Page 39 of Bitter Secrets

She waved her hand. “No matter what you say in French, it sounds seductive.”

“Did he hit on you, Jasmine?”

When she opened her mouth to deny it, his hand covered hers on the table and squeezed.

“Don’t lie for him.”

“It doesn’t matter what he said.”

“So he did.” Roth’s eyes flicked to the door even though Guy was long gone. “He’ll pay for that.”

“Roth.”

His cold gaze shifted back to her. “You didn’t let him kiss you.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Was I supposed to?”

The hand on the table moved to her face and traced her jawline with piercing focus before he reached her chin and applied pressure to tilt her face up. She let out a startled grunt when his mouth covered hers. When she tried to pull away, he cupped her nape to hold her in place. He took his time, waiting for her acceptance, before he trailed kisses to her ear.

“If you’d let him kiss you, I would have spent the rest of the night reminding you who the fuck you belong to,” he murmured. “No one’s allowed to touch you.”

“Your check, sir,” the waiter said.

Roth gave her another kiss before he handed over his credit card. She was in a state of shock. Roth didn’t do PDA. What the fuck?

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Of course.”

“I wouldn’t take Guy seriously.”

“Tell me what he said, and I’ll decide whether to take it seriously.”

There was no way in hell she was going there. “He’s a spoiled brat that wants what he can’t have. He didn’t even notice me until I made a fool out of him.”

“Anything I should know?” he asked as he accepted the credit card slip from the waiter and signed.

“I assume he has an overeager, foolish business partner or sibling who’s just as eager to sell as he is. They called during dinner to see if you had signed and would have dropped the price even less, I’m sure. The other calls he received, which he claimed were business, were from his mistresses.” She grimaced. “I can’t believe he’s Samson’s son.”

Roth looked up. “You knew Samson?”

She nodded. “We met a long time ago. He was a nice man.”

He contemplated her for a moment before he said, “Sometimes I forget how much you know about the business world.”

“It’s what I was groomed for.” Her gaze moved to the contract Guy had left behind in his haste to go to the club. “I know that fifteen years ago, Samson brought Reed & Sons to the States. It was worth five hundred million then. I can’t imagine what it’s worth now.” She cocked her head to the side. “What do you care about a beer company?”

“I don’t.”

“Then, why…”

“They expanded into wine recently. I’m more interested in the lands the vineyards are on than anything else.” He collected both contracts before he rose and extended his hand. “Let’s go.”

She took his hand and tucked her purse under her arm as they made their way to the exit. She was hyper aware of the speculative stares. She expected this level of scrutiny in New York, but London? They couldn’t know who they were, could they? It wasn’t until Roth was helping her into her coat that she remembered that while New York was her home, this had been his for seven years. That was the only way he would have been able to get reservations at this restaurant on such short notice.

As they left, she wasn’t surprised to see the Rolls-Royce at the curb. They waved off the umbrellas since the downpour had slowed to a light sprinkle and ducked into the warm vehicle. As he pulled away from the restaurant, she glanced at him. Outwardly, he showed no emotion, but she sensed his coiled tension.

“Guy’s a fool,” she said as she rearranged her coat. “Whatever money he gained from this deal, he’ll spend in five years.”

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