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"How the hell do you know all of that?" I ask.
Roman takes my hand. "I'll tell you everything later."
* * *
"I called in a favor from an old buddy of mine," Roman explains after the meeting. We're sitting on a park bench a few blocks down from Jocelyn's office.
"Buddymeansformer cellmate, right?"
"Correct. Now gimme some." Roman leans forward and sticks his tongue out.
I let him take a big lick of my quadruple-stacked ice-cream cone that we got from a hole-in-the-wall ice-cream parlor to celebrate as soon as the meeting was done. "Told ya you should've gotten salted caramel. It's the best."
"They're all the best."
"All fifty flavors that were inside that shop?"
"Correct."
I throw my head back and laugh.
I'm free!
When Roman and I went inside for the mediation meeting, Bailey was already huddled with his attorney in the corner. Jocelyn didn't even get a chance to speak. We were informed that Bailey was agreeing to all the conditions and would be signing the papers there and then.
Jocelyn put it down to her power suit and her latest round of Botox, which she reckons gave her the power bitch eyebrow arch to end all power bitch eyebrow arches, but I know the truth. It was Roman's threat to expose Bailey's bullshit that sealed the deal.
"Thank you for what you did. I can't even tell you how much it means."
Roman shrugs like it's not a big deal. But it is. I'm convinced it's the sole reason Bailey stopped being a dickhead, agreed to a fair financial split on all our assets including the house, and signed those damn papers less than thirty minutes ago.
"And also, thank you for not losing your cool and punching Bailey's lights out."
"It was tempting."
"I've never resorted to violence in my life, and even I was tempted. You're a new man, Roman Turner."
He shoots me an intense stare before breaking out into a smile. "Yeah. I really think I am."
And I honestly couldn't be more proud of him. He could have easily punched Bailey in his smug face for the way he was speaking to us. But instead, he played it smart, revealed the dirt he had on him, and didn't have to resort to violence to get the outcome I wanted.
Because this is who Roman really is. Protective. Maybe even a little possessive. But a good man. A loyal and dependable man.
Achangedman.
It's my turn to lean in and take a bite of strawberry ice cream from Roman's three-scoop cone. He doesn't even make me work for it, just extends his hand and lets me have it. "Mmm. That's good."
"It is," he agrees.
We fall into a comfortable silence, ice creams in hand, watching the Wednesday morning unfold in front of us.
"I have to tell you something," Roman says suddenly.
"Yeah?"
He sucks in a loud breath. "Before, with Bailey, you said that you can't have a good relationship with secrets."
"That's right."
