’s Mustang?” Beth has joined us at the counter while Leo has begun unpacking the groceries. Beth points in the direction of Alex across the island from her. “It sounds like there’s an animal trapped under the hood and he’s torturing it every time he revs the engine.” This gets a half chuckle from Roman, and for once, I’m envious of Beth for being charismatic in a way I feel I never could be.
“It would explain the color he chose, wouldn’t it?” Roman says, leaning in toward Beth as though it’s a conversation only for their ears. Great, while she’s buddying up to every single one of these men, I can’t seem to get more than a polite smile out of Roman. So much for my good impression.
“Clearly, you two don’t know what a supercharger is,” Alex says, in retaliation.
“Don’t worry, I know what one is, and I have the better one.” Roman throws a smirk toward Alex before turning his back on the group to help Leo finish unpacking the groceries. He gives Leo a small pat on the back as though he’s saying hello. I can’t help but notice the stark difference in how Roman greets each of his brothers.
Once the groceries are put away, Leo kicks everyone out of the kitchen. But not before double-checking that Beth and I don’t have any food allergies. I appreciate his thoughtfulness as we move back toward the entryway to collect our bags. Classical music begins to play from the kitchen when Leo turns on a portable speaker, and I take a moment to savor the peace it brings.
“So,” says that deep, grumpy voice from behind me, “why don’t I show you to your rooms? Theo has never brought a woman home before. I’m excited you’re here.” His words contradict his less-than-enthusiastic tone. If I knew any better, I’d say his voice held a hint of suspicion.
In an effort to counteract whatever I’m picking up in Roman’s tone, I grab Theo’s hand in mine. “I’m very excited to be here as well. It was nice of you to let Beth and me tag along. We appreciate the hospitality.” I flash awarm smile at him, hoping that I’ve convinced him that this is real. Roman just meets me with a scowl that would burn through my eyeballs if he could wield lasers through his.
After what feels like an eternity, he finally responds, “You’re welcome. Follow me. Your rooms are just up here.”
I go to follow him and realize I’m still holding Theo’s hand. Letting go so we can grab our bags, Theo playfully knocks my hand out of the way when I go to reach for mine. Roman grabs Beth’s bags from her at the same time.Beth and I follow the men upstairs as I shake my hand slightly in an effort to expel the lingering sensation of Theo’s hand in mine.
As we ascend the stairs, I make the effort to look at the many photos on the wall. Most of them are four young boys, who I’d assume are the Kane brothers. One photo of a young Roman, in particular, catches my eye. He stands tall behind three much younger versions of Leo, Alex, and Theo. Judging by their apparent ages, I’d guess this was just before their parents passed.
They’re all making a silly face with the exception of Roman. His smile is radiant as it resembles the ones I’ve seen from his brothers today. I can’t help but notice the photo looks cut off on the edges, with what appears to be a woman’s hand on Romans' chest, yet no woman is in the photo.
I continue up the stairs, hoping Roman’s grumpy mood will fade as the days go by, morphing into something like what I saw in the family photo. A smiling Roman seems like an easier one to convince to help meget a job than the grumpy one I’ve had to introduce myself to.
Upstairs is a small hallway with six doors and what looks to be another staircase leading down toward the back of the house.
“How many bedrooms does this place have? It’s gorgeous, by the way,” I say.
Theo chimes in once we reach the top of the stairs, pointing at each door, “Five bedrooms total. At the end of the hallway is the main bedroom, Roman’s. Then you have Alex and Leo’s rooms to the left. Their rooms have a connecting bathroom. And over here on the right, my room, then the guest room, and the shared bathroom is the last door at the end of the hall.”
All I can think is thank God we don’t have to share a bathroom with all of these men during our stay. We head in the direction of the guest bedroom. It’s surprisingly light and airy, with cream bedding, a large window on the far wall behind the bedframe, and a small beige chair with a footrest next to the bed. Beth throws herself down onto the plush comforter and begins searching through one of her smaller bags.
Reaching for my suitcase from Theo’s hand, Roman stops me. “Beth, this is where you’ll be staying. Sienna, I’m sure Theo would be more than happy to show you to his room.” He gives Theo one hard pat on his shoulder.
“Oh, I don’t mind staying with Beth. Honestly, this room looks so cozy.” I reach for my bag again, but Roman stops me for a second time.
“Nonsense,” Roman says, “the lake house can be quite romantic if you want it to be. Surely, you’d want to staywith yourboyfriend.” He puts a little extra emphasis on boyfriend, meeting me with a tone that’s less than tasteful.
When Theo and I stay silent, Roman continues, “Unless there’s a particular reason you two wouldn’t want to share a room?” He looks between Theo and me. The rising panic inside me stalls slightly when Theo steps toward me.
“No, no reason. Sienna was just looking out for Beth. She’s a sweetheart like that.” I try to hide my wince at the stereotypical nickname he just used on me that we both agreed he would keep out of his vocabulary.
Roman looks at me to corroborate Theo’s story. “Mm-hmm. Just wanted to make sure Beth is comfortable in a room by herself.”
“She looks fine to me,” Roman says, motioning his chin toward Beth. One look and I see Beth on the bed, already curled up in the pillows with her latest book in hand.
“Beth,” Roman says to her, “you’re good if Sienna sleeps with Theo, right?”
Beth waves her hand in a gesture telling us to get out of her newly claimed room. “Yeah, yeah, fuck whoever you want. Come and get me when dinner’s ready.”
My face heats at Beth’s comment. To be fair, Roman did set her up for that one, and judging by the smirk on Roman’s face, he’s more than pleased with her response.
“She reads like Alex does,” Roman says to Theo in a hushed tone almost too quiet for me to catch. “I’ll be downstairs if you need me. Leo will call us when dinner’s ready.” Just like that, he takes off.
Theo guides me toward his room, just through the next door over from where Beth is staying. I linger in the doorway as I take it in. I can tell he’s grown up in this room over the years.
The bed, no larger than a queen, is dressed with a plain dark-blue comforter and two matching pillows. A bay window to the left of the bed has a built-in bench decorated with blue-and-white-striped pillows. The room smells faintly of him, and I resist the urge to take a deep inhale.
