Free Web NovelChapter 11: The Ladies room
The sheer weight of Richard’s gaze was suffocating.
Roxanne desperately pulled her hand back, her heart hammering a chaotic, deafening rhythm against her ribs. "P-please," she gasped, the air completely trapped in her lungs. "Excuse me." freewebnovel.cσ๓
She didn’t wait for permission. She couldn’t. Turning on her heel, she began to walk away as fast as her heels would allow, pressing a trembling hand firmly against her heaving chest as she struggled to breathe.
Behind her, Christian’s voice flared with embarrassed panic. "Please, pardon her, Mr. Vance. She’s really not used to this world. She’s just a bit—"
"Finish that sentence, Westbrook, and you will find yourself at the absolute bottom of the corporate food chain before midnight," Richard cut in. His voice wasn’t loud, but it possessed a terrifying, lethal darkness that instantly silenced the entire corner of the ballroom.
The world was spinning as Roxanne moved blindly through the crowd, her heels clicking frantically against the marble floor until she practically threw herself into the safety of the ladies’ room. The door swung shut, muffling the distant roar of the gala.
Leaning over the marble vanity, she gripped the edges so hard her knuckles turned white. She opened her mouth, gasping for air as the devastating reality finally crashed over her in a freezing wave.
She hadn’t just been playing a dangerous game with a wealthy stranger. She had been playing the game with Richard Vance, her husband’s absolute boss.
"Oh, god, Roxanne," she choked out to her hollow reflection, her voice trembling in the quiet space. "What have you gotten yourself into?"
Desperate to cool the fever burning under her skin, she turned the tap and cupped the icy water, splashing it repeatedly over her face. She was so consumed by the roaring pulse in her ears that she barely registered the click of the bathroom door opening behind her.
When she finally lifted her head, wiping the water from her lashes, her breath stopped in her lungs. He was standing right behind her in the mirror.
Roxanne whirled around sharply, her bare back pressing against the cold edge of the vanity, her chest heaving violently under the emerald silk.
Richard moved toward her with a slow deliberateness, his dark eyes completely fixed on her slick, parted lips.
"This— This is the ladies’ room," Roxanne blurted out, her voice shaking as she tried to summon a shred of authority.
Richard didn’t even blink. His eyes narrowed as he began to walk directly toward her.
Roxanne’s heart drummed a chaotic rhythm against her ribs. "Stay away from me! I’m warning you!" she blurted out, her voice fracturing as he effortlessly closed the distance between them.
Richard didn’t stop. He stepped directly into her space, his massive frame trapping her against the counter. He planted his palms on the marble on either side of her hips, locking her into place.
"I own the building," he murmured, his breath hot against her skin, a shiver racking her spine. "And we have unfinished business." He paused, his dark eyes dropping to her lips. "Roxanne."
"No, we don’t!" Roxanne choked out, her chest heaving violently beneath the emerald silk of her dress. "You— You knew!" she said, her voice dropping into a razor-sharp whisper of accusation. "You knew who I was."
Richard’s gaze remained locked on hers, but he said absolutely nothing.
"You let me walk into that lounge," she said, her hands blindly clenching the marble behind her. "You let me get that close to you. You let me even be—" She broke off, the memory of her knees buckling beneath his touch, of her own hand wrapping around his thick length, burning behind her eyelids with a humiliating heat.
"You never asked," Richard stated simply, his voice flat.
"How was I supposed to ask when I never knew who you were? You are my husband’s boss, for god’s sake!" Roxanne shot back, the words tearing from her throat. "How could you let that happen?"
Richard’s jaw hardened, his dark eyes still fixed on hers with that unyielding, calm intensity. "I want you, Roxanne. The mechanics of who you are were irrelevant." He maintained that dangerous, flat tone before stepping back and lifting one large hand to gesture toward the exit. "You can go back to him if you want."
Roxanne’s anger faltered, the wind completely ripped from her sails. "What?" she breathed, stunned. "Go back to him? After everything?"
"If you are worried about people finding out, then no need for that," Richard said smoothly. "You are free to walk away right now. This never happened, as far as the world is concerned. Take the offer while it’s still open."
Roxanne looked up at him, her chest heaving under the weight of her choices. She looked at his broad chest and then lifted her chin with a defiant resolve. "Fine, then. If that’s what you want."
She swallowed hard against the dry lump in her throat, her eyes stinging as she pushed herself off the marble, preparing to shoulder her way past him and leave the bathroom.
Richard maintained his position for a long, heavy second, his gaze dropping back down to her lips with a visible hunger. For a heartbeat, she thought he was going to kiss her again, but without a single word, he stepped aside, clearing the path.
Roxanne’s legs felt like heavy lead as she began to walk toward the door. The gravity in the room seemed twisted.
Everything in her body was betraying her mind, screaming at her to turn back, to run into his massive arms, to beg him to take her against the cold tile. Her skin still throbbed where his hands had just been on her hips.
She reached the door, her fingers blindly grabbing the polished handle. She paused for a moment, and then she twisted it. The door swung open, and the sounds of the gala spilled into the room. Christian was out there. Her life was out there. Safety was out there.
Roxanne stared into the corridor for a long moment. Then slowly, she let the door swing shut.
A slow, predatory smile finally graced Richard’s lips. He unbuttoned his tuxedo jacket with one fluid motion and began to move toward her.
