Abstain

Uh-oh. I closed my eyes, fighting against the furious irritation that wanted to consume me.
"Hello," I said, stepping up to shake her trembling hand. Her skin was thin, old but smooth and soft.
"So this is Nuru Lynn," she mumbled thoughtfully. "Such a pretty young thing. Not so plain at all."
I blinked, bewildered.
"But please..." She took my hand as she continued, "Ruth should never know I think of you otherwise."
I nodded once, managing a smile. "Of course."
"Would you excuse us, Elizabeth. I've got to find Ruth," Roman said.
"Oh, alright. We'll chat again later."
"Of course," Roman agreed.
And then he led the way as he struggled through the throng of guests who one by one stopped him with polite greetings and some tried to engage in conversation.
When we'd finally broke through the impossible sea of famous, wealthy faces, Ruth stepped in front of us.
"Roman dear," Ruth mumbled. "I've missed you. Come here." She hugged him.
"Happy birthday, grandma."
She blushed and waved away Roman's wishes hysterically. "Don't shower me with attention," she hissed. "I'm not one for social gatherings. Kate always goes overboard."
I cringed, feeling sorry for her.
Roman groaned. "I know."
"You brought Nuru," she grumbled my name and then faked a smile. "Hello dear."
"Hello," I mumbled shyly.
"Enjoy the party," she told me dismissively, and then turned her warm gaze at Roman. "Roman, you have to come along and meet Amber."
Roman groaned.
"You'll love her, Roman," she gushed. "Amber is such a lovely girl. Plus, you're the one who didn't show up for our scheduled lunch meeting."
"But Ruth —"
She interrupted Roman's protest. "It'll only take a minute." She turned to face me again. "You won't mind, dear, would you?"
I was about to answer when Roman spoke. "If I'm going then my girlfriend is coming with me."
"What?" both Ruth and I asked simultaneously.
I was shocked he'd told Ruth there was more to us than just friendship.
"But you said..." She trailed off in bewildered confusion.
Her face was ghostly, her eyes wide with surprise — infuriated bewilderment.
"I know," he whispered. "And at the time she was just a friend."
She nodded thoughtfully. The irritation still fresh in her eyes. "I see."
Roman and I watched her process the news. She was suddenly pale. It looked like she wasn't breathing. I feared for her health.
"But Roman... she... you... this..." her mouth was gaping open in surprise. She didn't try to speak again for a long moment.
And then Kate, Julius and their other son joined us.
"Kate!" Ruth said, still stunned. "Would you listen to Roman?"
"What it, mom?" Kate asked Ruth and then gave me a swift hug. "How nice to see you again, Nuru. You look amazing."
I cast my eyes to the floor. "Thanks. You look great too."
"He says he has a girlfriend, now," Ruth went on, her face still dazed.
"Roman has a girlfriend?" Julius repeated in a stunned voice. "An actually girlfriend? He told you this himself? Addressed her by the title you're using?"
Isaac gasped.
I was confused.
"Did he tell you the girl's name?" Kate asked, her eyes were alit with excitement. "He's never given anyone that title before."
"See...?" Ruth said, shaking his head. "That's why I don't hear this."
Isaac grumbled. "Please, someone enlighten us, what's her name?"
"It's Nuru," Roman said.
"Nuru?" Julius asked and then shared a knowing look with Kate. "When I saw her tame him, I warned you all this was inevitable. The signs were all there."
Ruth shook her head. "Oh dear!" Suddenly she glanced at Roman. "What do I say to Amber now?"
Roman sighed. "The truth, perhaps."
"That you're in an illicit relationship?"
Roman's jaw clenched. "Why don't you replace illicit with serious? That'll save us a lot of trouble."
Isaac smiled, smug. "How comical, Roman. Of all the girls you've been with. You choose to introduce this one as the girlfriend?" his laughter roared in the room.
Several heads turned to stare.
"Well..." Kate said, voice faint. "It's a good thing he's found someone after all. You worried Ruth, that he would wander this world alone. Now you can rest assured."
Ruth shook her head, horrified. "But Nuru...?"
I stiffened.
Roman looked at me and by the look on his face I knew if we weren't in such a crowded place, he'd have held my hand.
"Grandma Ruth, please be nice," Roman mumbled. "I'm serious about this girl."
Ruth was still dazed. "Nuru? Wow!"
There was a swell of uncomfortable silence. The silence was driving me insane. It was louder than the music coming from the speakers.
Isaac still looked like he wanted to laugh.
And then Ruth turned and disappeared in the crowd.
Kate looked at me with a pleased expression as she addressed her son. "Roman, you must find Ruth. I wouldn't want this night to ruin. You know you're the only who can talk to her when she gets like this."
Roman's eyes narrowed on me.
"Go," I mumbled, a sense of guilt washing over me. I'd ruined Ruth's birthday. "Please. And if it makes things better, tell Ruth I'll leave."
"Don't be ridiculous," Kate mumbled. "Stay."
"What are you waiting for, Roman?" Julius asked. "Our guests might begin to wonder."
He hesitated for a moment, his hand lifted as if to touch my face but then he dropped it, his eyes moving around the room. He dissolved into the crowd.
"That was interesting for a change," Isaac mumbled. It sounded like he was trying not to laugh. "Roman, doing something illegal? And all it took was a green-eyed teenager? I never thought I'd witness the day."
His laughter drifted through the room again. I smiled, and tried not to see the humor in this.
"Join me for a drink," Isaac said to me.
"Isaac..." Julius warned him. "I really don't think that's a good idea."
Kate was nodding in agreement with Julius. Her eyes were panicked.
"We wouldn't want to push Roman, not tonight," Kate said, eyeing the crowd for emphasis. "The last thing we need is a gossip column dedicated to us."
Isaac sighed. "She's good for him, right? You said so too, dad."
"And your point?" Julius asked.
"Is... she won't let anything happen to me, plus, I won't cross the line. Not that she's not pretty because damn she's hot but if Roman can have me hospitalised for a fuck buddy, I'm afraid what he'd do to me for this kid."
I cringed at the word kid.
"Don't worry," I hedged. "Roman is not a lunatic."
All three pairs of eyes looked at me as if I was crazy.
Isaac snickered.
Julius groaned his disbelief.
"Maybe not since he's met you," Kate agreed with me. "I haven't seen that part of Roman in a while." She smiled. "And I don't have to replace my furniture every third day."
I walked with Isaac to the beverage table. He was careful to keep a two feet distance between us.
"Relax," I told him.
"You really have no clue what Roman is really capable of, do you?"
I smiled. "I do."
"Do you think he'd ever forgive me?"
"Are you sorry?"
"I am."
"Why did you do it?"
Isaac sighed. "Roman has everything. Even if we walk into a room together, immediately people notice him. I have to do something scandalous for me to attract the level of attention he does by simply being in the room."
I could sympathise with him. "I know exactly what you mean."
"I envy him at times."
I nodded thoughtfully. "Have you tried writing him an email? Or a letter?"
"I'll give the letter thing a try."
It was a long night.
When Roman came back with Ruth he'd been as furious as I'd expected him to be but not as hostile as Julius, Kate and Isaac had expected. I saw them sigh in relief when he'd just narrowed his eyes at Isaac and then dragged me across the room.
As the party progressed and all fifty plus guests gathered around the long oval table for dinner, they spoke all things politics, which I knew nothing about.
Occasionally I'd glance at Roman across the table, where he was sitting next to Amber. She flaunted her generous chest at Roman, who didn't seem to be paying her much attention, at least, not the type of attention a man pays a woman.
Rather his attention seemed to be on mine and Isaac's conversation. His eyes would narrow every time Isaac lowered his hand to his glass of wine, which, coincidentally was near my hand resting palm first on the table.
Finally after what seemed like an eternity, the guests started leaving, most had brought gifts with them and as they glided to the door, they'd drop them at the table.
Roman too had a gift for Ruth and he handed me a small gift box.
"It's a watch," he told me. "Ruth has been craving it for a while. It's a limited edition."
"But she'll know it's not from me," I complained. "She knows I don't have that kind of money."
He gave me the other larger gift bag he held.
"What's this?"
"It's a book. One of the limited few Shakespeare autographed."
"It's no better than the watch."
He rolled his eyes and we'd reached the table by then. We dropped our respective gifts and walked to the car.
The sunset was beautiful in the distance, the air warm and crisp, the gentle breeze fell on my face with delight and rumbled my hair through the open window.
Roman pulled me to his side and his hand ran up my inner thigh.
"Roman," I shrieked. "You're supposed to be celibate."
"Yes, I know," he sighed sadly. "A bloody hard thing to do, especially because you're concerned. You're a damn temptress."
"No, I'm not."
He met my stare. "Yes you are."
I blinked up at him. "Um, so, are you going to kiss me now?"
"Nuru," he said, voice disapproving. "I'm driving."
"What are the plans for the night?" I asked him.
He turned to look at me. "I promised you a movie night."
"Horror?"
He grimaced. "Yes."
I rolled my eyes. "No horror for the baby."
"You're the baby in this relationship."
"And yet I can stomach gore, and gruesome murders."
"Fine. What would you rather we do then?"
"You could make love to me."
"Ah, then in that case, we're watching horror."
"Ugh," I groaned. "Fine! But no horror. We're star gazing tonight."