An All American Love Story
Ch. Fourteen: A Family Affair
Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. She didn't know what to say. Although it was dark the moonlight let her see the outline of his face. His head was down, pointed forward and he had his knees bent against his chest. From his disposition it was clear to her that she hadn't just gotten a line, it was from his heart.
Romano could sense that tension he created, so he quickly attempted to change the feeling. Snapping his head up he rubbed his body. "What are we doing? It's cold!!!" He said, still looking forward. With that he patted Gretel's shaggy head and stood up. After he dusted the sand off of himself he stuck out his hand for Elizabeth to grab. "You want to come in?" he asked. His voice was still hard, but kinder then before. Elizabeth looked up at him. She was still trying to process what he had just told her. She could see Romano smiling, trying to pretend that their past conversation meant nothing at all, but she knew it was a cover.
Not letting his offer pass Elizabeth reached up and grabbed his hand. Romano leaned back and pulled her up before they started the short walk back to his house. Before he got too far away Romano gave a quick whistle, which sent Gretel flying through the air, back up to the house. Romano was silent while he walked and played with the rim of his hat. Getting close now to the stairs that went to his porch Elizabeth wanted to say something before they went in. "I didn't know your family was coming over." She stated. Romano put his hat back on as he stepped on the stairs. "It's just my mother and sister. They are visiting from Philadelphia for a few days." He motioned for Elizabeth to go first up the stairs of his porch.
She could feel him on the step behind her. It felt like forever until they reached the top. After scraping off his shoes Romano opened the door and they both walked into his house. Elizabeth was hit by a wave of heat from his running fireplace. She stood by the door where she had entered and looked at the two women in his living room. They were both looking at her with huge smiles. It was only after Romano had taken off his coat that he realized introductions were due.
"Oh I'm sorry." Romano stated as he walked over to stand in the middle of the room. "Ma this is Lizzie Corday. We work together at County. Lizzie this is my mother Lynn." Elizabeth looked at the woman and gave a smile. "Pleasure." She said as she studied her features. The woman had flowing silver hair that was cut above her shoulders. She was very well dressed and her makeup looked perfect. Suddenly Elizabeth's gaze was redirected to the other woman who sat in her wheelchair by the fire. "Well I guess I shouldn't leave it up to my older brother to properly introduce me." She said wheeling herself forward. "I'm Laura, we met briefly before." She said sticking out her hand after she came to a stop. Elizabeth took it with a smile. "Yes I'm sorry about that. I was in a little bit of a .a rush."
With that Romano quickly walked over to his mother. Elizabeth noticed Romano had his prosthetic on, it had been the first time in awhile. "Ma, do you want me to open up some wine?" he said sitting down next to her on the couch. "No actually we need to be leaving. Robin wants to get up early and see some of the sites before lunch and I'm afraid I'm feeling a little tired myself. Besides, I'll let you spend some time with your friend." Romano grinned at her as they stood up together. "Ok, well let me get your coats then." After Romano left his mother made her way across the room to stand next to Elizabeth. "It is very nice to finally meet you. Robert has said some nice things about your work." Elizabeth could feel herself blush. "He talks about me?" she asked back in a shy voice. "Oh yeah." Came a reply from his sister.
It took only seconds before Romano was back with everyone's coats. "Ok everyone, lets leave Lizzie alone."
"Why afraid of what we might tell her?" his sister joked.
Romano scrunched up his face and joked back. "Afraid of what we might tell her?" he said in a high voice throwing her jacket at her. With a quick look from his mom Romano straightened up. "Here let me help you." He said, walking over to the wheelchair. As Romano helped his sister his mother looked at Elizabeth. "Some things never change." Elizabeth smiled and nodded. After they made their way to the door Romano disappeared again. He was back in a moment however, holding a sleeping little girl, about the age of eight. "I guess Gretel really got her tired huh Laura?" Romano said. His sister just nodded. With one swift movement Romano handed the child to his mother without her waking up. He gently placed a tiny coat over her back and kissed her forehead. "Goodnight sweetie."
Romano opened the door and motioned for his mom to lead the way to the cars. He grabbed his sister's wheelchair and led her outside also. After he helped his mother into her car he stuck his head inside. "By ma." He said, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow." He pushed the door closed and moved over to his sister. He wheeled her over to the other side and knelt down by the chair. "I can do it Bobby." She said with force, opening the door. Elizabeth could tell from the doorway that she looked frustrated. Romano gave her a grin as he took her hand. "I know you can. But I'm your big brother and I like to help."
After Romano had gotten her into the car he knelt down again. He held her hand as he talked to her. "Just call me if you need anything ok? I'll come over." "I know." She said back, buckling herself into her seat. With that Romano nodded and gave her a kiss before standing up. After the car started he made his way back to the doorway of his house. As the car pulled out of the driveway Romano's sister rolled down the window and waved at them both. "Be nice to her Bobby!" she said before they left. Romano just smiled as he walked back into the house.
He closed the door and shivered. "Wow, it's colder then I thought." Elizabeth smiled as she finally got a good look at him. He looked better then he had this morning. Although he still had black bruises under his eyes and his nose was a little swollen, you could barely tell it was broken and although the cut on his head was still quite visible, it looked better then it had. He was dressed clean and casual in dark jeans and an off white sweater with his 76ers hat on his head. All of a sudden Elizabeth saw a smile appear on his face.
"What are you staring at?" he asked her. Elizabeth blushed, embarrassed that he noticed. "Bobby huh?" she said smiling back. Romano brought his hand up to cover his face. " You know. Derived from Robert. Robert, Rob, Bob, Bobby." Romano grumbled, trying to keep his usual dry wit. "Only to my sister calls me that. I hoped you wouldn't pick it up." "Not a chance." Elizabeth stabbed back. Romano took a deep breath in and walked over to his couch to sit down. Elizabeth followed after him. She could feel the warmth from the fire. She sat down close next to him and slipped off her shoes. Turning her body to face him she tucked her legs under herself and melted down into the sofa. "Well I have plenty of scary rumors to spread about you." Romano stated again, attempting to break the silence. Elizabeth however, quickly switched gears. "You never told me Laura was parlayed." She said smoothing her hair back behind her ears. Romano rolled his head to look at her. "Well that's because it just happened. She was in an accident about five months ago. She just got done with PT." His tone was hard and short.
Elizabeth nodded. "Where is her husband? I mean I take it that little girl is hers." Romano turned his head back to face forward. "Yeah Robin is hers. Her husband David was killed in the accident." He stated flatly. Romano now spoke in such a way that Elizabeth couldn't tell if he was indifferent or extremely upset. Scooting over closer, Elizabeth took his hand from his lap and set it on her knees. With both hands she examined his fingers with her eyes while she caressed them with her own. Strong and clean, they were clearly the fingers of a surgeon. His knuckles were scarred from years of use and turning his hand over she was surprised to find calluses on his fingertips. She didn't know how she never noticed it, his touch was always so soft.
After a minute of watching her Romano couldn't take it anymore. He brought his hand up and drew a line on Elizabeth's face from her chin to the back of her jaw. Elizabeth waited for him to say something. She turned her face to look at him. Soon her eyes connected with his and she was lost in conversation with them. The expression they held spoke to her better then any words could ever do. As she looked into them she told herself that they were what she liked the best. She had always indulged in the fact that no matter how tough Romano tried to be she could always see through it by looking at his eyes. They always gave him away, just like they did tonight.
After Elizabeth finished studying his eyes she fixed her gaze on his lips. Romano noticed the change and instinctively leaned forward to kiss her. He kept his hand on the side of her face as their lips met. At first Elizabeth kept her hands at her side, however soon the simple kiss accelerated into something more. As she felt him deepen the kiss she reached up to grab his sweater. Feeling him slightly lean into her she slowly leaned back to lay down on the couch, bringing him with her, his hat dropping to the floor. Romano let his weight rest on top of her and he moved his hand from the side of her face to rest behind her head. Elizabeth looked for a place to put her own hands. Gently she felt her way to the bottom of his shirt and moved her fingers inside it to rest on his warm stomach. She could feel the pulsing of his heartbeat in her palms.
His laugh broke their kiss. "Your hands are cold." He said, smiling into her face. Elizabeth didn't remove them; instead she went farther up his shirt and rested them on his back, pulling him back to her face again. The heat from her hands made Romano's heart accelerate. As he felt her fingers line his spine he let his body relax. It had been a long time since he had been happy. He was glad he had found it with her. Seconds later their moment was shattered by the sharp sound of a cry. Ella.
Instantly Romano was up, sitting rigid against the fabric of the couch. He felt bad that he was still so uncomfortable with the Elizabeth. He was always fine until his brain caught up with his actions. Elizabeth sat up more slowly; she hadn't wanted their moment to end. "My mom brought over a crib for Ella. She is in the guest room down the hall." Romano said to her. He winced at his voice. It was cracked and dry, not how he wanted it to sound. Elizabeth nodded and stood up, taking his hand with her. Romano stood too when he felt the pull. He followed Elizabeth into the room where Ella lay crying. Both stood over the crib and looked down at the bundle. Elizabeth brought her other hand to rub Ella's stomach. "Shhh, my girl. Shh." Romano smiled as the cry became louder. "I think she wants to go home." He said with a sigh.
Elizabeth grabbed for Romano's hand again and walked into the hall. "You're right." She said as he reached for their coats. She reluctantly put hers on as Romano looked at the floor. He hated moments like these. This was when he felt most vulnerable. After successfully zipping up her jacket Elizabeth's hands caught his side. She brought herself close to him, inches away from his face. She gingerly tilted her head up and kissed the cut above his eyebrow. In doing so she felt a tingle run up her spine as Romano's warm breath touched her throat. She brought her head back down and met his lips again. Her tongue slid across the cut on his bottom lip, finding it's way back inside his mouth.
Painfully she pulled away. With his eyes still closed Romano reached out for her face, letting her soft skin melt into his hand. "Don't go." He whispered opening his eyes. Elizabeth smiled as they both heard Ella's cries again. Romano brought his tight lips into a smile. "Ok, I'll see you soon then." Before he had a chance to move away Elizabeth pulled him into a hug. She wrapped her hands around his waist and rested her head along his collarbone. For the third time she inhaled the sweet smell of his cologne. Bringing her head up to rest against his cheek, they stood for a second in their embrace. Elizabeth kissed his sideburn and spoke into his ear. "We'll finish this one day."
A half grin crept onto his face and Romano took a step back. "Well I need to take a shower." He spouted, taking a step onto the stairs. "I trust you can get Ella." Elizabeth nodded and smiled back at him. "How about we get dinner tomorrow?" she asked after he climbed two stairs. "Only if you're paying." Romano snorted back. Once he reached the top of steps he turned around. "Goodnight."
Then he silently glided into his bedroom. Romano waited until he heard Elizabeth leave before getting undressed. He turned on the water and stared into the mirror as it heated up. He hated the man he saw. The square jaw, solid chin, deep eyes. He hated it all. The reflection wasn't him, it was his father. Soon he could see steam floating out of the glass of the shower door. Romano stepped inside and let the burning liquid rush over his skin. It felt good to stand there, to be clean. To wash off everything. The hot air made his injured nose ache. Romano dropped his head and let the water run along his back. "I shouldn't have let her come in." He thought to himself. Gently he let his head hit the cool tile on the wall. He hated that he had broken the promise he had made so many years ago. He hated he had let someone in. It was just another opportunity to get hurt, and he had been hurt so many times.
After several minutes of thinking on the matter something made him smile. A memory of Elizabeth. He smiled because he knew he liked her, because every time he saw her his heart sped up, because above everything else, because she liked him too. After he felt he had worked out his feelings he turned off the water. The coolness of the tile made him shiver as he reached for the fluffy towel that rested on the counter. After he was dried off, Romano slipped on his warm sweatpants that he liked to sleep in. Although it wasn't late enough for him to go to bed, he just wanted to be comfortable. Romano opened the door that separated his bathroom from his bedroom and walked through.
His body shot back into the wall when his eyes caught a figure sitting on his bed. "Holy shit!" he yelled when his wet abdomen hit the counter. Quickly realizing who it was he was glad he had not walked out of his bathroom naked. He tried to slow his breath as his heart pounded out of his chest. He had always hated to be surprised. Within seconds of his reaction he had somewhat composed himself. "Lizzie, what the hell?"
Elizabeth's mouth dropped open. She didn't know what to say. Although it was dark the moonlight let her see the outline of his face. His head was down, pointed forward and he had his knees bent against his chest. From his disposition it was clear to her that she hadn't just gotten a line, it was from his heart.
Romano could sense that tension he created, so he quickly attempted to change the feeling. Snapping his head up he rubbed his body. "What are we doing? It's cold!!!" He said, still looking forward. With that he patted Gretel's shaggy head and stood up. After he dusted the sand off of himself he stuck out his hand for Elizabeth to grab. "You want to come in?" he asked. His voice was still hard, but kinder then before. Elizabeth looked up at him. She was still trying to process what he had just told her. She could see Romano smiling, trying to pretend that their past conversation meant nothing at all, but she knew it was a cover.
Not letting his offer pass Elizabeth reached up and grabbed his hand. Romano leaned back and pulled her up before they started the short walk back to his house. Before he got too far away Romano gave a quick whistle, which sent Gretel flying through the air, back up to the house. Romano was silent while he walked and played with the rim of his hat. Getting close now to the stairs that went to his porch Elizabeth wanted to say something before they went in. "I didn't know your family was coming over." She stated. Romano put his hat back on as he stepped on the stairs. "It's just my mother and sister. They are visiting from Philadelphia for a few days." He motioned for Elizabeth to go first up the stairs of his porch.
She could feel him on the step behind her. It felt like forever until they reached the top. After scraping off his shoes Romano opened the door and they both walked into his house. Elizabeth was hit by a wave of heat from his running fireplace. She stood by the door where she had entered and looked at the two women in his living room. They were both looking at her with huge smiles. It was only after Romano had taken off his coat that he realized introductions were due.
"Oh I'm sorry." Romano stated as he walked over to stand in the middle of the room. "Ma this is Lizzie Corday. We work together at County. Lizzie this is my mother Lynn." Elizabeth looked at the woman and gave a smile. "Pleasure." She said as she studied her features. The woman had flowing silver hair that was cut above her shoulders. She was very well dressed and her makeup looked perfect. Suddenly Elizabeth's gaze was redirected to the other woman who sat in her wheelchair by the fire. "Well I guess I shouldn't leave it up to my older brother to properly introduce me." She said wheeling herself forward. "I'm Laura, we met briefly before." She said sticking out her hand after she came to a stop. Elizabeth took it with a smile. "Yes I'm sorry about that. I was in a little bit of a .a rush."
With that Romano quickly walked over to his mother. Elizabeth noticed Romano had his prosthetic on, it had been the first time in awhile. "Ma, do you want me to open up some wine?" he said sitting down next to her on the couch. "No actually we need to be leaving. Robin wants to get up early and see some of the sites before lunch and I'm afraid I'm feeling a little tired myself. Besides, I'll let you spend some time with your friend." Romano grinned at her as they stood up together. "Ok, well let me get your coats then." After Romano left his mother made her way across the room to stand next to Elizabeth. "It is very nice to finally meet you. Robert has said some nice things about your work." Elizabeth could feel herself blush. "He talks about me?" she asked back in a shy voice. "Oh yeah." Came a reply from his sister.
It took only seconds before Romano was back with everyone's coats. "Ok everyone, lets leave Lizzie alone."
"Why afraid of what we might tell her?" his sister joked.
Romano scrunched up his face and joked back. "Afraid of what we might tell her?" he said in a high voice throwing her jacket at her. With a quick look from his mom Romano straightened up. "Here let me help you." He said, walking over to the wheelchair. As Romano helped his sister his mother looked at Elizabeth. "Some things never change." Elizabeth smiled and nodded. After they made their way to the door Romano disappeared again. He was back in a moment however, holding a sleeping little girl, about the age of eight. "I guess Gretel really got her tired huh Laura?" Romano said. His sister just nodded. With one swift movement Romano handed the child to his mother without her waking up. He gently placed a tiny coat over her back and kissed her forehead. "Goodnight sweetie."
Romano opened the door and motioned for his mom to lead the way to the cars. He grabbed his sister's wheelchair and led her outside also. After he helped his mother into her car he stuck his head inside. "By ma." He said, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow." He pushed the door closed and moved over to his sister. He wheeled her over to the other side and knelt down by the chair. "I can do it Bobby." She said with force, opening the door. Elizabeth could tell from the doorway that she looked frustrated. Romano gave her a grin as he took her hand. "I know you can. But I'm your big brother and I like to help."
After Romano had gotten her into the car he knelt down again. He held her hand as he talked to her. "Just call me if you need anything ok? I'll come over." "I know." She said back, buckling herself into her seat. With that Romano nodded and gave her a kiss before standing up. After the car started he made his way back to the doorway of his house. As the car pulled out of the driveway Romano's sister rolled down the window and waved at them both. "Be nice to her Bobby!" she said before they left. Romano just smiled as he walked back into the house.
He closed the door and shivered. "Wow, it's colder then I thought." Elizabeth smiled as she finally got a good look at him. He looked better then he had this morning. Although he still had black bruises under his eyes and his nose was a little swollen, you could barely tell it was broken and although the cut on his head was still quite visible, it looked better then it had. He was dressed clean and casual in dark jeans and an off white sweater with his 76ers hat on his head. All of a sudden Elizabeth saw a smile appear on his face.
"What are you staring at?" he asked her. Elizabeth blushed, embarrassed that he noticed. "Bobby huh?" she said smiling back. Romano brought his hand up to cover his face. " You know. Derived from Robert. Robert, Rob, Bob, Bobby." Romano grumbled, trying to keep his usual dry wit. "Only to my sister calls me that. I hoped you wouldn't pick it up." "Not a chance." Elizabeth stabbed back. Romano took a deep breath in and walked over to his couch to sit down. Elizabeth followed after him. She could feel the warmth from the fire. She sat down close next to him and slipped off her shoes. Turning her body to face him she tucked her legs under herself and melted down into the sofa. "Well I have plenty of scary rumors to spread about you." Romano stated again, attempting to break the silence. Elizabeth however, quickly switched gears. "You never told me Laura was parlayed." She said smoothing her hair back behind her ears. Romano rolled his head to look at her. "Well that's because it just happened. She was in an accident about five months ago. She just got done with PT." His tone was hard and short.
Elizabeth nodded. "Where is her husband? I mean I take it that little girl is hers." Romano turned his head back to face forward. "Yeah Robin is hers. Her husband David was killed in the accident." He stated flatly. Romano now spoke in such a way that Elizabeth couldn't tell if he was indifferent or extremely upset. Scooting over closer, Elizabeth took his hand from his lap and set it on her knees. With both hands she examined his fingers with her eyes while she caressed them with her own. Strong and clean, they were clearly the fingers of a surgeon. His knuckles were scarred from years of use and turning his hand over she was surprised to find calluses on his fingertips. She didn't know how she never noticed it, his touch was always so soft.
After a minute of watching her Romano couldn't take it anymore. He brought his hand up and drew a line on Elizabeth's face from her chin to the back of her jaw. Elizabeth waited for him to say something. She turned her face to look at him. Soon her eyes connected with his and she was lost in conversation with them. The expression they held spoke to her better then any words could ever do. As she looked into them she told herself that they were what she liked the best. She had always indulged in the fact that no matter how tough Romano tried to be she could always see through it by looking at his eyes. They always gave him away, just like they did tonight.
After Elizabeth finished studying his eyes she fixed her gaze on his lips. Romano noticed the change and instinctively leaned forward to kiss her. He kept his hand on the side of her face as their lips met. At first Elizabeth kept her hands at her side, however soon the simple kiss accelerated into something more. As she felt him deepen the kiss she reached up to grab his sweater. Feeling him slightly lean into her she slowly leaned back to lay down on the couch, bringing him with her, his hat dropping to the floor. Romano let his weight rest on top of her and he moved his hand from the side of her face to rest behind her head. Elizabeth looked for a place to put her own hands. Gently she felt her way to the bottom of his shirt and moved her fingers inside it to rest on his warm stomach. She could feel the pulsing of his heartbeat in her palms.
His laugh broke their kiss. "Your hands are cold." He said, smiling into her face. Elizabeth didn't remove them; instead she went farther up his shirt and rested them on his back, pulling him back to her face again. The heat from her hands made Romano's heart accelerate. As he felt her fingers line his spine he let his body relax. It had been a long time since he had been happy. He was glad he had found it with her. Seconds later their moment was shattered by the sharp sound of a cry. Ella.
Instantly Romano was up, sitting rigid against the fabric of the couch. He felt bad that he was still so uncomfortable with the Elizabeth. He was always fine until his brain caught up with his actions. Elizabeth sat up more slowly; she hadn't wanted their moment to end. "My mom brought over a crib for Ella. She is in the guest room down the hall." Romano said to her. He winced at his voice. It was cracked and dry, not how he wanted it to sound. Elizabeth nodded and stood up, taking his hand with her. Romano stood too when he felt the pull. He followed Elizabeth into the room where Ella lay crying. Both stood over the crib and looked down at the bundle. Elizabeth brought her other hand to rub Ella's stomach. "Shhh, my girl. Shh." Romano smiled as the cry became louder. "I think she wants to go home." He said with a sigh.
Elizabeth grabbed for Romano's hand again and walked into the hall. "You're right." She said as he reached for their coats. She reluctantly put hers on as Romano looked at the floor. He hated moments like these. This was when he felt most vulnerable. After successfully zipping up her jacket Elizabeth's hands caught his side. She brought herself close to him, inches away from his face. She gingerly tilted her head up and kissed the cut above his eyebrow. In doing so she felt a tingle run up her spine as Romano's warm breath touched her throat. She brought her head back down and met his lips again. Her tongue slid across the cut on his bottom lip, finding it's way back inside his mouth.
Painfully she pulled away. With his eyes still closed Romano reached out for her face, letting her soft skin melt into his hand. "Don't go." He whispered opening his eyes. Elizabeth smiled as they both heard Ella's cries again. Romano brought his tight lips into a smile. "Ok, I'll see you soon then." Before he had a chance to move away Elizabeth pulled him into a hug. She wrapped her hands around his waist and rested her head along his collarbone. For the third time she inhaled the sweet smell of his cologne. Bringing her head up to rest against his cheek, they stood for a second in their embrace. Elizabeth kissed his sideburn and spoke into his ear. "We'll finish this one day."
A half grin crept onto his face and Romano took a step back. "Well I need to take a shower." He spouted, taking a step onto the stairs. "I trust you can get Ella." Elizabeth nodded and smiled back at him. "How about we get dinner tomorrow?" she asked after he climbed two stairs. "Only if you're paying." Romano snorted back. Once he reached the top of steps he turned around. "Goodnight."
Then he silently glided into his bedroom. Romano waited until he heard Elizabeth leave before getting undressed. He turned on the water and stared into the mirror as it heated up. He hated the man he saw. The square jaw, solid chin, deep eyes. He hated it all. The reflection wasn't him, it was his father. Soon he could see steam floating out of the glass of the shower door. Romano stepped inside and let the burning liquid rush over his skin. It felt good to stand there, to be clean. To wash off everything. The hot air made his injured nose ache. Romano dropped his head and let the water run along his back. "I shouldn't have let her come in." He thought to himself. Gently he let his head hit the cool tile on the wall. He hated that he had broken the promise he had made so many years ago. He hated he had let someone in. It was just another opportunity to get hurt, and he had been hurt so many times.
After several minutes of thinking on the matter something made him smile. A memory of Elizabeth. He smiled because he knew he liked her, because every time he saw her his heart sped up, because above everything else, because she liked him too. After he felt he had worked out his feelings he turned off the water. The coolness of the tile made him shiver as he reached for the fluffy towel that rested on the counter. After he was dried off, Romano slipped on his warm sweatpants that he liked to sleep in. Although it wasn't late enough for him to go to bed, he just wanted to be comfortable. Romano opened the door that separated his bathroom from his bedroom and walked through.
His body shot back into the wall when his eyes caught a figure sitting on his bed. "Holy shit!" he yelled when his wet abdomen hit the counter. Quickly realizing who it was he was glad he had not walked out of his bathroom naked. He tried to slow his breath as his heart pounded out of his chest. He had always hated to be surprised. Within seconds of his reaction he had somewhat composed himself. "Lizzie, what the hell?"