His words repeated in my head before I could truly register what he was saying. Marry Lisa? That would mean nothing could ever happen between me and Roman, not that I was expecting anything more...but still.

"Oh." Was my response because I honestly didn't know what to say to that. Roman glared at the floor and huffed.

"Yeah, oh. That's his way of cleaning up a mess." His voice was hard, and anger was evident on his face.

"What are you going to do?" My question came out as a whisper, much to my chagrin. I didn't want to make it seem like I cared. We slept together once just to get it out of our systems, it didn't mean anything. He looked up quickly at me, his brow furrowed as his eyes darted across my face. I couldn't tell what he was feeling or thinking.

"I'm not going to marry her, I know that for sure." His face was serious, and I raised my brows in mild shock. That was not the answer I was expecting. I thought he would just listen to his father as usual.

"Why not?" The question left my mouth before I could stop myself. I didn't want him to marry Lisa, but I did want to know where his head was at. Why he was making this decision. He raised a brow and chuckled, adjusting his position on the floor to face me more.

"Because I don't love her. I'm not going to marry someone I don't love. I could date her just fine for the optics, but marriage is binding. I don't want any official documented ties to her or her family. That is something I won't be budging on."

I almost smiled. He wasn't going to marry Lisa. All of the panic I was feeling went away and I got more comfortable on the floor. "I know your father wasn't happy to hear that."

"I actually haven't told him yet." He held up a hand when I opened my mouth to respond. "Don't worry, I'm going to tell him later today. I just needed some time to get my thoughts together."

I nodded at his words. "Okay," I answered softly, staring at my hands now. "What happens now?" I asked, fiddling with my thumbs. Roman pursed his lips before getting up. I looked up at him with a confused expression before he held his hand out for me to grab. I pulled myself up with his help, and smoothed out the wrinkles in my clothes.

"We're going to go back to work and pretend that nothing is going on behind the scenes. Ignore the stares you'll get and wear the confidence I always see when you walk down these hallways, okay?" He took a step toward me as I nodded and gave me a simple smile, eyes wandering over my face. He placed a finger under my chin, lifting up my head and his thumb brushed my chin softly, eyes finally locking with mine. My breath caught as I anticipated his kiss, but it never came. He let his hand trail softly down my face and to my shoulder before dropping it. When he walked out of the closet first, my own hand came up to trace the phantom trail he left with his fingers. I couldn't get caught up, I told myself as I shook my head and walked out of the closet. I told Roman I would see him later and left his office, making a beeline to mine. No one stopped me and when I entered my office I saw that my office phone was blinking red, indicating there was a message waiting for me. I sat down and pulled out a notepad and pen in case I had to take notes. I picked up the phone, pressing the red button.

"Hello there! My name is Lori Haugn. This is a message for Violett Moore. I was calling because of all of the recent press about you and was wondering if you would be available for a sit down with Carla Wrights on her talk show. Here's her contact information if you're interested..."

I wrote down the number and email Lori left and sat back in my chair after hanging up the phone. A small chuckle escaped my lips as I thought about the message left for me. How did she even get my contact information? Why would this Carla Wrights person even want me on her talk show? To spill details about what's going on between me and Roman? She would be highly disappointed because there was nothing happening. The real juicy details would be that the relationship between Roman and Lisa wasn't even real. It was just a business transaction. I wonder what the media would do with that information. I tucked her information in my mind though, just in case I decided to go that route for when Grayson eventually exploded. I spun around in my chair, thinking about everything. Would Roman actually keep his word about not marrying Lisa? Would he eventually succumb to his father's wishes? I shook my head, not wanting to dwell on it anymore. The rest of my day was smooth and by the time it was time to leave, I felt comfortable enough not to care about anything happening outside of my office. If people wanted to stare, I would let them stare.

I packed up my things and as I got up from my chair, my office door opened. Roman entered, eyes glancing around my office before landing on me.

"Ready to go?" he asked, a smile growing on his face. I nodded as I pulled my large purse over my shoulder.

"As ready as I can be. You?" I asked back as I walked to his side. He shrugged as he gestured for me to exit first.

"Same, I guess. Though I'm not getting as much flack as you, I'm still getting a lot. Especially death threats. Nothing I can't handle though." His voice was low when he answered me as we walked through the halls. I glanced up at him sharply.

"Death threats, Roman? That's not okay." I kept my voice low as well, but couldn't hide the worry in my tone. He didn't respond when we walked past a group of women and instead kept his gaze straight ahead. I peeked from the corner of my eye to see them glaring at me and surprisingly at Roman as well. "What's their deal?"

We stopped at the elevator, and he glanced casually over his shoulder before looking down at me, a smirk on his face.

"I might have slept with some of them, maybe all of them? I'm not sure." He shrugged and I rolled my eyes, staring at the elevator door. Figures.

"You're disgusting, you know that?" I raised a brow at him, and he put a hand on his chest, feigning shock.

"I'm hurt that you think so. A man has needs." He wiggled his brows and I huffed out a chuckle as the elevator doors open.

"Oh, I know." I shuddered inwardly as I remembered sitting on his...I let out a breath and tried to calm my body that was starting to heat up. Roman clicked the button for the lobby before standing next to me again. His close proximity wasn't helping at all.

"You're thinking about it, aren't you?" Roman's voice was a whisper that snapped me out of my thoughts. I looked up at him, confused. His eyes were staring hard into mine before glancing at my lips. I parted them as I realized what he was talking about. I shook my head, looking forward.

"No, not at all." I lied, clearing my throat. When he moved closer to me, I felt all of his warmth. He bent down slowly, his mouth stopping by my ear.

"So, you aren't thinking about the time you climbed onto my lap and impaled yourself on my cock? You sinking deliciously as your muscles clamped around me?" His voice was husky as he whispered the dirty words in my ear and heat shot straight to my core. I tried to keep my breathing even as I watched the numbers slowly go down on the elevator, but failed. "What about the sounds of my cock sliding in and out of your soaked pussy? Do you remember the sounds? Did it turn you on as much as it turned me on?"

I almost choked on air. "Roman," I hissed, wanting him to stop and continue at the same time. We were almost to the lobby. I knew my skin was flush and I didn't want to step out of the elevator looking like I needed to get laid.

"I can tell you're aroused by my words. Don't worry, I can take care of that for you at the house if you want. Just give me the word." His breath tickled my ear, and he slowly dragged his tongue up the shell of my ear, making me close my eyes and shudder from the sensation. It took all of me not to back him into the corner of the elevator and have him take me right there. Before I could answer, he straightened up and the elevator dinged, opening the doors. He walked first, glancing over his shoulder with a knowing smirk on his face. "Coming?"

I glared at him as I understood the double meaning of his words.