Page 47 of How To Tempt The Off-Limits Billionaire

Ro stared at her grubby shoes, the streaks of dirt on her jeans. “You cheated on me and it pissed me off, I was so mad at you.”

“You had—have—a right to be. I was an idiot,” Kelvin said.

Ro smiled. “That’s exactly what Muzi called you.” Ro turned, propped her phone against the wall, lifted her legs and placed her chin on her knee, her eyes on the small screen. “The point is...my pride was hurt but your betrayal didn’t touch my heart. I shrugged it off. I shouldn’t have felt so little, been so blasé. I’m not trying to hurt you but Muzi makes mefeel, Kel, in a way you never did. He makes my skin tingle and my heart feel like it’s going to jump out of my chest. He makes me think and laugh and when I’m around him, I feel the best version of myself.”

“And if he cheated on you?” Kelvin asked her, his tone subdued.

The idea was too horrible to contemplate. She bit her lip, her eyes brimming as sadness and devastation flowed over her. “He’d break my heart. He has the power to emotionally chop me up in little pieces, to rip me in two. I’ve never had such a strong reaction to anyone in my life and I doubt I ever will again.” Ro released an unhappy, tiny laugh. “He’s phenomenal.”

“And you’re telling me that you’renotin love with him?” Kelvin said, sounding unconvinced.

“I’m trying not to be, I’m trying to protect myself,” Ro told him, knowing it was true. “I’m trying to do anything and everything I can to stop myself from tumbling into this crazy situation I don’t understand, one I can’t figure out and most definitely can’t control. Feeling like this is terrifying.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t be that person for you, Ro.”

She nodded, not knowing what else to say. Kelvin cleared his throat, sat back in his chair and touched the perfect knot in his tie. “I went to see your folks, by the way.”

Ro knew him well enough to recognize that he’d closed the door on their emotional conversation. “They look pretty relaxed for a couple who are divorcing. Honestly, I really thought they’d last forever.”

“You and me both,” Ro told him. “Do you think there’s any chance of them reconciling?”

Kelvin frowned. “Ro, they’ve legally filed, their documents are in the system. I’ve split their assets and they’ve put their house on the market. Their marriage is over.”

So they were going ahead with their divorce. It was more than they’d told her. Then again, she couldn’t complain about their lack of openness, she was keeping a couple of big and bold secrets herself.

“I’m sorry,” Kelvin said, sounding sincere.

“Yeah, me too,” Ro whispered.

Kelvin cleared his throat and gestured to his desk. “I need to get some work done. Thanks for taking my call.” He looked down before forcing his eyes back to her face. “Again, I’m sorry. I’m sorry we didn’t work out, and I’m so sorry for cheating on you. I wish you a good life, Ro.”

It was over, they were fully done and from this moment on, Kelvin would be a memory. “You too, Kel.”

“I hope he makes you happy, kiddo, you deserve it.”

Ro’s smile wobbled. “I hope so too. Be happy, Kelvin.” Feeling a tear slide down her face, she jabbed her finger on the red button and Kelvin’s face disappeared. And just like that, he was gone. Permanently.

Ro rested her cheek on her knees and watched as Muzi crossed the verandah to sit next to her on the wall. He’d arrived as she took the call and she’d known he was standing there, just around the corner. She always knew where he was, felt his energy, could sense his eyes on her.

And maybe that was why she’d been so open with Kelvin, said the things to him that she couldn’t say to Muzi, knowing that her emotional words would force them to confront their feelings, to jolt them out of this holding pattern they were in. To move them along.

To get them from point A to point B.

Beside her, Muzi stretched out his long legs. Ro didn’t prod him, knowing that he’d speak, eventually.

“You knew I was there,” Muzi stated, his voice low.

“Yes. I was waiting for you, I knew you’d come back to check on me, to comfort me and to tell me that my birth parents’ decisions have nothing to do with me,” Ro replied.

“And you used your ex as a conduit to talk to me.”

His tone was so bland that Ro couldn’t decide whether he was angry or not. Ro felt his eyes on her face and lifted her head, forcing herself to meet his eyes. “I never planned it, he asked me the question and I responded with the truth.”

“Next time, say what you need to say to my face, Roisin.”

Ro winced. Yep, okay. Noted. She waited for him to rip into her some more, but he just rubbed the back of his neck, then the side of his jaw. He was feeling uncomfortable, Ro realized, unsure. Good, she wasn’t feeling too confident herself.

“You said that I have the power to rip you apart. Is that true?” he finally spoke again, his voice as deep as the night.

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