They want to take over the company. Right out from under Roman. But why? Roman needs to know this now. Where was he when I needed him? I could expose them right now! I decided to risk it and peer out of the window a little bit so I could see where they were and if I could hear them better this way. Looking out of the window, I spotted my brother getting out of his car and walking toward Colton and Lisa. Yes! I could talk to him about what I just heard and even tell him that Lisa isn't being loyal to just him. Expose her for the witch that she was. I was about to leave my car, but what I heard next stopped me, making my blood run cold.

"How's operation take over Roman's company going? Any progress yet?" Mason asked them and my heart almost stopped. Mason was in on it too? My freaking brother? No way. There was no way. I had to have heard wrong or they had to be threatening him or something. Even though I was thinking that, deep down I knew it was true. He looked too happy asking that question and even now as I tried to listen in on their conversation, he seemed excited to be a part of destroying a man's future, his hard-earned position in his family company.

"Obviously the pictures we got of them didn't work." That was Mason's voice. I closed my eyes, not wanting to believe it. It honestly broke my heart.

"We should blame the delay of the takeover on you. You told us that you had the perfect woman to be a distraction for Roman because she was trustworthy or whatever you sold us, yet here we are, behind schedule." Lisa's words made me sit up before I could stop myself. Colton glanced up from where they were standing and I quickly ducked back down, hoping he didn't see me. The sky was still a little dark and my windows were tinted enough that when it wasn't sunny, it hid me well. My own brother was a part of this and handed me on a silver platter to Roman. And I was stupid and horny enough to fall for it. I knew I should've left this company when I had the opportunity. Nothing and everything was making sense at the same time. They all continued talking and it was just about the same things Colton and Lisa were talking about before Mason showed up. It was hard to pay attention to anything they were saying because I was stuck on the fact that my own brother betrayed me. I'd never seen that side of him before. He was always such a sweet guy, always looking out for me, always. What changed? What made him the way he was now? Conniving, secretive, evil. I was blowing out my breath over and over again when Roman finally pulled up. The trio went inside the building right before he came, which meant I could finally leave. I brought my seat back up and quickly hopped out of my car, racing over to Roman's before he could even take one step away from his car.

"Whoa, what's wrong?" He held his arms out to stop me from crashing into him. I was huffing to catch my breath in front of him and held up a hand as I tried to get oxygen back into my lungs. His eyes searched my face for answers and I finally got the words out.

"Your friends are trying to take over your company." I huffed out, holding my side as a cramp began to form. I really needed to start working out. This was ridiculous. Roman's dark brows dipped, and he let out a little laugh, confusion written all over his face.

"What do you mean? What makes you say that?" he asked, genuinely curious. Maybe he didn't know about any of this and wasn't using me like everyone else was.

"I was just sitting in my car, listening to Lisa, Colton, and Mason talk about taking over your company. Apparently, I was supposed to be a distraction for you for a little bit while they undermined you and they're also the ones who leaked the pictures of us! Colton was the culprit to be specific." Saying all of this out loud annoyed me even more than when I first heard it. I should've been more aware of what was happening around me. Usually, I was, but Roman was a distraction. He was as much of a distraction for me as I was for him. His brows dipped again and this time he didn't say a word. His face went from confused to pissed off in two seconds. Jaw ticking, he pushed off his car and began walking with a purpose toward the door to the building. I followed him.

"What are you going to do?" I called out to him, trying to catch up with his long strides.

"I'm going to have a little chat with my so-called friends." He was definitely angry, which meant this little chat was not going to end well. I jogged to catch up with him and walked in front of him, holding my hand up to stop him. He huffed and paused, looking down at me. "What, Violett?"

"I don't think it would be a good idea to expose the fact that you know what they're doing. How about you keep it to yourself, act like you don't know, and figure out their game plan. Their true game plan. Like what happens if they take over your company? What do they plan to do with it after? There has to be a true endgame to this plan of theirs." I lifted my brows, and he narrowed his eyes at me before taking a step toward me.

"No one is taking my company away from me. No one." He hissed, nostrils flaring. I rolled my eyes.

"You don't have to tell me that. I know that. The only question is what are you going to do about it without them knowing that you know?"

His face relaxed at my words and he glanced to the side, looking like he was actually thinking about what I said.

"While you ponder that, I have a question for you. Did you see that interview with Carter? I feel like I should say something publicly to let them know that what he's saying isn't true at all and that isn't my character. I've never slept with any of my professors or bosses. Especially not for power. I would want to get power on my own, not with the help of a man by pleasing him." I made a face and that made Roman smirk. He pulled me toward him, an arm slinking around my waist and I wrapped my arms around him, putting my head on his chest. He was warm and comfortable.

"I'll take care of him as I told you earlier. I'm having everything he's said about you sent to me so that I know how to handle this situation accordingly." I opened my mouth to add to what he said, but he beat me to it. "And yes darling, I will keep you updated on everything, don't worry." He pulled back, sliding a finger under my chin, lifting up my head. I smiled at him for knowing what I was going to say, and he shook his head at me, though there was humor in his eyes.

"Okay, but should I speak to the media or not? I got a voicemail the other day with a woman asking for me to speak on her show and I was honestly thinking about doing it." I admitted to him, and he shook his head again.

"Not right now. If what I plan to do doesn't work, then yes, tell them your side of the story. But for now, I would advise you not to." His finger left my chin and he slowly slid it up my cheek before cupping my face.

"Alright, I trust you," I breathed out, noting how my body was reacting to a simple touch from him. Distracting wasn't even the word I should use to describe him. What he did to my body should be illegal. His eyes caressed my face, leaving it burning in its wake, and he wasn't even doing anything to me. That was how much power he had over me. How much power I let him have.

"What are you thinking about right now?" Roman asked me, his voice low and sultry. I passed my tongue over my lips slowly before answering, loving how his eyes followed the motion, darkening right after.

"Sucking your dick," I told him the truth and his eyes widened before he let out a loud laugh. I joined in before raising a suggestive brow at him when we made eye contact again.

"Not now. I'll take you up on that offer later though. And I can give you this right now to calm down the hormones I know are raging at the moment." He winked at me before bending down and I raised myself up on my toes, meeting him halfway. I could never get tired of kissing him. The feel of his lips on mine was something I wanted all the time. Something I thought about all the time. He pulled back and I whimpered at the loss.

"Roman," I whined, and he chuckled, planting a kiss on my forehead.

"Later, love. Come on." He walked to the door and held it open for me. I could already feel the cool air coming from inside and I took in a deep breath before walking forward. The lobby wasn't crowded like I expected, it was still pretty early. But there were more than a few people lounging around and as soon as eyes landed on me, chatter picked up. I didn't mind though because I prepared myself for this moment. I knew everyone already saw the pictures and me and Roman outside of the restaurant. I already saw the articles myself talking about how I ditched Colton for Roman. The thought of how embarrassed Colton must've been because it made him look weak to the media, made me smile. I walked confidently through the large lobby with Roman walking beside me, a little ahead of me because of his long strides. To show everyone that this wasn't just a one-sided attraction with me pining after the powerful man, but it was indeed him pining after me as well, I nonchalantly got on my phone and reached out with my other hand, wrapping my pinky around his. It wasn't much of anything, but the way Roman squeezed my pinky with his without even looking at me as we walked toward the elevators, showed me that he really had my back. And it also showed onlookers that we were so in sync with each other, that innocent intimate gestures like pinky holding were normal for us. I could hear the whispers start getting a little louder and I wanted to smile so badly. Now everyone definitely had something to talk about at work. Once we were in the elevator alone, I let out a sigh and looked up at Roman, who was staring at his phone with his brows bunched.

"What's wrong?" I asked, moving closer to him, our pinkies still locked together. He pressed his lips together and inhaled deeply before exhaling.

"The board is coming after me. They're discussing replacing me." His voice was hard, and his jaw ticked in anger.

"That's ridiculous! Is this because of me?" It had to be unless Colton and the others got to the board already. Roman didn't answer me and instead, let go of my pinky and wrapped his hand in mine, bringing it up to his lips and kissing the back of it. I knew what that meant. He wouldn't even look me in the eyes. "It is, I already know. I'm sorry, Roman. I'll find a way to fix it."

"It's okay, I handle it." The elevator doors opened, and he gave the back of my hand another kiss before leaving, walking in the direction of his office. I pressed my lips together as I left the elevator myself, headed toward my own office. I already knew what had to happen in order for the trouble to stop for him. I had to remove myself from the equation. It wouldn't be ideal for us, but I didn't want him losing his position because of me. And then he had his so-called friends already gunning for his spot, he didn't need another distraction. I entered my office and stopped abruptly when I spotted Lisa sitting in the chair in front of my desk. Her back was facing me, but I knew who she was from her red hair and small frame.

"What do you want, Lisa?" I asked immediately, shutting my door before making my way over to my desk. I set my purse down on the floor and then sat down myself before really facing Lisa. She had a smile on her face that didn't reach her eyes and made her look like she was straining.

"Hi, Violett. I wanted to stop by to give you some advice." She said in a sickly-sweet voice, making me narrow my eyes. What was she up to?

"Get on with it, I have a lot of work to do," I said dismissively, which made her fake smile falter. She chuckled before leaning forward.

"Some advice? Leave Roman alone, tell the media you were playing them, and give Roman back to me. Or else."

I raised a brow at the not-so-subtle threat. Leaning forward, I clasped my hands together on my desk before giving her a sweet smile myself. "Or else what, Lisa?"

The grin that grew on her face actually made my skin crawl and made me wonder what she actually had planned. She leaned forward even more.

"Or you'll live to regret not heeding the warning I just gave you."