Page 32 of Bitter Confessions

“The rose-colored glasses are coming off,” he said.

She tamped down the flash of pride. “What did you find?”

“I have my suspicions but no concrete proof, since Maximus employed others to do his dirty work for him.”

“Just tell me what you think he’s done,” she said impatiently, unable to stand the suspense. She already knew of some of her dad’s illicit activities—blackmailing and destroying his son-in-law’s business, blackballing those he deemed unworthy of being in his vicinity, and strong-arming any who dared encroach on his territory.

Roth brushed back her hair as he said, “I don’t want to fill your head with theories. The sins you know about are enough.”

It was her turn to double blink. He was skirting the issue to save her from more emotional trauma. She shouldn’t let him get away with it, but she was still reeling over what she’d read in the reports. Just this one time, she would let it go.

“I doubt lack of evidence, stopped you from using your theories to your advantage,” she said.

His eyelids drooped over glittering, predatory eyes. “It rattled him. That was enough.”

Her father and Roth had been a match made in hell, always trying to gain the upper hand, even if it was for just a few seconds.

“What deal did you make with him?” When Roth raised an inquisitive brow, she copied him. “You’re too much of a businessman to let my dad get his way completely, even armed with blackmail.”

He braced his hand on the table and leaned in, so their faces were inches apart. She didn’t know how to interpret his flat, level stare. She couldn’t tell if he was upset, flattered, annoyed...

“Your father was a brilliant strategist known for his uncompromising nature. He managed to stamp his name on every major city in this country. What makes you think I was able to negotiate any terms when he had the upper hand?”

“Because you’re you. You don’t care about the odds. You don’t back down from a fight. He tried to make an example of you. Instead, you became his best protégé and beat him at his own game. You know how to turn anything to your advantage.”

His eyes brightened during her speech, though his expression stayed neutral.

“Tell me the terms you negotiated with him.”

“He threatened to show my blackmail to Grayson, William Davies, and other valuable contacts I’d acquired if I didn’t sign the divorce papers,” he said without inflection. “That wouldn’t have dissuaded everyone from doing business with me, but it would have made things more difficult and affected future deals.”

Her pulse tripped. He was sharing. She couldn’t fucking believe it. She tried to keep her expression bland while celebratory fireworks went off in her chest. “And what did you ask for in return?”

“That he’d stop interfering in my business outside the US.”

She cocked her head. “In Colorado, you said he kept at it until the day he died.”

“Yes. He continued to trip me up here and there, inconveniences he thought I wouldn’t notice. If he could finesse someone out from under me, he would. I saw that as him saving me time. I don’t want anyone around me who can be bought or influenced by outside parties, but he never stopped interfering completely. He couldn’t help himself. He hated seeing me advance in the business world.”

“And in the interim, you built a case against my family to blackmail them, in case...” She searched his eyes as her mind navigated a maze of motivations and possibilities. “In case Dad passed your blackmail onto them so you’d be at a stalemate?”

His eyes flared before they narrowed with sudden hunger. “I take it back,” he rumbled as he tugged her to the edge of the seat.

“What?” She braced her hands on his chest, but that didn’t stop him from taking her mouth in a deep kiss.

“If you wanted to, you could run circles around your sisters.”

Far from being angry, he seemed delighted she’d correctly deduced why he’d investigated her family.

“But...” She gave herself a shake and scooted back on the seat. “Why not use what you have against them?” She held up a hand. “Not that I want you to, but you have enough evidence to make Rami dance like a puppet on a string. He was worried about an article being published—what you have here is an open-and-shut case. And Ariana and Colette will do anything to protect their reputation.”

The fact Roth had been quietly collecting evidence over the years and had yet to cash in on his hard work demonstrated amazing restraint. He hadn’t needed to become the majority shareholder of Hennessy & Co. or spend millions convincing her family and society they’d married for love, not business. Why had he taken the time to attend dinner at the Davies’ in London, posed for wedding photos, and released news of their recent nuptials to the press? It was unnecessary. With the contents of these folders, her family would do anything he ordered. So why hadn’t he chosen the most expedient, efficient way to get them to do what he asked?

“I prefer their willing cooperation. It makes things easier.”

She tensed. “Cooperation for what?”

“You know.”

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