“My son wouldn’t ruin his marriage vows,” Lucas said.
That wasn’t entirely correct. His father had pulled him to one side and said that if he ever needed to, there were always mistresses who would help deal with his needs. Lucas, besides having a wife, had three mistresses.
Roman hadn’t been interested in going to another woman. Being married wasn’t what he expected. First of all, he had to make sure Liam didn’t find out he hadn’t actually consummated the marriage.
The only piece of information he could truly get was that Liam Smith loved his daughter. Adored her. She was treasured by him, and that made her an interesting pawn in this game.
Liam Smith was an ally, and his father had told him to treat Alex with respect. He had no interest in hurting a woman.
“I had dinner with Denise at her request, two weeks ago. She had a problem and needed me to fix it.”
Her boss was getting handsy, and with his and Alex’s marriage announced in the press, people assumed the women in his life were now easy targets.
He hadn’t seen Denise for a long time, and they had ended things rather amicably.
Roman finished off his whiskey as Liam glared at him. “My daughter has not returned. Go and find her.”
In his father’s home, he didn’t expect to take orders from anyone but Lucas. He had a quick glance at his father and saw the nod. It annoyed him to even be seen doing as that bastard asked.
Still, he turned on his heel and made his way out of the main party, going along the corridor and coming to a pause when he caught sight of Antonio, one of his best friends, with his wife.
Antonio attempted to put his arm around Alex, but she immediately stood up. She hadn’t seen Roman yet. “You know what, I think it’s time I headed back to the party. It was nice meeting you, Antonio.” She stepped away, and the moment she caught sight of him, she stopped. “Roman.”
“Alex.”
He stared at her from the tip of her head. She had luscious brown hair. It was thick and fell around her in waves. From the short time he had spent with her, he knew she often wore it up, most of the time in a clip, rarely falling down around her shoulders.
Staring down the length of her body, he saw her black dress that was more fitting for a funeral than a party, and it wasn’t a flattering fit either. The dress fell to her tits and then seemed to hang off her body. None of her gorgeous curves were on display. He knew she hadn’t picked this outfit herself.
The maid who came to clean his home three times a week had picked it out for her. He made a note never to ask her to help his wife again. No wonder the women were making snarky comments behind their hands about her. She looked like … death.
Neither of them spoke, and Alex’s gaze moved from his, to the wall, and then to the floor before returning to his.
“I better go and join them,” she said.
“I’ll be there in a moment.”
She didn’t stop, just nodded as she kept on walking.
“I think you’re wrong about her,” Antonio said, getting to his feet.
He stared at his friend and tilted his head to the side. “How?”
“She does not like me being anywhere near her. Did you see?” Antonio asked.
“I saw her move the moment you put your hands around her.”
“Yeah, and she kindly removed my hand from her thigh as well,” Antonio said.
“What?”
“You told me to get close, to push her. You said there were no limits, that if needed, to take it all the way. I merely put my hand on her knee.” Antonio’s gaze swept over him. “But tell me, Roman, if you don’t care about your wife, and you want everyone to know that she is a manipulative, cheating bitch, why are your hands clenched, and you look like you want to kill me?”
“I do not want to kill you. Good job.” Roman didn’t like the fact that he felt this way. Alex meant nothing to him. She was a job. A woman who had been forced on him.
She played her part of innocent daughter well, but he knew the truth. She was a slut and Liam’s greatest weakness. He would find the truth one way or another.
It wasn’t lost on him that Liam had given them the key to making his life miserable. They could kill her and start a war. It would be so easy. His father had told him that he respected and valued Liam Smith. No war was ever going to wage with that man. Roman felt that as soon as he discovered the truth aboutAlex, he’d get what he wanted.