"Well, don't you look freshly fucked?"
Sydney briefly closed her eyes and prayed to God to forgive Sarah's potty mouth as she arrived for work. "Girl, your mind is always in the gutter."
"Better in the gutter than the shitter," Sarah shrugged, "what's the what, buttercup?"
Sydney set her purse in her locker and straightened out her business suit. "I'm giving my two weeks' notice today."
"Shit, you should've done that when you came back from Christmas," Sarah shook her head, "the fact it took you another two weeks is pretty astounding."
"Well, I had to think about it and I decided moving to L.A. is what I want." Sydney mentioned.
"Now can you say that one more time so I believe it?" Sarah asked.
Sydney turned to her best friend. She hated how well Sarah could read her without saying a word. "Is it that obvious?"
"You have doubts and it shows," Sarah pointed out, "but that's not that thing that bothers you. It's Renee, huh? I told you I'm handling it."
"It's not that, really," Sydney sat down at a table in the break room. "I don't think Dean trusts me."
"Oh?" One of Sarah's arched eyebrows raised in amused surprise. "I think that big-ass rock he gave you said otherwise. You know how much that ring costs? I'll tell you how much it costs. A little over a five hundred thousand bones. Five hundred thousand! A man who doesn't trust wouldn't give you that."
"How would you know how much my ring costs?"
"Google," Sarah said matter-of-factly, "when it doubt, Google that shit."
"Well, I should've Googled him a bit more in hindsight," Sydney replied, "I'm about to uproot my entire life for a man who is insecure about my ex."
"Um, can you blame him?" Sarah defended Dean. "It's not like he looks like Bill Gates or some nerdy kid from middle school who still looks like that nerdy kid from middle school. Your ex freaking looks like a love child between Hercules and Conan the Barbarian. A very hot love child, by the way."
"I thought you hated Roman?"
"I hate his evil ass but even I can admit he's good-looking," Sarah defended. "So yeah, I can totally see why Dean is intimidated by him. He's in L.A. and you're up here, at least for two more weeks. A lot of doubt can come into someone's mind."
"And he has Renee down there," Sydney mentioned, "but I should be okay with it."
"No one's asking you to be okay with it. In two weeks, when all of this blows up, you're going to have paparazzi stalking your move, you're going to be the most Googled person for a short time…hell, you might even be a trending topic. You won't be Sydney Walker, Anonymous. You will be Sydney Walker, Dean Ambrose's fiancée. Renee will be the very least of your problems." Sarah finished her drink and got up. "You're focused on the wrong thing, baby girl." She left the break room.
Sydney pouted and slouched in her seat. Sarah was right – she was focused on the wrong thing. Everything else Sarah'd mentioned, however, made Sydney wonder if she was really cut out to be an athlete's wife.
Roman always had a problem with butting into business that was none of his own.
It wasn't entirely his fault. It was the product of his environment and he just went along with it, like the young fool he was.
Was. Not anymore.
Maybe it was the biker culture he'd grown to love and appreciate. Maybe it was his own upbringing, being an enforcer of sorts to his friends and family. He'd always stuck his nose in business, making it his own, and settling any debt and problems. Sometimes it was a pleasant conversation. Sometimes it was threats. Sometimes it was his fists.
Everything was resolved usually in spectacular fashion. Roman had one more issue to solve in terms of Sydney's new love interest, since it wasn't clear he was her boyfriend.
Roman knew he had Dean where he wanted him. The beautiful part was Dean knew it as well.
Roman threatened Dean without directly saying so. Why else would the blond get so defensive about his friendship with Renee if he didn't care about Roman? It didn't matter to Roman. He just wanted to know if his Syd was happy. Everything else she did in her life was really no concern of his own.
"She looks like a woman on a mission," a fellow tattoo artist motioned towards the door and Roman turned. His eyes glittered and a slow smile spread across his lips when he saw her.
Sydney.
She appeared irritated and frankly, pissed off. She used to be a regular at the shop before the breakup. Seeing her was a breath of fresh air in a land of ratchetness and skanks. "I'll handle her," he mentioned before meeting her at the door. Dressed in knee-high boots, a pair of jeans that appeared to be painted on her ample body, and a simple black sweater, Sydney looked stunningly beautiful. Roman felt his cock twitch and silently hoped the conversation would be short. "My Sydney Rose," he purred.
"Can we go somewhere and talk?" She asked.
"Sure," he nodded to his office in the back and she quickly followed. He sat behind the desk and put his feet up. "What can I help you with?"
He wore a simple outfit that consisted of jeans and a dark tank top. His long hair was rolled up in a messy bun at the back of his neck. He looked relaxed as if he were sitting back and watching the football game while holding a beer. Sydney thought for a moment on how she wanted to approach Roman. She was always taught it was better to catch flies with honey than vinegar. It was time to sweeten the deal. "How are you, Roman?"
"I'm doing great, baby girl," He interlaced his fingers and slightly shrugged, "how are you?"
"I'm doing well," Sydney answered, "but you know I'm not here for chitchat."
"I don't know why you're here, honestly," his baritone filled the small yet spacious office. "Can you fill me in?"
"It's Dean, Roman," Sydney replied, hoping her attitude was in check. "I'm here because of Dean."
He leaned back in his chair and surveyed her. Various emotions flashed across her face. Annoyance. Regret. And then there was that peculiar one, lust. "He sent you here?"
"I'm here on my own volition, not his," she firmly stated, causing Roman to raise a brow. She ignored his amused look and pressed on. "I need you to leave me alone – for good."
Roman lightly sighed and rubbed his temple. If Sydney didn't know any better, she'd assumed her request annoyed him. "What are you getting out of this?" He finally asked after a few moments.
"What? I don't understand."
"You're letting this guy keep you a secret and while you both are doing the, 'we're just having fun' bit, I'm not quite sure I believe you." He narrowed his eyes at her. "When we were together, you weren't anyone's secret."
"When we were together, you gave me someone's STD," she countered.
"Touché." He tightened his lips and grinned. "I did apologize for that."
"I accepted it." She stood up. "Are we done here?"
"You never did answer the question, Syd." He replied. "What are you getting out of this?"
"Why do you care?" She questioned. "You're showing interest in me now that we're no longer together. You never showed this much interest in me when we were."
"Your recollection of our history is different from mine," he casually mentioned.
"Oh?" She challenged. "Are you joking?"
"Why would I joke about this?" Roman asked. "I'll admit I was an asshole and I deeply apologize for that. But you also have to admit there was some good to me."
There were times when Sydney had a shitty day at work, she came home to Roman and he massaged her feet and drew her a nice bath. After she got out of the bath, he would pleasure every part of her body with his fingers, tongue, and finally that intoxicating shaft of his that brought her to orgasm each time. "Our physical relationship was something separate…"
"I'm not referring to that," he cut her off, "you have evidence of me doing you very well." His eyes traveled from her feet to her face. "All over your body."
She knew he meant her various tattoos but her body betrayed her. A ripple of emotion traveled throughout Sydney and her stomach clenched into a tight ball. She hated how the low and sexy rumble of his voice caressed her body and all he did was say hello. "I just want you to leave me alone, Ro. That's all I want."
"I won't bother you anymore," he grinned. He got up and met her at the door. He caressed her cheek. "I just wanted to check up on you and that's all."
Sydney swallowed. She knew seeing Roman was a bad idea and being that close in proximity proved it. "Now you know."
"Now I know." Roman leaned down and swept his lips over hers. He gently sucked on her bottom lip before he pushed his tongue through. It was a slow, sensual, and deliberate dance between them.
After a short while, he broke away and Sydney smiled. "Please don't ever do that again."
Roman smiled back at her. "You should've never let me did it to begin with."