Bitter Heat

by Mia Knight

  There were words to write, but she couldn’t focus. Mason had called several times since she walked out of the meeting. Fuck him. Her voicemail was full, so he couldn’t leave a message. He sent her a few text messages. His tone had significantly changed, but she wasn’t buying it. Roth also sent texts ordering her to call, but she didn’t. Mason’s words kept knocking around in her head. The fact that he had brought up Roth taking over Hennessy & Co niggled at the back of her mind. Would people assume she was marrying him out of gratitude for saving their company or that she was in dire need of funds and groveled to be his wife again? Even as she told herself it didn’t matter what others thought, she stewed on it.

  She had visited Colette several times in the past week and spent hours cuddled up with Polara while Colette napped. The only downside was running into Lyle who wasn’t buying into her engagement. He was suspicious and determined to have her spill what was really going on, but she stonewalled the fuck out of him. Her brother-in-law was a successful and formidable man in his arena, but Roth’s assets were diverse and far exceeded their net worth, so fighting him would be a futile effort. The easiest course of action was to play along with the charade. There was a time limit on it, and then all of them would be free of his machinations.

  She rapped her fingers on the counter as she contemplated her computer screen and froze when she heard the elevator ding, announcing someone’s arrival into the penthouse. She watched the kitchen entrance warily, expecting Roth to charge in and grab her by the throat.

  “Ms. Hennessy?”

  The soft, feminine voice was the last thing she expected. She slipped off the stool and found Sarai in the living room with a stylish work bag slung over one shoulder.

  “Congratulations!” she said with such exuberance that Jasmine took a step back.

  “I’m sorry?”

  “On your engagement, of course.” Sarai bounced up and down in her heels and clapped her hands. “I knew the books would bring you two back together.”

  She hid her clenched fist behind her back. She couldn’t beat up her own fan now, could she? “Can I help you with something?”

  “Yes, I need information,” Sarai said promptly and perched on the edge of the couch and brandished her iPad. “What theme did you have in mind?”

  “Theme?” she echoed, completely at sea.

  “For the wedding.”

  It took a concentrated effort to stop her lip from curling. “What do we need a theme for?”

  Sarai blinked. “Your bouquet? The cake? We want them to match, right?”

  She pursed her lips to stop herself from saying she didn’t give a rat’s ass about a theme for her fake wedding. This was getting worse and worse. It was bad enough that he had spent a ridiculous amount on a princess dress, but now he sent Sarai to ask her about themes?

  “How about modern fall colors?” Sarai said. “Plum and soft pinks? What do you think of that?”

  She nodded, and Sarai began to scribble.

  “Great. I already have the photographer booked…” she said absently.

  “For what date?”

  Sarai waved her hand. “Not sure yet. Roth’s schedule is still in flux. They’re on standby.” She looked up and pointed at her. “Don’t you worry about the details. That’s my job.”

  Good because she wasn’t going to fuss over any of this.

  “I have a minister,” Sarai continued. “Aside from your family, is there anyone else you’d like to invite?”

  “No,” she said and then she amended, “Kaia.”

  “Great, great,” Sarai said as she made more notes. “Preference for the menu?”

  “Menu?”

  “A little spread after the ceremony.” Sarai glanced up, saw her expression, and waved a hand. “I’ll take care of it. Do you have your dress?”

  “Yes.”

  “Goodie.” Sarai made a notation on the iPad. “I’m sure it’s gorgeous. Daiyu Wu is a genius.”

  “So Vogue says,” she muttered.

  Sarai grinned. “Vogue doesn’t lie.”

  “Don’t you normally travel with Roth?” she asked, belatedly realizing they were normally joined at the hip.

  “Yes,” Sarai said absently as she continued to scribble. “I just got back. I had some other things to take care of here. He’ll be back soon. What’s your favorite flower?”

  “Jasmine.”

  Sarai winked. “Gotcha. Is there anything else that you want me to organize for your big day?”

  “Um, no. Thank you.”

  Sarai rose and tucked her iPad away. “I’m so happy for you two.”

  She didn’t have the energy to smile so she nodded. “Thank you.”

  Sarai cocked her head to the side and examined her for a moment. Her expression softened. “Are you okay?”

  “Of course.”

  “I know this is a lot, and you’ve had a rough few months, but I think this is a step in the right direction. If what you wrote is true, you guys had something special. You don’t want to let that go. You’re getting a second chance, and that’s a beautiful thing.”

  Sarai radiated sincerity. She didn’t have the heart to shatter her illusions.

  “Roth holds everything close to his chest, but he’s a good man,” Sarai continued as she shouldered her bag. “No one can force him to do anything. He knows what he wants, and he doesn’t stop until he obtains it.” She cocked her head to the side. “He’s different with you.”

  She said nothing.

  “Have you been settling in well?” Sarai asked, tactfully changing the subject.

  “Yes.” She waved vaguely. “I’ve been spending a lot of time in the kitchen.”

  “You’re a cook?”

  “No. I’ve been working in there.”

  Sarai’s eyes lit up. “You’re writing?”

  “Trying to, but there’s a lot going on.”

  Sarai gave her a sympathetic look. “I bet. Maybe after the wedding, you can really get to work. Are you writing book five?”

  “Yes.”

  Sarai put a hand on her chest and took a deep breath. “I can’t wait to see how you wrap this all up. If you ever need anyone to read for you, call me, okay?”

  She nodded. “I will. Thank you.”

  Sarai checked her watch. “I’ll get everything sorted. In the meantime, you need anything, I’m your girl.”

  “I will.”

  Sarai walked to the elevator. Was it a coincidence that she blocked the keypad or was she being paranoid? And how the fuck did Sarai have a code and she didn’t? Jasmine ground her teeth.

  “By the way, Roth said to call him when you get a chance,” Sarai said over her shoulder as she boarded the elevator.

  Fuck him.

  Chapter 17

  Seven Years Ago

  She was walking across campus when she saw him. He was standing beneath a tree, hands in pockets, and getting a lot of attention from the girls passing by. He wore dark glasses, jeans, a light blue button-up, and a gray sports coat. He made college boys look like they were going through puberty. The sight of him made her already heavy heart sink to her toes. He shouldn’t be here.

  For a moment, she considered ignoring him. She should. It was over, and any other interactions with him would only lead to more pain, but she didn’t walk away. She stood rooted to the spot with students rushing around her. He didn’t come to her; he just watched her steadily, waiting for her to come to him. He exuded confidence. It was something he had in spades and something she lacked. She wanted to throw herself into his arms and cry, but she had done too much of that lately. What was he doing here? Had he come to say goodbye? Even as the thought filled her with dread, she lurched into motion because she was a glutton for punishment. She stopped several feet away, drinking him in and trying to imprint this image of him in her mental bank to drool over later.

  “We need to talk,” he said.

  She blinked. That wasn’t what she was expecting. “That’s not a good idea.”

>   “I’m not asking.”

  She frowned. “Didn’t you get my text?”

  “My father knows,” he quoted. “I can’t see you anymore. I’m sorry.”

  “So, what are you doing here?”

  “I need more than that.”

  He grabbed her arm and propelled her in the direction of her apartment, which was a block away.

  “I have class!”

  “You can make it up.”

  “Someone’s going to see!” she hissed as she tried to pull away.

  “Let them.”

  He sounded supremely unconcerned.

  “We need to stop this,” she whispered desperately. “My father’s going to destroy you.”

  “Let me worry about your father.”

  “He said he’s going to cut you out of the Langdon deal if I didn’t—”

  “He already did it.”

  “But…” She felt ill. “But I broke it off with you.”

  He glanced at her, but she couldn’t read his expression when he still had his shades on.

  “I’m sorry, Roth. You worked so hard on that deal.”

  He dragged her into her apartment building and didn’t release her even when they got a sidelong glance from the couple in the elevator. Her stomach rocked as she stared straight ahead. Her father followed through on his threat even though she had complied with his wishes. The Langdon deal was supposed to take Roth to the next level, and now it was gone.

  Her hand trembled as she pulled the keys out of her backpack. Roth pulled them from her grasp and unlocked the door. She preceded him into the apartment, set her bag on the floor, and strode to the windows.

  “I’m so sorry,” she said thickly. “He promised he wouldn’t…”

  He pulled her around to face him. “Tell me what happened.”

  She dropped her face as her eyes filled with tears. She took two uneasy steps back and shrugged, eyes downcast. “I’m sure you can guess.”

  “I want to hear it.”

  She swallowed hard and wrapped her arms around her middle. “He told me to come to New York.” She stared at his shoes as she tried to think of a way to make this as painless as possible. “He knew.”

  She dragged her shoe on the carpet, trying to focus on the pattern she was making rather than the insults that had been hurled at her. She had never seen her father like that before. He was enraged and disgusted at the sight of her. She had been such a fool. For two blissful months, she had suspended reality, and for the first time in her life, she did what she wanted. She fell for a guy and indulged to the hilt. She convinced herself that Philadelphia was worlds away from New York, and their affair would remain just between them. She was wrong.

  “I don’t know who told him,” she said and acted like she was brushing back her hair so she could surreptitiously swipe away a tear. “He told me he would go after your businesses if I didn’t break it off.”

  “And?” he prompted when she went quiet.

  She covered her mouth as it began to tremble. When he took a step toward her, she held up a hand and stumbled back. “No.”

  She couldn’t let him touch her. She was hanging on by a thread as it was. One touch and she would shatter.

  “Tell me what he said.”

  A tear slid down her cheek, and she wiped it away with her sleeve. “It doesn’t matter.”

  “It does.”

  She flinched as her father’s voice sliced through her. You really are your mother’s daughter. She had always known she was a disappointment, but the things Maximus hurled at her destroyed the alternate reality she had been living in. He laid into her, reviling her. Every word out of his mouth felt like a physical blow, and she stayed in bed for days after. For the first time in her life, she cried in front of him. That didn’t stop him even when she begged him to stop. She apologized, promising she would never do anything like this again, but he wouldn’t listen to her. No apology would be enough to repair what she’d done. What had she been thinking to start an affair with another man when she was engaged to Ford?

  A hand slid over her hair. She wrenched away and held both hands up.

  “Don’t, Roth,” she whispered.

  “What did he say, princess?”

  “Don’t call me that,” she said harshly as she covered her face with both hands. “I’m not a princess.”

  “You are to me.” He pulled her hands down, and when she tried to turn her face away, he cupped her wet cheeks. “Look at me.”

  “No.”

  She was shaking as she tried to keep it all in.

  “It’s okay.”

  “No, it’s not. We shouldn’t have… and you lost your deal.”

  “There will be other deals.”

  “No, there won’t. You don’t know my dad.”

  “Don’t worry about me.”

  His calm voice soothed her frazzled nerves. He wiped away her tears with the sleeve of his coat and brushed her hair back from her face.

  “Don’t be nice to me,” she said raggedly.

  “Why?”

  “I don’t deserve it.”

  He jerked her chin up, forcing her to look at him. The anger he didn’t allow to leak into his voice was in his eyes. The black pools were swimming with dark emotions.

  “Don’t listen to him,” he said.

  She gave a weak laugh as more tears slid down her face. “That’s not possible.”

  “What do you want, Jasmine?” he asked as his thumb brushed over her bottom lip.

  She stepped back as a bolt of heat chased away the guilt and sadness. She touched her lip, which pulsed, begging to be kissed. “What are you talking about?”

  “This is about Ford, right?”

  She twisted her hands together. “He doesn’t know yet.”

  “Do you want to marry him?”

  Her brows drew together. “We’re engaged.”

  “That’s not what I asked.”

  She searched his face. “I don’t understand.”

  “Do you want to marry him?”

  “I…”

  “If you wanted him, you wouldn’t have slept with me.”

  She jerked. “I don’t—”

  “Be honest, Jasmine.”

  She threw up her hands and paced. “My relationship with Ford isn’t like that!”

  “You don’t have a relationship with him. You see him once a month for dinner with his family. It’s all business.”

  “It’s what my sisters have.”

  “You aren’t them.”

  “How do you know?”

  “You aren’t built like them.” He gestured to her bookshelf. “You’re an artist. You should be writing, not going to school for business and economics. It’s why you have such a hard time in your classes. Your heart isn’t in it.”

  She stiffened. “I’m trying.”

  “You shouldn’t be. You’re no good at it. Your family is trying to fit you into their mold, and you don’t fit.”

  Her eyes filled with tears. “I want to fit.”

  “There are other molds. You don’t have to fit into theirs.”

  She stared at him. “What are you saying?”

  “I’m saying you can choose another path.”

  “Which is?”

  “Me.”

  Her heart stopped.

  “I don’t have the money your family does, but I work hard. I’ll marry you.”

  She shook her head, eyes wide.

  “Is that a no?”

  “My father’s going to ruin you and disown me,” she whispered.

  “I have money.”

  “But…” Her mind was buzzing. “My father…”

  “Leave him to me.”

  She shook her head. “You don’t know him like I do.”

  “I know how he works.”

  “But he means it. He’ll destroy you.”

  “Don’t worry about that. Do you want to marry Ford?”

  Before she met Roth, she thought she wanted Ford. Now she wasn’t sur
e. She hovered on the precipice.

  Roth brought out a side of her she didn’t know existed. She didn’t have to put on an act. He liked her for who she was. For the first time in her life, she truly understood what it meant to be happy. All her life, she followed the path her father plotted out for her. She’d been content because she didn’t know anything existed beyond her father’s outline and then she met Roth. She loved the way he made her feel—empowered, desirable, strong. He listened to her and asked for her opinion. He made her yearn for a different path. With Ford, she already knew what her life would look like and where it ended. With Roth, the possibilities were endless. She had no idea how he felt about her, but he was offering marriage. Maybe he did love her.

  “Jasmine.”

  His voice was terse and impatient.

  “What?”

  “Stop thinking about what others want for you. Do you want him or not?” Roth bit out.

  As she struggled to answer, he closed the distance between them.

  “You don’t want him. You want me.”

  Her lip trembled as she tried to keep her emotions contained.

  “You want me, don’t you?”

  With everything in her. “We can’t.”

  “Why not?” he asked gently.

  “My father’s going to…”

  “What do you want?”

  She hesitated.

  “Come on,” he coaxed.

  “I… I want you,” she said in a rush. “But I can’t have you!”

  He caged her against him. “You can.”

  He was willing to risk his livelihood on her? She couldn’t believe it. “No.”

  “Don’t worry about your father or what people will say.”

  A tear slipped down her cheek. “I don’t want you to regret this.”

  “I won’t.”

  “Promise?”

  “Promise.” He stroked her cheek. “Are you going to marry me?”

  All the wounds her father inflicted instantly began to mend. Her heart swelled so large, she couldn’t take a breath. “Are you… Are you sure?”

  She wanted to leap off the cliff, wanted it so desperately she could taste it. Freedom. That was what he was offering. She was lightheaded with terror and hope. She hadn’t realized she was in a cage until she met him. He was her knight in shining armor, willing to slay dragons for her.