Page 63 of If the Ring Fits

A smile plays at the corners of her mouth as she speaks, her voice soft and wistful. “For starters, I’m my own boss.”

“That’s great. So you want to be an entrepreneur.” I smile back like a fool. “Any field or products in your dream pipeline?”

She scrunches her face even more adorably. “I’ve always dreamed of helping young girls get into coding.”

“What about boys? Don’t they deserve that too?”

She squints one eye open, fixing me with a playful glare. “Yes, of course they do. But in my dream, I’m building this pink, girly console designed to appeal to young girls. It’s my vision, and if a camouflage console for early boy coders isn’t included, you’ll just have to deal with it. Plus, boys need little encouragement to pursue careers in tech.”

Her sassiness makes me chuckle, and I hold up my hands in mock surrender. “Fair enough. Your dream, your rules.”

As Rowena opens both eyes, excitement is dancing in their depths, gears turning in her brilliant brain.

I lean forward, resting my elbows on the table. “If you’re serious about making coding toys for kids, there’s one crucial thing to keep in mind from a business perspective.”

She tilts her head, curiosity etched on her face. “What’s that?”

“To succeed in a niche market, you need to either be first, which might be already too late, or you need to be better than the competition.”

Rowena’s smile is a burst of sunshine, warm and radiant. “Be better,” she repeats, her eyes set with determination. “I like the sound of that. How do I get to be better?”

“Can’t tell you that. It’s where your technical expertise comes in,” I continue. “But the usual strategy is to look at the coding products currently on the market. Read the reviews, see what people are complaining about. Heck, go out and buy all the top competitor toys, play with them yourself, and figure out what you’d change, what you could improve.”

She nods, absorbing my words like a sponge. Then, a mischievous grin spreads across her face. “You know, usually when a guy tells his fiancée to go shopping for toys, he means?—”

I hold up my hands as a shield, cutting her off before she can finish that thought. “Please, don’t even go there.”

“Too soon?” Rowena mimes zipping her lips, her eyes twinkling. “Fine, fine. I promise you’ll never hear the word ‘sex’ from me ever again.”

I groan inwardly, because damn it, sex with her is still all I can think about after Sunday. If I’m being honest with myself, it’s been on my mind even before that.

The server providentially appears with our check, and I automatically reach for my wallet, only to realize that I don’t have it. I pat my pockets, confusion turning into understanding. “I don’t have my wallet.” I must have left it in my office as I came straight from Dominic’s. “Do you have the credit card I gave you for expenses?”

“Sure, I’ve been meaning to inaugurate it eventually anyway,” Rowena chirps as she pulls out the sleek black card from her wallet.

My eyes widen in surprise. “Wait, you haven’t used it yet?”

She shakes her head. “No, Rosa handles all the groceryshopping, and you gave Sophie your details for the party expenses. My clothes still fit. I just haven’t needed to use it yet.”

I lean back in my chair, stunned. That Rowena hasn’t touched the credit card at all in the nearly three weeks we’ve been living together, hasn’t spent a single penny despite having free rein, throws me for a loop. It destabilizes my resolve to keep my distance, to remember that this is just a quid pro quo.

Rationally, I know she agreed to this deal for the money—but it’s clearly not about that for her. She’s not some gold-digger out to bleed me dry—or even take a little advantage. No, Rowena is an incredible woman who found herself backed into a corner, devoid of other options. And I’ve always known that, deep down.

But with each passing day, I discover new facets of her that make me like her a little more. And if I’m brutally honest with myself, it’s not even just a purely sexual attraction at this point, though hell knows I’m so hung-up on her it physically hurts.

No, what I feel for Rowena runs under the skin and terrifies me. It’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced before, and a part of me fears that exploring it could lead to my undoing.

The real kicker? I have no clue what she feels for me in return. Is it simply physical attraction on her end? Could there be something more between us?

I desperately want to ask, but I stop myself from broaching the subject. I can’t go hot and cold on her like this. I said no to exploring anything different from a business arrangement only three days ago, and I must stick to it. Because either way, pursuing something real with Rowena is strictly off-limits. We can’t go down that road, no matter how badly I may want to. I know what’s at the end: disappointed expectations, resentment, bitterness…

But damn, what I wouldn’t give to discover what’s in her heart…

27

ROWENA

Ten weeks pregnant

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