Roman went out of his way to see Violet at least once a day at work, he couldn't help it, seeing her always put a smile on his face. The group went out for drinks once a week and thanks to Dean and Leslie there was always a seat open next to Violet.
"You know guys, we always do the same thing every week," Violet said one Thursday night.
Seth chimed in, "Yeah! We should mix it up a little."
Dean rolled his eyes, "OK nerds, what did you have in mind."
"Watch yourself, bro," Roman warned his buddy, "This little nerd over can whoop your ass."
Violet giggled and Seth continued talking, "There is another place about a mile from here that has live bands."
"Let me guess," Violet said, "You go there because it's easy to pick up a groupie after the lead singer breaks their hearts?"
"Ouch, Vi, that was a low blow," Seth said trying to act hurt. "They aren't groupies, they are women that have an appreciation for the same music as I do."
Leslie choked on her drink, "Oh please, the only thing you appreciate is their cleavage!"
Dean laughed so hard he almost fell out of his chair and Seth stuck his tongue out at Leslie. Violet just shook her head at her friends.
"Vi, did you have something in mind?" Roman asked softly touching her arm.
"Ummm, well, I, not a specific place," she stuttered looking into his grey eyes. "I just thought, you know..." She looked down and her hair fell in front of her face.
Roman smiled at her, he was dying to reach out and push her hair back.
"Hey! Let's play pool next week!" Seth offered.
"Now that sounds cool," Dean said, "They'll have beer, and I get to watch my woman lean over the pool tables!"
"Yeah and so will every other guy in the pool hall," Seth added
Dean growled, "I'll stand behind her every time!"
Leslie laughed, "Oh, my hero!"
"Damn straight! No one stares at your ass except me!" Leslie leaned over and whispered in his ear. Dean grinned, tossed a $20 bill on the table and they hurried out of the bar.
"Well, in that case," Seth said taking out his wallet, "I'm gonna go hang with the groupies!" He tossed some cash on the table too and left Roman and Violet alone at the table.
"Sheesh... Their priorities are all screwed up!" Violet joked, "I thought friends came first, you know, bros before hoes?"
Roman laughed, "I'm gonna tell Leslie you called her a ho!"
Violet stared at him wide eyed, "No! That's not what I meant!"
He kept laughing, "Aw, I'm just teasing, sweetheart."
Violet blushed, did he just call her sweetheart? Holy shit… She didn't know how to respond, so she just stared back down at her drink.
"So, Vi, you wanna hang here for a bit or are you hungry?" Roman asked, he couldn't believe that he just called her sweetheart, it slipped out and now he couldn't take it back.
"Are you seriously asking me if I am hungry? I am always hungry."
Roman grinned, "I know! How about that little diner on Main Street, is it any good?"
"Good? That's the best diner in a 20 mile radius!" Violet looked at their bar tab and counted the cash the boys left on the table, "Wow, drinks are on Dean and Seth, they were so excited to get out of here they didn't even pay attention to what they tossed out on the table."
"Even better," Roman said, "Let's go get some food before that beer burns a hole in my stomach."
They both drove their own cars to the diner and met up inside, Roman had gotten a small booth in the corner of the restaurant. Violet slid in across from him and grabbed a menu. Let's see, bacon and eggs, hamburger and fries, she looked up at Roman and was smiling at her.
"What? What's so funny?" She asked.
"Nothing, you just look like you are pondering the deeper meanings of life instead of reading the diner menu."
She thought for a minute, "OK, here's the issue, I SHOULD get a salad, but salads are boring. You won't judge me, will you?"
"Never, I like a woman who likes food."
She grinned, "Roman, I love food!"
The waitress came and they placed their order, Violet got chocolate chip pancakes, a side of bacon and a diet coke. Roman laughed and ordered breakfast too, a four egg meat lovers omelette with hash browns and toast. Violet's phone was ringing constantly in her bag.
"You know, you can answer that if you want," Roman said.
Violet sighed, "Its my mother, I really don't want to talk to her at this very moment, but if I don't answer she will just keep calling." She dug her phone out and answered it.
"Hi Mom, is something wrong?" She said rolling her eyes, "Well, you called me eleven times in a row…. Mom, the cell phones work just fine, yes all eleven calls went through… No, mom, I'm out. Yes, I am out with someone…."
Roman was trying not to laugh, he could hear her mom through the phone. "No mom, I'm not with Dean… Seth is not a weirdo mom, just because you don't like his hair, that doesn't make him weird… Uh-huh, yeah, we are at the diner… of course I ordered a salad, no, no, I gave up bacon for Lent… Of course I still go to church every Sunday! Seriously Mom, would I lie to you? Oh look, my salad is here, let me talk to you later… love you, give dad a kiss for me, bye!" She hung up the phone, turned off the ringer and buried it back at the bottom of her bag.
Roman shook his head and waggled his finger at her, "Its not nice to lie to your mother."
"I know, I am a horrible person. But, I'm telling you she has radar or something," Violet said shaking her head, "Every single time I order something with bacon in it she calls me to ask if I am eating a salad… It's kinda scary."
The time flew by, they ate and talked and really had a great time. Violet was feeling more comfortable around him, he wasn't as intimidating when he was laughing and smiling and trying to steal her bacon. She had no idea how long they were sitting there, but the diner started getting crowded and the waitress tossed their bill on the table hinting that it was time for them to go. They both reached for it at the same time, Violet got to it first and Roman placed his hand over hers. His hand was huge, he completely covered her hand and it sent shivers down her spine.
"Let me get this," he said softly, his grey eyes locked onto hers.
"Umm, I can pay half, I mean…"
"Nope," he cut her off, "This is my treat."
"OK," she said trying to pull her hand out from under his, "Thank you. Next time its my treat then."
His heart started racing, next time, she wanted there to be a next time. He gently squeezed her hand and shook his head at her "No way, you are a lady, the lady never pays. Its a rule of mine."
Violet was swooning inside, but she couldn't help trying to poke holes in his rule, "What if I ask you out?"
He shrugged, "Maybe."
"What if its your birthday? I mean, no one should pay on their birthday."
He was quiet for a minute, "OK, fine you got me there."
She grinned, "Sweet! When's your birthday?"
"I'm not telling."
"Oh really?" She said raising an eyebrow, "I'll make Dean tell me."
Roman laughed, "Ambrose doesn't know!"
Violet was quiet for a while, he took out his wallet to pay and she had an idea, she reached across the table and swiped it from his hands, "Its on your drivers license!"
Roman was surprised, he was impressed that she was that quick. She grinned, "May 25! On that day, you have no choice, you have to let me pay."
"You are something else, Vi!" Roman laughed, "Fine, you earned it, you can buy me dinner on my birthday."
"YAY!" Violet did a little happy dance in her seat, "I win! I win!"
Roman walked her to her car, "Thanks for having dinner with me again."
Violet blushed, "Anytime, I had a really good time."
They stood there awkwardly until Violet stood up on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around him. He hugged her back, tightly, loving the way her body felt against his, she was a perfect fit.
She pulled away and got into her car before he could get himself to do anything more. He knew one thing for sure, that woman belonged in his arms. Dean told him to take it slow with her, he was getting a pretty good idea of what her last relationship was like and she sure as hell deserved better than that. But was he good enough for her? No, no way. He wasn't good enough for her, but he was willing to do anything to win her over.
Violet parked her car in her driveway and looked around to make sure the coast was clear, she grabbed her pepper spray just in case. She had the key to her front door in one hand and the pepper spray in the other, she ran the short distance from her car to her door, let herself in and punched in the alarm code. She leaned against her door and sighed, this was all getting to be really old. How long would it be before she would feel comfortable walking from her car to her front door? How much longer was Jake going to be in the back of her mind? She kicked off her shoes and threw herself down on the couch, digging her phone out of her bag, maybe she should call her mom back. She had a text message from Seth…
"Hey Vi, so what do you and lover boy wind up doing after I left?"
Lover boy? "SETH! Did you really go to that club? Or did you set me up?"
She growled at her phone. "Oh, I totally set you up, baby! It was too easy once D&L left!"
"I hate you" she wrote back.
"Whatever. Spill it, what did you do?"
"We hit up the diner on Main for some food. Just got home now."
"You spent over 2 hrs in the diner!"
Violet smiled, those two hours felt like 15 minutes, time flew by when she was with Roman. "Yeah, it was a good dinner."
"Awww. ur 1st date."
She shook her head, Seth texted like a 13 year old girl, she was surprised he wasn't using any smiley faces. "It wasn't a date, it was just dinner."
"Who paid?"
"Fuck you Rollins, I'm going to bed."
"HA! I knew it! He wants you Vi!"
"Good night Seth."
Violet double checked the alarm and headed up to bed, she went through her normal routine and crawled under the covers. This was usually the worst time of the day for her, she would get lonely and scared and wind up crying herself to sleep. She'd never admit it to Leslie or Seth because they would worry too much, she had the best friends anyone could ask for but she still felt like something was missing… Tonight was different, she thought about Roman, remembering his arms around her, his strong chest and how good he smelled. She was laying in bed grinning like an idiot, that hug felt too good. She knew she swore off men forever, but Roman wasn't your typical man and he certainly wasn't Jake. He made her laugh, he was a gentleman, he called her sweetheart, she felt safe with him. She hugged her pillow and drifted off to sleep thinking about Roman's strong arms and his captivating grey eyes.