Bitter Heat

by Mia Knight

  “Thank God,” she breathed. “They wouldn’t tell me if you lived here or not, and I haven’t heard from you.”

  “Mr. Roth, do you need assistance?”

  She turned her head to see that the manager had followed and was looking extremely ill at ease.

  “Assistance?” Roth echoed.

  The manager gestured to her, clearly asking Roth if he required assistance in removing her from the premises.

  “She’s my wife,” Roth said coldly. “I assume you made her comfortable while she waited for me?”

  The manager’s eyes bulged. He glanced at her before he bowed his head and mumbled something unintelligible under his breath.

  “L-let me grab her luggage,” the manager said and ran to her abandoned suitcase.

  When she looked up, she found Roth wearing a fierce scowl.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked.

  “You couldn’t come home to celebrate your birthday, so I thought…” The relief she felt when she saw him began to wane as quickly as it had come. He wasn’t himself. He was angry and distant, and the way he was looking at her made her unwrap herself from him and take a step back.

  “This isn’t a good time,” he said shortly.

  “But…” She gave him a tentative smile and spread her arms wide. “Aren’t you even a little excited to see me? It’s been three months.”

  He stared at her for a long moment before he switched his attention to the manager who came over at a fast trot.

  “I can take it from here,” Roth said as he reached for her luggage.

  “But Mr. Roth, please allow me to—” the manager groveled.

  “You’re dismissed.”

  The manager relinquished her luggage and bowed before he backed away slowly. When Roth stalked to the elevator, she stayed where she was. She felt more lost than ever.

  He held the door and glared at her. “Get in.”

  She entered the elevator and clasped her hands in front of her as he typed in a code. A moment later, the doors closed.

  “I was hoping I could catch you as you walked through the lobby,” she said.

  “There’s a basement garage for the residents so we don’t have to be seen.”

  “What is this place?”

  “An exclusive residence for the wealthiest people in the world.”

  “But how can you afford this?”

  The elevator opened into an entry hall that was just as impressive as the lobby. He strode in with her suitcase, leaving her to follow in stunned silence. The feeling of disquiet she had been experiencing since she arrived began to spread. She wrapped her arms around herself as her sneakers squeaked on polished marble. The penthouse was completely furnished. There were books on the shelves, a vase with orchids on the kitchen island, and papers scattered over a desk in the corner of the great room. The penthouse was modern, chic, extravagant, and clearly lived in.

  “I don’t understand,” she said faintly.

  He strode to the wet bar. “What?”

  “This has to be worth millions.”

  “Yes.”

  He tipped his head back as he downed a drink. She stared at his rigid back and tried to get her exhausted mind to function. She had been riding high on being reunited with her husband, but that had long since faded. Now, she was jet-lagged and fatigued and had a sinking feeling in her stomach that she was about to step off the edge of a cliff.

  “I thought you weren’t doing well,” she said carefully.

  He didn’t respond.

  “You said my dad ruined you.”

  He turned with a half-filled glass in hand. She had never seen him drink before, so seeing the generous amount of liquor made her feel even more ill at ease. She felt as if she was staring at a stranger rather than her husband of two years. Roth tended to be more on the reserved side, but his expression was far from impassive. The lines of his face were set in hard lines, and something about his stare made her stomach churn.

  “He did ruin me.”

  “But…?” She waved her hand at their surroundings.

  “He did severe damage to my American assets to the point that it wasn’t worth rebuilding. He wasn’t able to wreck the investments I made here in the UK. This is one of them that has panned out.”

  “You were an investor for this property?”

  He nodded and took a sip of his drink without taking his eyes from her. “What are you doing here, Jasmine?”

  “I…” Her voice sounded small and tentative to her own ears. “I thought you couldn’t come home because of money, so I used my own to come and surprise you.”

  They stared at one another across the expanse of the great room. The silence pulsed with something awful and ugly. She wanted to go to him, to soothe away whatever was eating at him, but she stayed where she was. She had no idea how to handle him in this mood. Whenever he came home to Philadelphia, he acted like he couldn’t get enough of her, but now… He hadn’t even kissed her and was treating her like an unwelcome visitor.

  “Why…?” She swallowed and gathered herself. “Why didn’t you tell me you were doing well?”

  A muscle clenched in his jaw. “I have a long way to go.”

  “But…” She tried to tread carefully. “How much do you need?”

  “Enough to pay your father back.”

  She blinked. “I’m sorry?”

  “A deal fell through today,” he said as he rocked the liquid in his glass from side to side.

  She had an inkling of what he was going to say and steeled herself.

  “Your dad’s still fucking with me.”

  Her heart sank. “I’m sorry, Roth. Maybe… maybe I can talk to him—”

  “Don’t.”

  Her mouth snapped shut at his vicious hiss.

  “He’s retired and sick but still manages to find time to fuck with me any chance he gets.”

  She raked her brains for a solution. “I kept in touch with some friends from college who are doing amazing things in the tech industry. If you’re looking to invest, they would be—”

  “I don’t need your help.” His lip curled. “You rich people with all your connections. You don’t have to earn them. You’re clustered with future politicians, tech moguls, CEOs, and trust fund babies in your private schools. You make every connection you’ll ever need before you graduate. The rest of us have to hustle and pay our dues.”

  “I’m not rich,” she said quietly. “I have some investments and my writing money. That’s it.”

  “You’re my wife.” His voice was as dead as his expression. “That makes you rich.”

  “But I didn’t even know you were doing well!”

  “I’m nowhere near Hennessy rich, but I will be.”

  She rubbed her throbbing temples. “I don’t care about that, Roth. I never did.”

  “I care.”

  He turned from her and faced the floor-to-ceiling windows. His view of Knightsbridge lit up at night was a beautiful sight.

  “For two fucking years, he’s been a thorn in my side. Everything I build, he tries to tear down. Every business connection I make, he tries to undermine.”

  He drained his glass. The penthouse was so quiet that she heard him swallow.

  “I don’t know if this is worth it.”

  Something sharp and cold speared her heart and began to spread through her chest.

  “Maximus won’t be satisfied until he’s stripped me of everything. He’ll never let me get where I want to be.”

  She opened her mouth to say something, but her mind felt like a snowy white TV screen. Panic and fear tumbled around inside her, and she took a step toward him with her hand outstretched, determined to stop this from advancing any further.

  “Some days, I wish I never laid eyes on you.”

  She stopped in her tracks and dropped her hand as his words slammed into her. He turned to face her. His rage blanketed the room and made it hard for her to breathe.

  “I’m going to make your father pay
for everything he’s done to me.”

  The way he was looking at her made her want to back away, but her legs wouldn’t move.

  He shrugged back his sleeve to glance at his watch. “I’m late for a meeting. You should have told me you were coming. I would have told you not to bother. I’m busy.”

  He strode past her to the entrance hall, but his words carried back to her.

  “Stay in Philadelphia. I’ll visit when I want you.”

  She listened to him board the elevator, leaving her in suffocating silence. She was too stunned to move, to even crumple to the ground. She stood like a statue as her mind tried to process what had happened.

  She thought she was going against the grain by marrying Roth, but she married a man just as driven and ruthless as her father. For men like them, nothing came before success and wealth. Instead of her name aiding Roth, it was holding him back, so he wanted to be rid of her. She no longer held any value for him. He had used her.

  As the full impact of the ramifications hit her, her knees buckled. She grasped the back of the couch for balance. She stared at the beautiful penthouse through a haze of wet she refused to let fall. Despite her father’s interference, Roth was doing well. Better than, but he didn’t see it that way. Her father’s obsession with him probably had less to do with her and more to do with bringing Roth to heel, which would never happen. Roth wouldn’t give up. Her father and husband were locked in a battle that had nothing to do with her… and she wanted no part of it.

  I’ll visit when I want you.

  She flinched as his words cut through her mind. He didn’t treat her like a wife. Was that the only reason he visited her? Sex? Originally, he left her in Philadelphia to finish her degree. Yet it had been a whole year since she graduated, and he never once invited her to London. His excuse was that he was working and traveling. She understood that he was trying to recover financially so to discover him living so lavishly was a shock. He owned a multimillion-dollar penthouse, and she had no idea. What else didn’t she know? It was abundantly clear that he didn’t see her as a partner. She had no idea what kind of life he was living in London. He didn’t confide in her and didn’t want to share a home with her. Her gaze focused on the flowers on the table. Hiding other women from her would be easy. He lived his life the way he wanted with no input from her. She was a side note, a prop that wasn’t aiding him, so he ignored her.

  She was a fucking idiot. She spun away from the great room and ran to the elevator. Thankfully, no code was needed to leave the penthouse. She wrapped her arms around herself as she began to shake. When she walked through the lobby, her focus was the doors that led out to the street.

  “Mrs. Roth!”

  She flinched but didn’t stop.

  “Mrs. Roth!”

  The manager skidded into view. She averted her face, but that didn’t deter him.

  “I’m so sorry, ma’am, for our treatment of you earlier. We had no idea Mr. Roth was married.”

  He wouldn’t be much longer. “Don’t worry about it.”

  “Is there any way I can make up for our mistake?”

  “A car.”

  “Of course. Immediately, Mrs. Roth.”

  Chapter 12

  Jasmine lay on the couch under her weighted blanket and watched the play of lights on the lake. She woke feeling like she was starting to get the flu. She avoided her phone as she forced herself to eat and then collapsed on the couch in the library where she had been for hours. While she slipped in and out of sleep, she tried to figure out what to tell her sisters. Maybe she should lie and say she hadn’t been able to meet with him at all… Or be honest and tell them to brace for the worst.

  Whore. She buried her face in the pillow and drew her legs up to her chest as she curled into the fetal position. He was a master at making her feel worthless, and the fact that she had cried on his chest in Colorado made her sick. She had trusted him to comfort her while he just saw it as an opportunity to get off and make her feel cheap and sullied.

  She didn’t write. She didn’t try to do anything. Keeping the doors to the library closed made her feel insulated and safe. The princess was locked in her castle, and she didn’t want anything to do with the outside world. She imagined Dad sitting at his desk. She could almost hear the pages turning as he read. She missed him so goddamn bad, she couldn’t stand it. He would know what to do. He would be able to handle Roth, but she and her sisters weren’t a match for him. Would he go for Lyle’s and Rami’s companies as well? Her head throbbed. She pulled the blankets over her head and drifted off again.

  When she woke, the sun was setting. Time to dash her sisters’ hopes. Still lying on her side, she reached for her phone on the side table and turned it on. She would tell them the truth. They had to watch their backs. Roth would do whatever it took to annihilate them. She listened to the beeps of voicemails and texts before she glanced at the screen. The excessive messages under the sister group text got her attention. She read a few and leaped to her feet.

  “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” she chanted as she dialed Ariana.

  “Where have you been?”

  “Is she okay?” Jasmine asked, clutching the phone in a death grip.

  “For the moment. She’s in premature labor. Lyle’s on his way back from Australia. I—”

  She was only half listening as she raced out of the library and grabbed the keys to the Land Rover. There was no time to call Sunny for an escort.

  “Kye is sick, so I’ve been home with the kids. Rami won’t be back for another two days. She’s at the hospital alone.”

  “I’ll be there in forty minutes,” she said as she revved the engine. “If anything changes, let me know.”

  She slammed her foot on the gas as she barreled down the gravel drive. Colette’s sky-high stress levels had sent her into premature labor. Dammit. She prayed under her breath as she made her way into the city. The traffic added twenty minutes to her commute. When she reached the hospital, it took a few minutes to locate her sister. Colette’s housekeeper and two assistants were standing outside her hospital room. She walked in and found Colette in bed with an oxygen mask over her mouth and an IV in her arm. Her sister’s blond hair was dark with sweat, and she was as white as the sheets. The moment Colette saw her, her eyes bulged, and she held up a hand. She rounded the bed and took it.

  “Are you okay?” she asked.

  “Your sister’s blood pressure needs to come down immediately,” the nurse said briskly. “She has preeclampsia, which can be fatal to the mother and child if we don’t monitor her.”

  “Roth?” Colette asked behind her mask.

  Jasmine ignored her and focused on the nurse. “What does she need?”

  The nurse gave Colette a stern look. “To remain calm and relax.”

  “Roth,” Colette said urgently.

  “Where’s the father?” the nurse demanded.

  “Out of the country. He should be here soon.”

  “I’ll be back,” the nurse said and left the room.

  Colette squeezed her hand. “Roth!”

  “I heard you,” Jasmine said and rubbed her prominent belly. “The last thing you should be thinking about is business.”

  “Did you talk to him?” Colette asked.

  “I did.”

  “And?”

  She stared into Colette’s hopeful face and felt Polara move beneath her palm. Her heart swelled with emotion, and her throat began to close.

  “Minnie?”

  Her eyes filled with tears as she whispered, “It’s gonna be okay. I spoke to him, and he’s willing to speak to you.” And she would do whatever it took to make sure he negotiated in their favor.

  Colette’s mouth trembled. “Really?”

  “Yes,” she said and gave her a tremulous smile.

  Colette slumped against the pillows. “Minnie, you’re a lifesaver. I knew you could get through to him. Anything you ever need, don’t hesitate. Hennessy & Co is my everything. I would die if I lost it.”
>
  “I know,” she whispered as her insides writhed. “You rest and prepare for Polara. He won’t do anything until after the baby is born.”

  “But…”

  “Rest,” she ordered. “Or else.”

  Colette nodded and took a deep breath. “I know it must have been hard to talk to him. Thank you. I owe you.” She shifted and let out a sharp gasp.

  “Are you in pain?”

  “Another contraction,” she said through clenched teeth.

  After the contraction passed, she went to find the nurse. An hour later, Lyle arrived.

  “You don’t look good,” Lyle said as they watched Colette sleep. “Get some rest. I’ll let you know if anything else happens.”

  She gave him a hug and offered her cheek for a kiss before she left the room. Once she was back in the Land Rover, she sat in the driver’s seat and stared straight ahead.

  She was going to sell her soul to the devil. Panic zipped through her system. She tipped her head back as she gasped for air. When the anxiety attack passed, she rested her forehead against the steering wheel and tried to get her thoughts together.

  The price to negotiate with Roth was sex. Could she really let him touch her after all he’d done? Her mind told her no, but her body had other ideas. As he pointed out, she had played the whore before. If a couple of fucks with Roth ensured Hennessy & Co would survive and that Colette could have Polara in peace, that was worth it. It would kill something inside her, but did she have a choice? If she hadn’t chosen Roth over Ford, none of this would be happening. Her family shouldn’t pay the price for her mistakes. She would finish this once and for all.

  She pulled out her phone. Her thumb hesitated over his name before she pressed down. The phone rang once, twice, three times. She didn’t wait for it to go to voicemail. She hung up and jumped out of the car. She paced with her hands on her hips as a steady stream of vehicles drove in and out of the parking garage. Her stomach lurched when she heard a call coming in. She approached cautiously and peered at the screen. Roth. She walked away and passed a hand over her face when it went quiet. She was playing Russian roulette with the phone. Once she answered, her life was over. She tensed when the phone began to blare again. She let it go to voicemail. On his third call, she picked up.