C16, PT. 5

Roth stepped into the penthouse just after one in the morning. She was so tired, she thought she was hallucinating, but his curt, “You should be asleep,” made her jerk to attention.

“Is everything okay?” she asked, relief overpowering worry.

“Of course.”

“You never called me back,” she said as she sat up and set her laptop aside.

“It took longer than expected.”

“What did?”

“Business.”

He slipped his hands into his pockets and regarded her with a blank expression that was far too reminiscent of the old Roth. The urge to put her hands on him and coax the man she spent the past few weeks with to the surface was all-consuming, but she stayed where she was.

“You should go to bed. It’s late.”

He didn’t indicate that he would join her. She tried to combat that sinking feeling in her belly by giving him a small smile.

“I wish you told me you were going to Los Angeles. I would have come with you.”

“I couldn’t afford to be distracted.”

Her smile vanished. She had heard that before.

“Ariana picked the wrong day to act on her addiction. If I were in the city, I would have dealt with her myself,” he said tersely.

“What would you have done?”

His eyes flashed. “What do you think?”

“You’d threaten her?”

“Fire her. There’s too much money on the line. I don’t have time to babysit. Colette needs to retake her place as CEO.”

“But, Polara—”

His expression darkened. “Their private lives aren’t my concern. I don’t care about the state of their marriages or how they handle their family life. I need them to pull their weight. My money and reputation are intertwined with a drug addict and a woman who’s allowed herself to become a pawn of her fucking father and grandfather. I’m not a therapist. I’m a businessman and if your sisters can’t turn this around…”

His threat hung in the air.

“You promised,” she whispered.

His eyes narrowed. “Our deal was to save Hennessy & Co and allow your sisters to buy back their shares so they’re majority shareholders once the company is where it should be. The best chance of saving the company may be to replace them with someone else.”

She twisted her hands together. “Maybe I can—”

“You aren’t involved in this. I said the company doesn’t exist for you, and I meant it. How I handle your sisters is none of your concern.” He ran a hand through his hair in a gesture that was weary and aggravated. “I went against my judgment today by informing you of Ariana’s relapse. I should have kept you out of it and dealt with her myself.”

“She said she would meet with her therapist and she handed over the pills she got from her dealer,” she said.

“Once an addict, always an addict,” he said grimly. “Now that she knows I have a man watching her, it’ll only make her more adept at concealing her habit.”

Although her thoughts had run along similar lines, she still believed her sister could get clean. “I think she can—”

“I don’t care if she does or not,” he cut in. “She’s a liability. So is Colette. They’re no use to me if they don’t pull their heads out of their asses. I don’t have time for this shit.”

This was from the uncompromising businessman that Lyle and the rest of Wall Street admired. Unbending, unforgiving. He didn’t accept weakness in others and wouldn’t let it stop him from doing what he deemed necessary. He didn’t care what impact his business dealings would have on her relationship with her sisters. He was focused on the bottom line—saving the company. She was too, but she assumed that meant he would save her sisters in the process. She saw them as a package deal. Roth didn’t. It never occurred to her that he would eject them from their positions. That’s what her sisters had feared from the start. He had grounds with Ariana, but Colette… Of course, Roth knew that Colette’s grandfather, Cecil, had deliberately sabotaged her. It hadn’t made a damn bit of difference to him.

“I have work to do,” he said, breaking into her racing thoughts. “Get some sleep.”

“You should, too.”

“I don’t have time.”

Without another word, he started toward the hallway that led to his office. She got to her feet.

“Thank you for allowing me to speak to Ariana.”

He didn’t acknowledge her gratitude.

“Roth?” He was about to disappear into the hallway when she snapped, “Jamie!”

He stopped. She wanted to throw her arms around him and beg him not to do this. She could feel him pushing her away and erecting that invisible wall again. Old insecurities savaged her insides. Maybe she’d become too clingy and needy. Despite the unholy hour, she joined him a few more times in the gym, hoping for the same results when they returned to the penthouse. No such luck. In fact, the last time she went, he slipped out without telling her. By the time she got back to the penthouse, he was gone. She hadn’t tried to mirror his schedule after that, and had filled up her week with appointments to keep her busy.

“Is there anything I can do?” Her voice shook.

She willed him to turn and face her. To come to her and kiss her to reassure her he was with her, that they still had each other, and she meant something to him. Instead, he kept his distance.

He kept his back to her as he gave a firm and resolute, “No.”

The rejection hit harder than it should have. She had hours to prepare, and still, the pain took her breath away. Before she embarrassed herself further, she started toward the opposite hallway that led to the master suite.

“Endanger yourself and my men again by mindlessly running into traffic, I’ll keep you locked in this penthouse or shackled to someone when you’re in public. I don’t give a fuck who sees.”

She paused, vision blurring, as she stared down the dimly lit hallway. “I mindlessly ran into traffic because I was desperate to see my husband. I had this foolish notion that he would give me a hug and reassure me that everything was going to be okay. I was wrong. I won’t be so foolish in the future.”

She walked down the hallway with as much dignity as she could muster. She willed him to come after her. To engage so they wouldn’t repeat old habits, but when she reached the bedroom and turned, he had disappeared.

She didn’t sleep. She lay in bed, heart heavy, mind in turmoil. When she couldn’t take it anymore, she made her way to his office, determined to talk, but he wasn’t there. She called his cell phone. Once again, it went straight to voicemail. She didn’t leave a message. There was no need. She finally got it.

**This is a raw draft of Bitter Confessions. Please do not share or distribute.

Copyright © 2024 Mia Knight. All Rights Reserved.