Chapter 52 You fell through a woman, again.
CHAPTER 52
You fell.
ROMAN – POINT OF VIEW
“Sure,” I tell Elena with a shrug.
She narrows her gaze at me, then looks at Scarlett, sending me an unspoken message. I realise immediately, so I tap Scarlett’s shoulder lightly, and she looks at me, her doe eyes making my heart pound hard. I’m such a fool.
“What do you say? Think you can survive a few weeks in a tight corner with me?” I tease, my gaze lingering on her delicate neck. I clench my jaw tight and push away those thoughts. I was rough with her, and she needs to heal before I touch her again.
She sighs, slumping her shoulders, and nods, “Sounds great, as long as there are preparations in place and I know in advance.”
“Of course, you’ll have the schedule tonight,” Elena assures us.
“Alright, then, settled. Make the plans.” I declare, and she smiles.
“Since we are done with that. We have to surf through your wardrobe again for a fitting dress, or we go shopping. At this point, we might need to hire a personal stylist, one we can keep close by.” Elena sighs, massaging her forehead like she’s exhausted in advance.
I frown, then turn the stool, so Scar is facing me.
“Hi.” She smiles at me, amused.
I chuckle, then whisper, “I had the money sent. You’ve seen it?”
This is the second month of our ruse, and she’s obviously not comfortable with me bringing it up, considering we’ve disregarded the content of the contract. I folded in less than a month. How wonderful.
She nods, looking away from me.
“Do you want a personal stylist?” I ask, running my fingers through her hair.
She cutely scrunches her nose, “I don’t know about that. The more people in my space, the weirder it is. Maybe I’ll get fashion advice or get a lot of dresses. I’ll have a stylist on speed dial, someone who can help me when I get confused, or when Elena is not satisfied, which she never is.”
“I can hear you.” Elena snaps.
“I wanted you to!” Scarlett informs her calmly.
I grin because I love her feisty attitude.
“Anyway, knock yourself out. Let me know if the fifty grand doesn’t cover the cost, and I’ll have Caleb handle it. I’m about to get really busy. There’s a problem that needs my attention. Caleb, Damian and I will be out, but we’ll get back before tonight. I’ll pick you up.” I explain, sighing deeply.
I want to spend more time with her, but duty calls.
“Okay. I’ll be here.” She assures me.
I look at her, her full lips, her flushed cheeks, her beautiful eyes, how perfect she looks in my clothes. I bite down the urge to kiss her in front of everyone. When I kiss her again, I’ll do it right.
Instead, I kiss her forehead and step back.
I nod at Rick and head to the door. Caleb joins me, and we walk out together. Damian is leaning against the car, phone in hand, but he doesn’t look as pissed as before.
“Come on, they’re expecting us.” He urges, and we get in the car.
He drives us to the FBI headquarters, and we get it taken care of. It takes a couple of hours, a lot of conversations, evidence, and all, but we have it all handled. We leave there exhausted, but fulfilled.
It’s evening as I drive back home alone. Damian is going alone, but Caleb will meet Eve at the venue. He doesn’t talk about Rick, but I know his presence threatens what he wants with Eve. He needs to man up and just ask her out already. If he gets rejected, at least he'll know, rather than hoping.
I return home and slip into my bedroom, where I quickly change into a black suit. I adorn my wrist with my Patek, then make sure my rings are complete.
Scarlett’s laughter floats in, and I walk downstairs, impatient to see her.
When I finally do, my mouth falls open in shock.
She’s wearing a backless pale yellow dress that looks perfect on her, but flimsy, and embodies seduction. She’s teasing me with the dress, very obviously, and it’s working. Her hair is packed in a tight bun, and she has light makeup on and simple earrings, that is all, which means her back is the real accessory.
“You like it?” She asks, giving me a twirl.
“Do I like it? Like it? I’m contemplating ditching the Gala and keeping you all to myself.” I scoff, closing the distance between us.
“We'd better not do that. Elena might combust.” She chuckles.
“I heard that!” Elena yells from somewhere.
“That’s the point!” She yells back.
I shake my head with a smile and wrap my arms around her. “Let’s get this over with. We show our faces and leave early.”
She beams, “We can do that.”
So, we get in the car and make our way to the Gala. I am tired of all these events, but I remember it is all for a reason. Rick and the bodyguards are on their A-game. Elena gave me a stern lecture about fighting anyone tonight. She’s tired of damage control.
Damian and Caleb are already waiting for us. Elena slides into Damian’s arms, and Eve walks to Caleb. We all play our parts to perfection, and soon, the Gala is in full swing.
The hall is packed with business partners and DOE Agents. The room is full of men who have tried and failed to ruin me. Unfortunately, Dante and Amara are also here.
Scarlett stiffens in my hold when she sees them.
I’m about to ask a question when Caleb walks up to me. His face is grave.
“We have a problem.” He whispers, and my heart skips a beat.
I hand Scarlett over to her friends and Rick. I kiss her cheeks softly and walk away with Caleb.
Damian is waiting for me when I step into the side corridor, flanked by the head of my tech department and two senior strategists.
“What’s going on?” I demand, impatient.
“We lost the Takeshi Finance Deal.” Damian cuts to the chase. “Someone leaked critical internal strategy, and it got into the wrong hands. They used our strategy to undercut us.”
My heart stops for a second before it comes raging back to life.
“Who?” I sneer.
“We don’t know who leaked it, but we’re working on it. Dante got the Takeshi deal.”
“Find them, now.”
Then, I walk out into the open air. My chest tightens painfully like something collapsing inwards. Anger floods in, and I yank at my tie, breathing hard, then freeze when I see Dante, leaning against the balustrade, smoking and smiling.
A very familiar smile.
He takes calculated steps towards me and blows out smoke.
“You never learn. You fell through a woman, again.” He winks at me and walks past.
My heart stops beating as it dawns on me.
This time, it doesn’t come back on.
No.
No.
Fuck, no.
Scarlett.
He used her against me.
She betrayed me.
In that moment, something breaks and dies in me.