Page 2 of Bitter Secrets

“That’s not a surprise. She’s terrified.”

“If you speak to her, tell her I’m sorry. I… I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.”

“It’s not you who owes her an apology. It’s your jackass husband.”

But it was her fault that Roth was in their lives. Just like the first time, chaos ensued, and people were getting hurt. She thought she knew what she signed up for, that she could handle him this time around. What a joke. She waltzed right into his trap and now they all had to live with the consequences.

“I’ll talk to Colette and Ariana about selling their shares. I won’t let you sacrifice yourself for a stupid company!”

“I’m not sacrificing myself!” she said loudly, but he ignored her.

“Maximus brainwashed you and your sisters into believing that company is worth dying for. The moment Colette started to lose control, she should have come to me for help or let it go. Maximus is gone. When are you three going to realize you can’t please a dead man?”

His words hit her like a punch in the gut. Maybe to him, Hennessy & Co was just a company, but it was their legacy. If his company was in trouble, he would do anything to save it, as she and her sisters would for theirs.

“Business has nothing to do with this,” she said and yanked the phone away from her ear as he erupted in a barrage of scathing Italian. She knew enough of the language to know he was praying for patience… and cursing her to high heaven.

“This isinsane,” Lyle hissed, abruptly reverting back to English. “If your father was here, none of this would be happening. He wouldn’t let you make the same mistake twice. Damn it, he gave you the means to keep Roth out of your life. He has secrets he’s willing to kill for. Do you understand that?”

It was all she could think of. “Yes.”

“Maximus warned me Roth would show up once he was gone. It didn’t take him months to make his move, Min. Roth relocated to New York just days after Maximus’s death.”

She opened her mouth and then hastily closed it before the scream pulsing at the base of her throat was set free.

“You realize that Maximus blackmailed Roth to sign those divorce papers, don’t you?”

“Yes.” Her voice sounded as hollow as she felt.

There was a pause on his end, and then, “I’m not going to let you do this.”

She dropped her face into her hand. “Lyle…”

“I know you.” His voice was rough with emotion. “I know you’re loyal, that you have a forgiving heart, and that Maximus’s death sent you spiraling. I know that even though your sisters haven’t always had your back, you had theirs. I know you’d do anything for family. So does he. I’m not going to let him use you again.”

Her shoulders sagged under the tremendous weight. She was so goddamn tired. Tired of being strong, fighting battles on her own, and living in fear and uncertainty. The urge to let him take control was so tempting. She wanted a way out of this nightmare. Away from Roth and his mind games and the politics of the business world, but she knew that wouldn’t save her from him.

She had ceded control once before and it had gotten her nowhere. Four years ago, she asked her father to intervene, believing that would end her association with Roth. That had only postponed the inevitable. Now, the stakes were sky-high and there was no one to run to. Lyle was powerful. He wouldn’t hesitate to go head-to-head with Roth, but even her father—with his considerable wealth and influence—had been forced to resort to blackmail to control him. The Roth she was dealing with today bore no resemblance to the man she had married the first time.

She’d known committing to Roth for a year wouldn’t be easy, but she had no idea she would be putting her life in danger. Still, she was in it. So deep, there was no getting out. She was legally bound to him. Three hundred and sixty-two more days, and she and her family would be free of him once and for all. She could do this. She had to. For all their sakes.

“He’s not using me. How could he?” she asked, stalling as she tried to come up with a better argument. “I don’t have any power or influence in the business world and he’s not marrying me for my money.”

“Don’t kid yourself, Min. He may be worth billions, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t interested in what you inherited. The fact that his hands are in Hennessy & Co proves that.”

Her stomach clenched. She had come to the same conclusion. Her father’s warning played over and over in her mind.He’ll take what he wants from you and leave you with nothing.

“And through you, he gets us. He doesn’t even have to do business with us. People will assume we’re allies because he married into the family. He’s using you to polish up his image before he goes into society.”

“You don’t know that,” she said but wasn’t able to put much conviction in her voice.

“No, but the rush to get the ring on your finger, the over-the-top dress from Daiyu and the photographer? I should have stopped it when I had the chance.”

“You couldn’t have done anything.”

“Yes, I could have.” He hesitated a moment before he added, “If you trust him, you won’t mind if I have my lawyer look over your prenup, right?”

A wan smile stretched her mouth as she glanced at the prenup on the kitchen island. When Roth dropped her off here three days ago, that was one of the first things she did. She pored over every page, looking for a loophole, minor clause, or vague wording that gave him an opening to tap into her fortune, but she had yet to find it.

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