Rome couldn’t see himself leaving Ella’s room--ever. As dangerous as it was for him to stay there with her, the idea of going back out the window seemed crippling, especially when she was in his arms the way she was right now.
Whenever she’d touched him, at first, she’d seemed so unsure of herself, as if she wasn’t quite sure where to put her hands. He didn’t mind her inexperience, though. The longer they were together, the more at ease she seemed.
Sunday afternoon, Ella rushed through the work she had to get done that day so that she could call Tim. She wished Mary worked on weekends so she could run her plans by her friend, and say goodbye, in case she was actually able to get out of the house that night. The idea had her stomach tied in knots. Would Teresa let her go, or would she cause an uproar? Would she send someone after her?She’d hidden her new phone in the back of the attic in the same place where she’d hidden the one she’d stolen from Rome. Once the work was done, she listened to ma
Everything important to Ella was in a small backpack she wore beneath three layers of shirts and the only jacket she still had that she even remotely liked, a jean jacket with a rip in the sleeve she’d brought with her from France. The rip looked cool now, but that hadn’t been the way it’d looked when she bought it. She’d been wearing it one day when Anna and Drew were in an even more foul mood than usual and had taken it out on her, knocking her down and ripping her jacket. The pants she’d been wearing also got ripped and had ended up in the trash.
“Ella, honey, what’s going on?” Her dad sounded concerned. Ella’s natural instinct was to try to blow it off, to make it seem like it wasn’t a big deal, so he wouldn’t be so upset. But that wouldn’t help her situation any either. She needed to be honest with him.“Listen, Dad, I haven’t said anything to you because Teresa said she’d call her friends at Pleasant Hills and have me taken away. I also didn’t want to upset you. But, yes, I’ve been living
Tim’s apartment was gorgeous and spacious. It was on the top floor of a luxury apartment building that overlooked a golf course, so the view out Ella’s window--the guest room that he insisted she could claim for as long as she wanted or needed to--was beautiful. Trees bloomed in vibrant shades of red, white, and pink, with floral bushes surrounding their trunks. Beyond them, a rolling field of green filled her view. The sky was still blue, though twilight was falling, and she could see the first stars pinning themselves above her where the night and day had rolled together to make a soft, inky blue.
Somehow, Rome had let Mark talk him into going out for drinks, even though Rome really didn’t want to. The last thing he wanted was to go to Lucky Red where so many girls would be hitting on him. Nevertheless, sitting at the bar next to his best friend, Rome tried to concentrate on his beer and not the girls checking him out from across the room as Mark asked him question after question he didn’t want to answer.“Okay--so you accidentally called this number instead of mine, you start talking to this chick cause she sounded hot, and it turns out she&r
Ella had never purchased so many outfits at one time in her entire life. Anything she even remotely took an interest in, Tim insisted she get. There were so many bags of clothes sitting on the floor near her bed, it would take her at least an hour to put them all away. But she was so grateful to have a cousin who loved her so much and wanted to make her happy.He’d asked several questions while they were shopping, including about her friend that had brought her the phone and smuggled out her dress. Ella had been vague. She just told him it was someone she’
The audition had gone well. This was a part Rome had been dreaming of playing for months, since he’d first gotten the script back in the spring. The part was challenging, with lots of emotional dynamics, and he would love to have the challenge placed before him.Rome couldn’t help but smile as he walked out of the room, his script rolled up in his hand. He thanked the woman behind the desk and was about to head out the door, thinking about how awesome it would be to see Ella, when he almost ran into someone
Ella chose a booth away from the window, even though she really wished she could sit where the sunshine could hit her face. She thought it was safer to sit back in the corner, though, where less people would see them. While she doubted her cousin or her stepsisters would be in this part of town, she didn’t want anyone taking a picture of Rome and posting it someplace where Tim, her stepsisters, stepmother, or her dad would see it.She’d ordered a soda and was sipping it slowly, so glad to have something othe