An All American Love Story
Ch. Ten: Swim Lessons
***Sorry this took awhile, and I hope I still have some readers. The chapter shouldn't take very long after this one. Thanks for reading. I hope you all have a happy New Year!!!
They had been in the car nearly ten minutes before Elizabeth spoke. She wanted to pretend the small fight previously didn't mean much, but she knew it had to be addressed later. "Robert, I hate to break it to you but swimming in December, in Chicago, doesn't hold much appeal." He smiled and continued driving. "It's an indoor pool so don't worry about it. We will probably be the only ones there anyway."
And he was right. He pulled his car up and noticed that there was no one in the parking lot. Elizabeth sat in the car, not moving when she spoke again. "Is it open Robert?" she hoped it wasn't. She had only ever been swimming twice in her life, and both of those times she had been under the age of five. Her fears came true however, when Romano pulled a key out of his pocket. "I come here all the time. A buddy of mine owns it, so we can get in." he said smiling at her. Putting on a fairly believable fake smile Elizabeth nodded and stepped out, into the Chicago weather. The whole area had been hit with a pretty bad storm for the past few days, and the meteorologists were calling for it all the next week. Although it had stopped raining on the way to the pool, the wind was quickly picking up again, a good sign of the downpour that was about to occur.
It didn't take long for Romano to open the door to the building. Once Elizabeth walked inside she was hit with the warmth from the water, and an intoxicating smell of chlorine. Romano walked to the side and flicked on the lights. The whole room lit up and revealed three large swimming pools. Two with racing lanes and one with an extremely high diving board. "Come on." Romano said, gently tugging at Elizabeth's arm. Reluctantly she followed him. She didn't want to ruin the date by telling him she hated the water and couldn't swim. "Maybe I'll just sit on the edge." She thought.
Romano walked Elizabeth over to a spot with a few benches and put the bag he had brought down on one. Even though he was extremely nervous about Elizabeth seeing his arm, he it was key in him opening up and wanted to get it over with in a fun way. He opened up the bag and pulled out two towels and set them on the chair. After that was taken care of he slipped off his track pants he had been wearing. He had put on his swim shorts while Elizabeth was getting dressed at her house. Noticing how rigid she looked he walked over to the edge of the pool where she was. Gently putting his right arm around her waist he whispered into her ear. "Are you ok?"
Elizabeth nodded as she turned around. She knew there was no good way of getting out of this. As Romano worked on getting his shirt off over his head she quickly slipped out of the jeans and blouse she had been wearing to reveal a tasteful one-piece suit. Finally Romano got the shirt off. "Damn thing." He muttered as his gaze fell onto her. He didn't even try to keep the grin off of his face. She was absolutely beautiful. "Ok Lizzie, here we go." He said as he walked over to the high dive.
Elizabeth knew she shouldn't wait much longer to tell him. "Robert wait, come here." She said, motioning him back with her hand. Romano hesitated at first but soon walked back to stand next to Elizabeth. "What?" he asked, tilting his head to the side in a playful way. Elizabeth stuttered as she spoke. The last thing she wanted was to hurt his feelings again. "Robert, I-I meant to tell you. But I never did. And it's not your fault, because I should have told you, so I'm sorry in advance." Romano's eyes widened, as he got lost in her quick words. He held up his hand. "Lizzie. Just say it." She swallowed hard before she spoke. "I don't know how to swim. I'm, sort of afraid of water."
Romano smiled. "Oh poor Lizzie. Living in Britain raised you awfully. You've been deprived." He said sarcastically. But he quickly noticed she was more upset about it then he was. "It's ok." He said as he gently brushed the side of her face. "Why are you upset?" he asked. "I just didn't want to ruin another date." She answered, looking him in the eyes. Romano slowly brought her into a hug. "You couldn't ruin a date Lizzie. You're too much fun to be with." An evil grin made its way onto his face as he got an idea. Gently he took a step closer to her, and the edge of the pool. "You know how I always got over my fears?" he asked. He could feel her head shake no against his. Quickly he tightened the grip of his right arm around her as he lifted her up off her feet. "I dive in." he said as he turned and fell into the pool, with her in his arm.
Elizabeth screamed as Romano lifted her up and jumped into the water. Instantly her whole body was underneath the glassy liquid. The whole moment shocked her as they both resurfaced. Elizabeth flailed her arms and started to cry out. Even though Romano's strong grip never left her side, the fact that she felt so helpless scared her half to death. "Robert help!" she screamed as she sunk back underneath the water. Quickly he pulled her up and placed her arms around his neck. "It's ok Lizzie. Your going to be ok." He softly said trying to calm her down. Quickly he worked his arm as he swam for the shallow end of the pool where his feet could touch the bottom. After they were safely there Elizabeth still held onto Romano's neck, her face buried against his shoulder.
Softly he rubbed her back. "Your ok now. Your alright." After a few minutes Elizabeth loosened her grip and brought her head back to look him in the face. To her surprise his expression was not one of levity, but rather that of concern. "Are you ok?" he asked again, still softly. "I really am sorry." He said bringing her head up with his hand. "I wasn't kidding Robert. I wouldn't joke about something like that." She said, trying to control the fear in her voice. "I know." Romano whispered bringing his forehead to touch hers. Again, he softly rubbed her back. After a moment he felt her relax as she hung her arms around his neck.
After she got her breathing under control, Elizabeth finally got a chance to really get a good look at her date. She was glad he had finally shaved his beard so now, in the dull light of the pool, his sharp features were even more accentuated. Looking at him now she noticed all sorts of things. The muscles in his arm and shoulders, the softness of his hand, the clean scent of his skin, and what she had always liked best about him, the beautiful curve of his smile.
Romano noticed a change in the way Elizabeth stood, and he felt she had finally got herself under control. He brought his head up from hers and gently kissed a spot right above her eyebrow. "Next time I will listen to you when you say no." he remarked with a slight grin before he kissed the same spot again. Romano brought his head back down to look at Elizabeth and confirm that she was in fact all right. He tilted his head to the side and smiled as he wiped a remaining tear from her face. This was the first time in many years he had seen her truly frightened. Romano didn't say anything; he just looked into her eyes and, with a look, apologized again. "Ok" he muttered as he went to move to the stairs. He stopped however when he felt Elizabeth pull back on his hand. "What?" he asked, moving back to where he had been.
Elizabeth placed his hand on her back where it had been. She knew if she let him go now, it would be even longer before he got up the courage again to do something romantic. "Don't stop." She said quietly to him. Romano clenched his jaw. He hadn't been doing anything. "What?" he asked as his heart started to race. Elizabeth sighed; she didn't want him to be so uncomfortable around her. "Just kiss me." She said after some delay. "It doesn't have to be prefect. Just kiss me." Romano froze as he heard her words. "Come on man move!" he thought to himself. This is what he had planned on, but now that it was actually about to happen he couldn't get any of his muscles to move.
Noticing how shy Romano now looked Elizabeth knew it was up to her to make something happen. She elegantly tilted her head and brought her lips to meet his as she closed her eyes. She was happy when she didn't feel him pull away. After a second she moved her face back, but only enough to get out a few words. "See, it's not that hard." she teased as she brought her hands up to touch the side of his face. This time Romano responded, bringing his hand from her back up to her neck. He closed his eyes and leaned forward, letting their lips meet again. After caressing her face he slowly deepened the kiss. Slowly, he took a few steps forward, still connected to Elizabeth, until he felt her back touch the cool concrete of the wall.
Elizabeth let out a small moan as Romano pressed harder against her. He was such a good kisser, and even though their date had started off on a semi hurtful note, it was quickly taking a turn for the best. After Elizabeth grabbed harder to his neck Romano pulled back. He dropped his head, almost giving the impression he was embarrassed at what had just happened. Elizabeth again stroked the side of his face. "Perfect." She whispered, finding a spot on his collarbone to kiss. As she opened her eyes she saw a small mark on the back of his shoulder blade. Looking at it more closely she touched it before he moved away. "What's this?" She asked. "Tattoo." Romano responded. "Remember, we talked about it." "Yeah we did but you never told me what it was." Romano agreed as he moved his gaze from her eyes to her lips. "That's because I don't want to talk about it now." He managed to get out before he leaned forward and kissed her again.
After another several minutes Romano withdrew again and brought up his thumb to trace a line down her face. "I wish I didn't have to work tonight." He remarked.
"What time do you get off?"
"My shift is from six to two. Weaver changed my hours again."
"Well you could always stop bye." Elizabeth added, with an audible seductive inflection.
"I would wake up Ella, and you're on tomorrow aren't you?"
Elizabeth nodded, "Yes and the next two days, but I am off on Friday and on Sunday." Romano looked up in thought. "Well I am on Friday but off Sunday night." After a quick pause he thought of something to add. "Are you working Christmas and New Years?" Elizabeth smiled as she realized what he was about to ask. "No, I am off from the twenty fourth all the way to the second. It's the only time I ever ask off. Why? Do you want to spend Christmas together?"
"Well you did already invite me." Romano said, placing a fake look of shyness on his face. "Unless you."
"Oh shut up." Elizabeth commanded as she kissed him again.
After a brief moment they were both out of the pool and dried off. After Romano had gotten on his track pants he started to mess with his shirt. Elizabeth had already finished dressing and turned to look at him. Because he was facing the other way to give her some privacy she got a good look at the tattoo on his back. Across his right shoulder blade, about the size of a fist was a red-breasted robin. She didn't know how she had never noticed it before. She came up behind him and touched it with her palm. "How long have to had this." She asked, "It's beautiful."
Romano tried not to jump. He had the shirt up over his head and quickly pulled it down. "Come on Lizzie, let's go." Romano spoke in a tone as if he hadn't heard her question at all as he began to walk out. Elizabeth was going to protest, but stopped when she saw the weather outside. It was absolutely dreadful. The wind had picked up to a frightening pace and was forcing the rain to fall sideways. "Holy shit." Romano spouted as he stared out. "I'm glad you're not working tonight Lizzie." Looking from the glass door back to his face she boldly inquired, "Why is that?" After turning to face her also he let a small grin slide onto the corner of his mouth. "Cause I would be worrying all night." Romano quickly said as he dashed for the car.
Romano threw the jacket over Elizabeth's head at first. However, quickly realizing that it did nothing, they both just made a run for his car. Within seconds they were both safe inside. "Oh God damn." Romano yelled after hitting the steering wheel. "I didn't lock the door. Hold on, I'll be right back." Without giving Elizabeth a chance to protest Romano was out the door and back up to the building. He quickly inserted the key and locked the door. He turned to run back to the car, but as he stepped down off the curb the rainwater in the ditch brought his foot out from under him.
Romano's legs went to the left as everything else went right. His head smacked the curb on the same spot it had previously in the morning, splitting his stitches open again. Blood poured from his head and down the gutter while he lay in the water. Horrified Elizabeth ran out to help. "Robert!" she screamed at him. Kneeling down at his side she yelled his name again, "Robert, can you hear me?!" More then a little annoyed at his bad luck Romano opened his eyes to answer. "I'm cut Lizzie, not deaf. Yes I can hear you." He said getting up. His laceration had spread from being one inch to about three and a half. "Come on you're going to get sick." He said pulling her back into the car.
Once inside he grabbed the towel from the back and pressed it against his head. Shortly there after Romano's phone rang, he picked it up on the second tone. "Romano." He said into the device. It was Kerry. "I need you to come in early. All this rain is flooding us, with water and patients. Before you say it, I don't care what excuse you have, I need you in here now." She said again before hanging up. "Wow, her concern for my availability is shocking." He grumbled hanging up. "Who was that?" Elizabeth asked. "Kerry. Boy, how it's nice to be needed." He added, rolling his eyes. "I have to go in early. I'll drop you at your house and go in ok?" Elizabeth looked at him in disbelief. "Robert, you could have a concussion. You can't go." "Which makes it a good thing I am going into a hospital huh?" he said interrupting her. With no further debate Romano set the car into drive and slowly made his was to Elizabeth's house.
After parking in her driveway he waited for her to get out. Elizabeth had held the towel on his head the entire drive. Letting it down she saw his cut had almost stopped bleeding. "I did have a good time Robert." She added. "Yeah after me almost drowning you, I'm sure you did." His tone now harsh. "I'm not talking about that." Elizabeth smirked as she came up to kiss him again. Romano turned into her as her lips met his. There was no hesitation this time as he brought his tongue to touch hers, her warmth now flooding him. Leaning over, Romano softly caressed her throat as he pushed against her. Elizabeth loved his touch. She took her own hand and brought his down onto her chest, over her heart. The moment might have lasted forever if Romano's beeper hadn't interrupted them.
Breaking away slowly Romano kissed the tip of her nose. "I have to go." Elizabeth nodded. "I know. My offer still stands for tonight though." She added before gathering her things. This placed a coy smile on his face. "I know. I'll try, but don't wait up ok?" With that Elizabeth opened the door. She fought through the rain and made her way inside her house. Before she closed the door she turned around and gave a small wave, while Romano winked back. Once safely inside she stood in her doorway, dripping wet, until she couldn't see his car anymore. She hadn't felt true happiness in so long, she was glad she had found it again. Somewhere Elizabeth knew Romano would probably not end his night at her house. However, she also knew that no matter how long it took, she'd always wait up.
***Sorry this took awhile, and I hope I still have some readers. The chapter shouldn't take very long after this one. Thanks for reading. I hope you all have a happy New Year!!!
They had been in the car nearly ten minutes before Elizabeth spoke. She wanted to pretend the small fight previously didn't mean much, but she knew it had to be addressed later. "Robert, I hate to break it to you but swimming in December, in Chicago, doesn't hold much appeal." He smiled and continued driving. "It's an indoor pool so don't worry about it. We will probably be the only ones there anyway."
And he was right. He pulled his car up and noticed that there was no one in the parking lot. Elizabeth sat in the car, not moving when she spoke again. "Is it open Robert?" she hoped it wasn't. She had only ever been swimming twice in her life, and both of those times she had been under the age of five. Her fears came true however, when Romano pulled a key out of his pocket. "I come here all the time. A buddy of mine owns it, so we can get in." he said smiling at her. Putting on a fairly believable fake smile Elizabeth nodded and stepped out, into the Chicago weather. The whole area had been hit with a pretty bad storm for the past few days, and the meteorologists were calling for it all the next week. Although it had stopped raining on the way to the pool, the wind was quickly picking up again, a good sign of the downpour that was about to occur.
It didn't take long for Romano to open the door to the building. Once Elizabeth walked inside she was hit with the warmth from the water, and an intoxicating smell of chlorine. Romano walked to the side and flicked on the lights. The whole room lit up and revealed three large swimming pools. Two with racing lanes and one with an extremely high diving board. "Come on." Romano said, gently tugging at Elizabeth's arm. Reluctantly she followed him. She didn't want to ruin the date by telling him she hated the water and couldn't swim. "Maybe I'll just sit on the edge." She thought.
Romano walked Elizabeth over to a spot with a few benches and put the bag he had brought down on one. Even though he was extremely nervous about Elizabeth seeing his arm, he it was key in him opening up and wanted to get it over with in a fun way. He opened up the bag and pulled out two towels and set them on the chair. After that was taken care of he slipped off his track pants he had been wearing. He had put on his swim shorts while Elizabeth was getting dressed at her house. Noticing how rigid she looked he walked over to the edge of the pool where she was. Gently putting his right arm around her waist he whispered into her ear. "Are you ok?"
Elizabeth nodded as she turned around. She knew there was no good way of getting out of this. As Romano worked on getting his shirt off over his head she quickly slipped out of the jeans and blouse she had been wearing to reveal a tasteful one-piece suit. Finally Romano got the shirt off. "Damn thing." He muttered as his gaze fell onto her. He didn't even try to keep the grin off of his face. She was absolutely beautiful. "Ok Lizzie, here we go." He said as he walked over to the high dive.
Elizabeth knew she shouldn't wait much longer to tell him. "Robert wait, come here." She said, motioning him back with her hand. Romano hesitated at first but soon walked back to stand next to Elizabeth. "What?" he asked, tilting his head to the side in a playful way. Elizabeth stuttered as she spoke. The last thing she wanted was to hurt his feelings again. "Robert, I-I meant to tell you. But I never did. And it's not your fault, because I should have told you, so I'm sorry in advance." Romano's eyes widened, as he got lost in her quick words. He held up his hand. "Lizzie. Just say it." She swallowed hard before she spoke. "I don't know how to swim. I'm, sort of afraid of water."
Romano smiled. "Oh poor Lizzie. Living in Britain raised you awfully. You've been deprived." He said sarcastically. But he quickly noticed she was more upset about it then he was. "It's ok." He said as he gently brushed the side of her face. "Why are you upset?" he asked. "I just didn't want to ruin another date." She answered, looking him in the eyes. Romano slowly brought her into a hug. "You couldn't ruin a date Lizzie. You're too much fun to be with." An evil grin made its way onto his face as he got an idea. Gently he took a step closer to her, and the edge of the pool. "You know how I always got over my fears?" he asked. He could feel her head shake no against his. Quickly he tightened the grip of his right arm around her as he lifted her up off her feet. "I dive in." he said as he turned and fell into the pool, with her in his arm.
Elizabeth screamed as Romano lifted her up and jumped into the water. Instantly her whole body was underneath the glassy liquid. The whole moment shocked her as they both resurfaced. Elizabeth flailed her arms and started to cry out. Even though Romano's strong grip never left her side, the fact that she felt so helpless scared her half to death. "Robert help!" she screamed as she sunk back underneath the water. Quickly he pulled her up and placed her arms around his neck. "It's ok Lizzie. Your going to be ok." He softly said trying to calm her down. Quickly he worked his arm as he swam for the shallow end of the pool where his feet could touch the bottom. After they were safely there Elizabeth still held onto Romano's neck, her face buried against his shoulder.
Softly he rubbed her back. "Your ok now. Your alright." After a few minutes Elizabeth loosened her grip and brought her head back to look him in the face. To her surprise his expression was not one of levity, but rather that of concern. "Are you ok?" he asked again, still softly. "I really am sorry." He said bringing her head up with his hand. "I wasn't kidding Robert. I wouldn't joke about something like that." She said, trying to control the fear in her voice. "I know." Romano whispered bringing his forehead to touch hers. Again, he softly rubbed her back. After a moment he felt her relax as she hung her arms around his neck.
After she got her breathing under control, Elizabeth finally got a chance to really get a good look at her date. She was glad he had finally shaved his beard so now, in the dull light of the pool, his sharp features were even more accentuated. Looking at him now she noticed all sorts of things. The muscles in his arm and shoulders, the softness of his hand, the clean scent of his skin, and what she had always liked best about him, the beautiful curve of his smile.
Romano noticed a change in the way Elizabeth stood, and he felt she had finally got herself under control. He brought his head up from hers and gently kissed a spot right above her eyebrow. "Next time I will listen to you when you say no." he remarked with a slight grin before he kissed the same spot again. Romano brought his head back down to look at Elizabeth and confirm that she was in fact all right. He tilted his head to the side and smiled as he wiped a remaining tear from her face. This was the first time in many years he had seen her truly frightened. Romano didn't say anything; he just looked into her eyes and, with a look, apologized again. "Ok" he muttered as he went to move to the stairs. He stopped however when he felt Elizabeth pull back on his hand. "What?" he asked, moving back to where he had been.
Elizabeth placed his hand on her back where it had been. She knew if she let him go now, it would be even longer before he got up the courage again to do something romantic. "Don't stop." She said quietly to him. Romano clenched his jaw. He hadn't been doing anything. "What?" he asked as his heart started to race. Elizabeth sighed; she didn't want him to be so uncomfortable around her. "Just kiss me." She said after some delay. "It doesn't have to be prefect. Just kiss me." Romano froze as he heard her words. "Come on man move!" he thought to himself. This is what he had planned on, but now that it was actually about to happen he couldn't get any of his muscles to move.
Noticing how shy Romano now looked Elizabeth knew it was up to her to make something happen. She elegantly tilted her head and brought her lips to meet his as she closed her eyes. She was happy when she didn't feel him pull away. After a second she moved her face back, but only enough to get out a few words. "See, it's not that hard." she teased as she brought her hands up to touch the side of his face. This time Romano responded, bringing his hand from her back up to her neck. He closed his eyes and leaned forward, letting their lips meet again. After caressing her face he slowly deepened the kiss. Slowly, he took a few steps forward, still connected to Elizabeth, until he felt her back touch the cool concrete of the wall.
Elizabeth let out a small moan as Romano pressed harder against her. He was such a good kisser, and even though their date had started off on a semi hurtful note, it was quickly taking a turn for the best. After Elizabeth grabbed harder to his neck Romano pulled back. He dropped his head, almost giving the impression he was embarrassed at what had just happened. Elizabeth again stroked the side of his face. "Perfect." She whispered, finding a spot on his collarbone to kiss. As she opened her eyes she saw a small mark on the back of his shoulder blade. Looking at it more closely she touched it before he moved away. "What's this?" She asked. "Tattoo." Romano responded. "Remember, we talked about it." "Yeah we did but you never told me what it was." Romano agreed as he moved his gaze from her eyes to her lips. "That's because I don't want to talk about it now." He managed to get out before he leaned forward and kissed her again.
After another several minutes Romano withdrew again and brought up his thumb to trace a line down her face. "I wish I didn't have to work tonight." He remarked.
"What time do you get off?"
"My shift is from six to two. Weaver changed my hours again."
"Well you could always stop bye." Elizabeth added, with an audible seductive inflection.
"I would wake up Ella, and you're on tomorrow aren't you?"
Elizabeth nodded, "Yes and the next two days, but I am off on Friday and on Sunday." Romano looked up in thought. "Well I am on Friday but off Sunday night." After a quick pause he thought of something to add. "Are you working Christmas and New Years?" Elizabeth smiled as she realized what he was about to ask. "No, I am off from the twenty fourth all the way to the second. It's the only time I ever ask off. Why? Do you want to spend Christmas together?"
"Well you did already invite me." Romano said, placing a fake look of shyness on his face. "Unless you."
"Oh shut up." Elizabeth commanded as she kissed him again.
After a brief moment they were both out of the pool and dried off. After Romano had gotten on his track pants he started to mess with his shirt. Elizabeth had already finished dressing and turned to look at him. Because he was facing the other way to give her some privacy she got a good look at the tattoo on his back. Across his right shoulder blade, about the size of a fist was a red-breasted robin. She didn't know how she had never noticed it before. She came up behind him and touched it with her palm. "How long have to had this." She asked, "It's beautiful."
Romano tried not to jump. He had the shirt up over his head and quickly pulled it down. "Come on Lizzie, let's go." Romano spoke in a tone as if he hadn't heard her question at all as he began to walk out. Elizabeth was going to protest, but stopped when she saw the weather outside. It was absolutely dreadful. The wind had picked up to a frightening pace and was forcing the rain to fall sideways. "Holy shit." Romano spouted as he stared out. "I'm glad you're not working tonight Lizzie." Looking from the glass door back to his face she boldly inquired, "Why is that?" After turning to face her also he let a small grin slide onto the corner of his mouth. "Cause I would be worrying all night." Romano quickly said as he dashed for the car.
Romano threw the jacket over Elizabeth's head at first. However, quickly realizing that it did nothing, they both just made a run for his car. Within seconds they were both safe inside. "Oh God damn." Romano yelled after hitting the steering wheel. "I didn't lock the door. Hold on, I'll be right back." Without giving Elizabeth a chance to protest Romano was out the door and back up to the building. He quickly inserted the key and locked the door. He turned to run back to the car, but as he stepped down off the curb the rainwater in the ditch brought his foot out from under him.
Romano's legs went to the left as everything else went right. His head smacked the curb on the same spot it had previously in the morning, splitting his stitches open again. Blood poured from his head and down the gutter while he lay in the water. Horrified Elizabeth ran out to help. "Robert!" she screamed at him. Kneeling down at his side she yelled his name again, "Robert, can you hear me?!" More then a little annoyed at his bad luck Romano opened his eyes to answer. "I'm cut Lizzie, not deaf. Yes I can hear you." He said getting up. His laceration had spread from being one inch to about three and a half. "Come on you're going to get sick." He said pulling her back into the car.
Once inside he grabbed the towel from the back and pressed it against his head. Shortly there after Romano's phone rang, he picked it up on the second tone. "Romano." He said into the device. It was Kerry. "I need you to come in early. All this rain is flooding us, with water and patients. Before you say it, I don't care what excuse you have, I need you in here now." She said again before hanging up. "Wow, her concern for my availability is shocking." He grumbled hanging up. "Who was that?" Elizabeth asked. "Kerry. Boy, how it's nice to be needed." He added, rolling his eyes. "I have to go in early. I'll drop you at your house and go in ok?" Elizabeth looked at him in disbelief. "Robert, you could have a concussion. You can't go." "Which makes it a good thing I am going into a hospital huh?" he said interrupting her. With no further debate Romano set the car into drive and slowly made his was to Elizabeth's house.
After parking in her driveway he waited for her to get out. Elizabeth had held the towel on his head the entire drive. Letting it down she saw his cut had almost stopped bleeding. "I did have a good time Robert." She added. "Yeah after me almost drowning you, I'm sure you did." His tone now harsh. "I'm not talking about that." Elizabeth smirked as she came up to kiss him again. Romano turned into her as her lips met his. There was no hesitation this time as he brought his tongue to touch hers, her warmth now flooding him. Leaning over, Romano softly caressed her throat as he pushed against her. Elizabeth loved his touch. She took her own hand and brought his down onto her chest, over her heart. The moment might have lasted forever if Romano's beeper hadn't interrupted them.
Breaking away slowly Romano kissed the tip of her nose. "I have to go." Elizabeth nodded. "I know. My offer still stands for tonight though." She added before gathering her things. This placed a coy smile on his face. "I know. I'll try, but don't wait up ok?" With that Elizabeth opened the door. She fought through the rain and made her way inside her house. Before she closed the door she turned around and gave a small wave, while Romano winked back. Once safely inside she stood in her doorway, dripping wet, until she couldn't see his car anymore. She hadn't felt true happiness in so long, she was glad she had found it again. Somewhere Elizabeth knew Romano would probably not end his night at her house. However, she also knew that no matter how long it took, she'd always wait up.