just for a bloody contract | Roman Godfrey au

ch. 4 • a new friend

I accepted the new phone, more out of helplessness than anything else. I was still angry at Roman for treating me the way he did and for not being willing to listen to my side of the story.

PA school went okay. I had a lab I had to do, so I stayed a little later than everyone else and worked on it. By the time I came home, it was 8pm. I assumed Roman was probably home, so I was extra cautious stepping in the house. It hit me then that I had no idea where his room even was. I didn't know anything about this house at all. The only places I've been to were Shelley's room, my own room, the study, and the kitchen.

I decided I could do some exploring before I started studying. I took myself upstairs and started to navigate my way through the dark hallway. It was awfully silent here. I had absolutely no idea where Comway was. Usually he's shuffling back and forth doing a plethora of chores. Poor man. He ought to have some help. The lights in the hallway seemed dim today. At the end of the hallway was a big window, and it had moonlight shining through. Never mind the rooms, I wanted to watch the moon instead.

I edged closer and stared at it. My mother must be watching the same moon too. I wondered if she was okay. I haven't really had a chance to call her at all. I missed her. She flipped out when I told her about the contract, but I guess I made a pretty convincing argument because she consented to it. To be completely honest though, did she have another option? I made a mental note to update my contact list on my new phone. It was practically empty now.

"What are you doing here?" an all-too familiar voice sounded from the back. I turned around but shut my eyes. Oh great. Why did he always have to show up. "I asked what you were doing here?"

"Moonlight," I answered.

"Moonlight? Really. You want me to believe you came to the other side of the house to look at moonlight?" Roman's voice was laced with annoyance.

"I just wanted to see where I lived. And the moonlight caught my attention."

Roman walked out of the shadow and closer to me, his whole body now basking in the dim light. He looked even more handsome than he normally looked, if that was possible. Too bad he was a jerk. Roman looked at the moonlight too, but his eyebrows furrowed. "Do you know where Letha is?" he asked.

"No, not really," I answered. As soon as I said that, Roman cursed under his breath and started walking away.

"Thank you for-" I looked to see he had already disappeared. What was bothering him so much? I was curious to know, but I really didn't want to get in any more trouble. Time to grab dinner and study instead.

The next day I finished classes early and got to eat lunch when everyone else was. I didn't try to befriend anyone on campus because once they knew about me, everything would be more complicated than it was.

A man my age came closer and sat next to me. He had honey-blonde hair and kind brown eyes. We wore a light blue shirt and black pants. "You looked lonely."

"Oh trust me, I'm really not," I spat.

He got up to leave when I said," Wait. You can stay. I'm sorry. It wasn't you."

He sat back down.  "My name's Daniel. You are?"

"Liana. I'm a PA student here."

"Oh, I'm doing my master's in biotech and applying for jobs. You know the Godfrey Institute? I really want to work there. My uncle used to."

I tried not to show any negative expressions. Daniel wouldn't like working there. I don't know how Roman's father was, but Roman was not pleasant at all.

"You could work at a million other places," I told Daniel. "They'd all be happy to hire you."

"Yeah, I guess. But everyone knows that the Godfrey Institute has such a big research department. Dr. Johann Pryce there, is a mad scientist. I've heard stories. It would be exciting to be at the hub of innovation," Daniel's enthusiasm reflected off of every word.

"Do you really want to work under Roman Godfrey?" I bluntly asked.

Daniel looked at the ground for a moment then laughed. "Oh yeah, I guess you've heard stories about him too. I mean, he is handling his company pretty well. You need to give him that. I heard he got married recently. Wonder how his wife handles him. Apparently they're in love. Maybe he's softer now?" Daniel shrugged his shoulder and took a bite of his chicken sandwich.

I thought it was best to tell him then. "Um, I am Roman Godfrey's wife."

Daniel almost fell back and dropped his lunchbox. I caught it. "Hey relax. I won't bite. I promise. And he's not as bad as you think." I lied. No, he was ten times worse.

Daniel and I talked more. He was from Colorado and spent most of his childhood there before his father and he moved to Pennsylvania for a job transfer. He was passionate about nature photography, especially micro-photography. I listened to him with curiosity and peace. He has such a gentle demeanor and a humble attitude. I imagined I was stuck with someone like him rather than Roman. A girl could wish. 

Daniel offered to drop me home. He was done with classes too. I politely refused. Roman would create nothing but more chaos if he found out. I didn't want Daniel to get involved in my mess. 

I realized that if Daniel knew, that means others would know too. Great. The very last thing I wanted was for everyone to treat me like Mrs. Godfrey. That wasn't me. It didn't even sound right. I was Liana. And that's who I wanted to stay as. 

▶▸   note: I'm so sorry the story isn't picking up pace. there are just a lot of characters that need to be introduced first. but I promise it'll start getting more and more interesting. thank you so much for reading. it means a lot to me. -kiiera ♡