Chapter 28: Chapter 28
“As you can see, the view is lovely. Though you can’t see the ocean from here, it is a spectacular sight when you wake up in the morning to see the swaying palm trees and a wide expanse of blue sky.”
Veronica, the manager of the apartment complex where Rome lived, was a woman in her mid-forties who spoke like someone who’d been showing real estate properties for at least a few decades.
“It’s a lovely space,” Ella agreed, checking out the size of the master bedroom again. It came furnished, and the bed in the room was king-sized--plenty of room for her, and maybe one more…. “And you say it’s a six-month lease?”
“Yes, and you get two parking spots.”
Ella smiled politely, even though she hadn’t even arranged to get her car from Teresa yet. She hadn’t wanted to bother Tim with the car and the apartment all at once, not when he was a bundle of nerves waiting to hear about the movie he’d auditioned for a few days earlier.
He looked distracted and maybe a little bored as he turned on water taps and opened drawers. “What do you think, Tim?” she asked him, strolling into the kitchen. It was also a big room, and she could see herself cooking here. Though it had been a while since she’d been in the kitchen, she’d always enjoyed whipping up her late grandmother's recipes with her mother and then her aunt. Grandma Francesca had been quite the expert in the kitchen.
“I think it’s nice,” Tim said with a shrug. “Are you sure you don’t want to look at a place closer to mine, though? I hate to think of you all the way over here by yourself.”
“It’s only ten miles, Tim. That’s less than twenty minutes when traffic is normal, just a bit longer when it’s heavy. Besides, I’m sure I’ll make friends soon.” She hadn’t told him that she already had a friend who lived a few doors down. He had no idea this was where Rome lived. If he did, he never would’ve considered letting her look at the apartment.
He blew out a hot breath. “If you like it, the price isn’t bad for what you’re getting. Sure, why not?”
Ella couldn’t control herself. She jumped up and down and clapped her hands before squealing and launching herself at Tim who caught her and laughed. “I’m getting my own place!”
“Yeah,” he said, only half as happy as she was. “Sign on the dotted line, and then we’ve gotta take you shopping. You’ll need towels, dishes, pots and pans, all that good stuff.”
Exhaustion rolled over her just thinking about it, but she knew it had to be done. Unless she just went out and bought a laptop and did everything else online. But that might mean she had no sheets at bedtime tonight. “All right, let’s do it.”
Veronica happily handed over the paperwork, and Ella signed everything. She transferred funds to Tim so he could write a check for the deposit and first month’s rent, and then Veronica shook her hand and presented her with the keys. “It’s good to have you here, Ms. Sinders. I’m sure you’ll be very happy.”
Ella shook her hand. Thoughts of visiting Rome any time she wanted to made her smile broaden. “I’m sure I will be, too.”
Once the woman was gone, Ella spun around her living room, jumping up and down. “I’m free! I’m free!”
“From me?” Tim joked. “Gee, I didn’t know I was that bad.”
Giggling, Ella said, “No, from my evil step-monster, silly. Shoot, I’ve gotta get some groceries, too.”
“Me, too. I’ve gotta get some more Coca-Cola. Someone keeps drinking mine.” He winked at her, and she gave him a playful punch in the arm.
“You won’t have to worry about that anymore!”
“True. I’m gonna miss having you around, though. It was nice seeing you every day.”
“You’ll still see lots of me,” she promised. “Now, where do we go to get stuff for my house?”
“Rodeo Drive, baby,” Tim said with a big grin.
“I thought they just sold clothes.”
Shaking his head, Tim put his arm around her. “Oh, Ella. Sweet Ella. You have so much to learn.” He led her out to his car, and Ella hopped in, thinking that was true, but at least she could learn it in her own apartment and no longer had to worry about anyone telling her what she could or could not do.
In his apartment, Rome sat with his phone in his hand, but he wasn’t using it. He was just waiting. He knew that Ella had taken the apartment because she’d sent him a text earlier in the day, but now she was out shopping with Tim. As much as Rome wished it was him out there with her, he knew it couldn’t be. It was bad enough some paparazzi had taken his picture with her at the restaurant. It was hard to see her face in the pictures, so no one had figured out that it was her yet, but if Tim saw it, he would know. Then, Rome would be in trouble, and Ella would have some difficult decisions to make.
His phone rang, and Rome practically jumped out of his skin. It wasn’t her, though. Waiting until his heart settled a bit, Rome took a deep breath, and then answered, “Hey, Marge. How are you?”
“Rome, my dear, I’m fabulous! How are you? Are you sitting down?”
“I am,” he replied, thinking she didn’t really want an answer to her first question and it was funny that she thought he might fall over with whatever she had to tell him if he wasn’t sitting down. “What’s up?”
“I just heard back from the casting director for that movie you auditioned for the other day. Guess what? They want to cast you to play Robert! Isn't that wonderful?”
Rome’s mouth dropped open. It was wonderful--but he wasn’t sure he wanted the role anymore. He didn’t know what to say.”
“Are you there, Rome?” she asked. “Did you hear me?”
“Yes, Marge. I heard you. That’s, uh, great news. Did they happen to say who their second choice was?”
“What? Why? Are you thinking you don’t want it?”
“It’s not that. Not necessarily. It’s just… did they say?”
“Yeah. They said it was close between you and Tim Bolt, but ultimately, they decided to give it to you.”
He wasn’t sure if that was good news or bad news. “All right, Marge. Call them back and tell them to give the part of Robert to Tim, and I’ll take something else, something smaller, something without a lot of scenes with him.”
“What? Are you crazy!” Marge almost exploded over the phone. “But you’ve been dying to get this part, Rome.”
“I know, I know. But I spoke to him at the audition today, and it’s more important to him than it is to me. Just… tell them, all right?”
It took her a moment to respond but when she did, she said, “All right. I'll tell them, but you’ve got a screw loose, Rome Verona.”
“You’re probably right, Marge. Thank you. Let me know what they say.”
“I’ll be in touch.”
She hung up, and Rome rested his head back on his couch, hoping he hadn’t just made a costly mistake. He had desperately wanted that role, it was true, but maybe if he had the chance to work on the same movie with Tim, he’d see he wasn’t so bad, and if Tim got the role he wanted, maybe he’d be happy enough not to be so rude the next time Rome reached out to him.
It was worth a shot, anyway. What did he have to lose?
While it seemed like a win-win situation, an unsettled feeling came over Rome, and he started to think perhaps he’d set something in motion that would be detrimental in the future. To whom, he couldn’t say, but it didn’t feel right, even if it was an unselfish thing to do.
What was done was done; there was no turning back….
Deciding he may as well let it go, Rome went back to waiting for his phone to ring, hoping Ella was having a good time while she was out shopping with her cousin and imaging how happy Tim would be when he found out he got the part.
About an hour later, his phone rang again. This time, he managed to keep his cool, and when he heard Ella’s voice on the other end of the line, he couldn’t help but smile. “How are you?” she asked.
“I’m great, now that you’ve called. How are you? All of your shopping done?”
“For now. I still have a few things to get. But… do you wanna come to see my apartment?”
“No. But I wanna come to see you,” he teased.
“Well, you’ll have to see my apartment, too, then, because I’m in it.”
“I’ll be right over.”
Rome was off the couch, keys, and phone in his pocket, and out the door before he could blink. No longer worried about the movie or Tim, he rushed to Ella’s apartment, desperate to kiss her and hold her in his arms again.