Roman and Julienne's heart desire
Chapter 75: The picture that brings understanding and closeness

Chapter 75: The picture that brings understanding and closeness

"Ring ring," Lisa’s phone buzzed with another flurry of incoming calls, the screen lighting up with familiar names. Some were family.

Others—old friends from her social circle. All of them, no doubt, had seen the same thing.

"Grandma, won’t you pick the call?" Roman asked as he scooped another spoonful of steaming rice into his mouth.

His tone was casual, but there was an undertone of curiosity.

"No. Let them be," Lisa replied dismissively, slicing into her portion of roasted meat with effortless precision, her movements calm but deliberate.

Roman raised a brow, eyeing her for a beat. He knew her well enough to recognize that "let them be" never truly meant indifference. It meant she was thinking—calculating.

"They’re all asking what my relationship with Julie is," Lisa added finally, her voice smooth and unbothered as she placed a neat slice of meat into her mouth and chewed slowly.

"Shouldn’t they know by now?" Roman responded, setting down his fork and glancing sideways at Julie, who sat quietly beside him.

Reaching for her hand under the table, he laced their fingers together. Julie’s breath caught, but she didn’t resist.

The warmth of his touch seeped into her skin, grounding her.

"Shouldn’t they know that we are more than... something?" Roman continued, his eyes crinkling slightly as he turned to her with a wink.

Julie’s cheeks warmed instantly. She lowered her gaze shyly, her lips curling into a soft, embarrassed smile.

Why is he so hot every time he does that? Ah! I can’t even look straight at him when he does this, Julie thought, mentally groaning at how easily he flustered her.

Across the table, Lisa’s voice rang out with a hint of mock admonishment. "Let the girl eat, Roman."

But she was smiling—truly smiling. There was no malice, no judgment in her tone.

Just warmth. A quiet, amused kind of approval.

Roman chuckled, not the least bit deterred.

"Let me take this call," Lisa said as her phone buzzed again, the sound slicing through the moment.

"You should take it," Roman responded almost too quickly, his eyes never leaving Julie.

There was a touch of displeasure in his voice, subtle but real. He didn’t like her leaving the table—not when everything felt peaceful.

Lisa caught the tone immediately. Her brow arched as she smiled knowingly.

She didn’t reply with words, but her eyes said it all.

You don’t want to leave her side even for a second, do you?

Without another word, she rose gracefully and walked out of the dining room, the click of her low-heeled shoes echoing lightly across the tiled floor as she lifted the phone to her ear. "Hello?"

On the other end, Laila voice was almost bubbling with excitement.

"Mom, I think you should check online and see what’s trending. But don’t worry—I’ll save you the stress," Laila said, her tone far too pleased.

Lisa’s eyes narrowed slightly. "What do you mean, what’s trending?"

"You’ll see in a moment. I’ll forward it to you now," Laila said, smirking as she sent the message again—this time with a photo attached beside the already viral video.

Lisa’s phone chimed.

She clicked the message open and began downloading the photo.

As the image loaded fully on her screen, her eyes bulged.

Then they slowly narrowed, her whole expression changing.

Her chest rose with a quiet breath.

"Mom? Did you see it?" Laila pressed, sensing the pause. "I told you this girl isn’t as innocent as she pretends to be. And now you’ve seen it for yourself."

Lisa didn’t respond. Her lips remained sealed, her mind turning over quickly.

Without a word, she ended the call. Her screen dimmed, but she didn’t move right away.

Instead, she stood still in the corridor, staring blankly for a long moment before letting out a whisper to no one in particular.

"Why are they doing this?"

She stepped forward, her heels moving quietly now as her gaze drifted through the wide archway leading into the dining room.

From where she stood, she could clearly see Julie again, her face lit with a smile as Roman said something only meant for her ears.

Lisa leaned against the stair railing, folding her arms loosely.

"I pity her," she murmured. There was a sadness in her voice, and something else—an unspoken protectiveness that hadn’t fully formed yet but was beginning to stir.

Back at the table, Julie glanced at Roman, her expression soft and cautious.

"Roman... if one day you find out that I’m lying to you... will you leave me?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Roman’s gaze sharpened immediately. "Are you lying to me about something?"

Julie nodded, very slowly.

He leaned back in his chair, his eyes never leaving hers. But his tone was calm—strangely so.

"You don’t have to worry," he said. "I believe one day, you’ll tell me. And even if you don’t, I trust you have your reasons—for hiding it... and for doing whatever it is you’re doing."

Oh my!!!! Roman why are you so perfect and understanding.

Julie’s eyes welled slightly, but she blinked it away and smiled, moved by the quiet weight of his words.

"Thank you," she said.

Roman tilted his head. "Why?"

"For being magnanimous," Julie replied, her smile gentle now, eyes still glowing with gratitude.

"And thank you for being in my life," Roman said, his voice lowering as he leaned in slightly, a quiet intensity in his tone.

"Open your mouth," he said a moment later, lifting a fork with a tender piece of meat on it.

Julie blinked, stunned by the gesture. She looked at him, then at the fork, speechless.

"Come on," Roman coaxed, moving the fork closer.

Timidly, Julie opened her mouth, and Roman placed the meat between her lips.

She pulled it in with her teeth, slowly chewing as he smiled.

Then, without missing a beat, Roman took the same fork and popped it into his own mouth, savoring a bite.

Julie’s heart stuttered at the intimacy of it. There was something so simple, yet deeply romantic about it.

"Well, I miss my husband," Lisa’s voice rang gently from nearby, pulling them both out of the moment.

They turned their heads toward her, startled.

"Because seeing you two like this makes me remember something... and makes me miss it deeply," Lisa added, walking toward them now with a soft smile on her face. Her earlier seriousness was hidden well, tucked behind the easy grace of her voice.

"What does it make you remember?" Roman asked, curious.

Julie watched Lisa with interest too, noticing how the older woman’s eyes seemed both nostalgic and heavy.

"It reminds me of when I was young... with your grandfather," Lisa said, her voice light with memory.

"And do you know what I miss?" she asked again, almost teasingly.

They both shook their heads in unison.

"The same thing," she said, smiling wistfully. "I miss the way we used to be. I miss how we laughed and shared everything like you two are doing now. I miss him."

"I’m sorry," Julie said, uncertain of what to say but sensing the emotional weight.

"No, no, don’t be sorry," Lisa replied quickly. "It’s not like you asked him to live far away from me. We... we made our choices."

"Now that you mention him," Roman began, "it makes me want to ask—where is he now?"

Lisa looked at Roman for a moment, then replied softly, "Somewhere in Paris."

She pulled back her chair and sat down again, folding her hands in front of her.

Her playful tone was gone now, replaced with something more sober.

"Julie. Roman," she said seriously, her gaze moving between the two of them.

"There’s something I want the three of us to discuss."

The shift in her demeanor was immediate and clear.

Roman’s posture straightened. Julie grew still.

Lisa drew in a breath, her expression composed but serious.

"I don’t want you to panic," she began. "But there’s something circulating. A video. And a photo."

Julie’s hands tightened slightly around the edge of the table.

Lisa continued. "The video of you two... the one from the university. It’s being spread everywhere. But someone has attached a different image next to it. One that looks manipulated. Edited."

Julie’s eyes widened as she immediately grab what Lisa want to say.

And Roman smile in surprised but he released a sigh of relief looking at his grandma.

Lisa held her gaze. "Julie, they’re trying to ruin your image. Whoever did this knows what they’re doing. And it’s not just gossip—it’s deliberate."

Julie said nothing, but Roman reached over, placing a hand over hers.

"I know," Roman said calmly.

Lisa blinked. "You know?"

"I saw it," he said. "And I’ve already begun finding out who started it."

Lisa let out a long, slow breath, leaning back in her seat. "Good. Because I don’t care what it takes—we’ll protect her. She’s part of this family now."

"Wait... has Grandma ever been this protective of me before?" Roman wondered to himself after hearing what Lisa said.

Julie’s eyes welled again, this time with something deeper—gratefulness, relief, and maybe, for the first time in a long time, a sense of belonging.

Roman didn’t say a word. He only leaned closer to her, tightening his hold on her hand.

And under the soft chandelier light, with the warmth of quiet unity around the dining table, Lisa gave a small, solemn nod.

They were no longer just individuals trying to hold things together.

They were a family—imperfect, perhaps, but willing to stand for each other.

No matter the storm outside.