“Hi,” I finally said after he smiled.
“Wassup, ma.” He pointed to the mess I’d made for the second time today. “You need help with that?”
“Y-y…” I paused and cleared my throat. “Yes.” No man had ever had me stumbling over my words before, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. He moved toward me, hitting the alarm on his truck as he did, and even his walk drew me in.
He picked up a box of Seventh Generation brand diapers and frowned.
“What type of event is this?” he asked, and this time, I was the one frowning.
“Um… a baby shower,” I said. I was so caught up in his looks that the possibility of him being at the wrong house hadn’t crossed my mind. “You sure you got the right house? The invitations were pretty clear.”
“I didn’t get an invitation.” He picked up the other two boxes and then placed his gaze on me. “At least not a physical one.”
“Someone invited—”
A car door slamming silenced me and stole my attention.
“Hey, mama, Viv,” I spoke as she walked toward me with a bright smile on her face. Her locs were down today with red tips that she didn’t have the last time I’d seen her. Ezra’s mom was someone my sisters and I loved instantly. She had a connection to the one person we would never be able to see again, so keeping her close was important to us.
“Hey, baby,” she greeted. Her eyes moved to the stranger whose name I hadn’t gotten yet and widened. “Roman, is that you?” A smile stretched across his face, and damn, it was beautiful. He emptied his hands by placing the diaper boxes into my trunk and then lifted Ezra’s mother into his arms.
“Wassup, old lady,” he said.
“Boy, put me down.” He laughed but did as she asked. I silently watched them. “You and that damn son of mine are going to get enough of calling me old.” She grabbed his forearms and looked him over. “Jesus. You’re a man now.”
“I am.” His voice was deep and smooth. Like chocolate melting in your mouth on contact.
“Don’t you leave without coming to talk to me.”
“I won’t,” he said, nodding. It was then that she turned her attention back to me. After kissing my cheek, she sauntered past me and into the direction of the front door. “Alright, I’m going to grab these and take them inside.” I nodded, not being able to open my mouth and speak at the moment. He filled his arms once more and left me standing there. I glanced over my shoulder and bit down on my lip. The man had the nerve to be bow legged. Shaking away the thoughts that were happily gathering in my mind, I grabbed some gift bags and turned to follow behind him. Today just got way more interesting.
After a few trips, everything I’d bought was inside of the house with the rest of the gifts. I locked my truck and glanced up at Roman.
Roman.
His name matched his cool demeanor.
“Thank you,” I said.
He nodded and said, “No problem. You must love whoever is pregnant. That’s a lot of shit you bought.” I snickered as we walked through the house toward the double doors that lead to the backyard.
“I love her very much. She’s my sister.” I glanced at him and then quickly looked away. “Whoever invited you sure didn’t tell you much.” I had an idea of who it was after Ezra’s mom greeted him like he was her long lost child, but I had to see for myself.
“Yeah, my—”
“There you are!” Juniper fussed, grabbing my arm the second I stepped onto the terrace. She paused and looked at Roman. “Hi.”
“How you doing?” he asked.
“I’m…” she stopped and looked at me. I shrugged. “I’m fine.” Juniper dropped my arm and held her hand out to him. “I’m Juniper. And you are?” He chuckled.
“Roman.”
“Roman,” she repeated. “You came with my sister?” He looked at me and then back at her. More than likely comparing our features. I didn’t say anything, wanting to see how he would handle her.
“We met in the driveway.” She nodded slowly and then pulled me away. I glanced over my shoulder at him, and he was smiling. I turned my head to hide my own smile.
“Who is Roman?” Juniper asked once we were standing far away from him.
“I have no idea, but I think I want to.”
The hour that passed felt like ten. While I worked the room, I found myself searching for Roman every chance I got. He was at Ezra’s side the entire time. They laughed, talked animatedly, and joked loudly about the games being played. Their mannerisms were almost identical, and I was sure that they were family. Ezra had introduced him to everyone but me. Maybe because we’d technically met already, but I wanted a formal introduction like my sisters had gotten.
“You’ve been staring at that man nonstop,” Daisy whispered, bumping my shoulder. I turned away from them and placed my attention on her.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
“He’s handsome, and you’re just enjoying the view.” I chuckled and then huffed. “I can tell you who he is if you— “
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “I think I’ll just go over there.” She grabbed my arm to stop me.
“You don’t have to,” she murmured, cutting her eyes to the left and then back to me. “They are headed this way.”
“Bloss,” Ezra said, on cue. “I want you to meet my cousin.” I looked between the two of them. So, they were cousins.
“Roman, right?” I asked. He gave me a half-smile and took my outstretched hand. The spark was instant. Neither of us flinched. He simply tightened his grip, and I liked that.
“Yeah, Roman.” He nodded. “Blossom, right?” I nodded, and we stood there, hands still linked, staring at one another.
“You did say y’all met in the driveway,” Ezra began. “But I wanted to formally introduce the two of you. He just moved back from Baltimore.”
“Oh, so you’re here to stay.” I slowly slipped my hand from his and glanced at Daisy. “It was nice to officially meet you, Roman...” I paused.
“Fields.” I looked at Ezra for confirmation that he was, in fact, a Fields man. I had no idea he was in contact with any family from his father’s side. He gave me a subtle nod, and I smiled.
“Roman Fields, it was nice to officially meet you.”
“You too, Blossom Baker.” The way my name fell from his lips was beautiful. Everything about this man was beautiful.
“We have to go check on Magnolia, but I’m sure we’ll talk soon,” I said, grabbing Daisy’s hand and pulling her away.
“Fireworks!” she exclaimed.
“Like the Fourth of July.”
“Our sister has a crushh,” Daisy sang, as we approached the table Magnolia was sitting at. She looked so damn pretty in the yellow dress that she paired with gold jewelry and sandals to match. Her hair was pulled up into a tight bun, and she opted to go makeup-free. Beautiful was an understatement.
“Daisy, please.” I rolled my eyes and took a seat next to Lilac.
“Who’s the crush?” Mags asked, grinning. We were all always very aware of each other when we were in the same vicinity. They knew exactly whom Daisy was speaking of.