He Wants An Open Marriage? Done!

The tide of questions from the press surged forward like a relentless wave, hitting Cara from every side. The reporters’ voices collided behind her, questions coming faster than she could process them.

She had not planned for a public disaster like this. She had pictured herself walking into the glass building with her chin held high, forcing Richard to yield to her demands in private.

Instead, she was trapped on the concrete steps with nowhere to hide. She needed room to think, but the crowd of reporters pressed closer, blocking her thoughts and leaving her no space to breathe.

Her hands trembled as her fingers drummed a frantic rhythm against the fabric of her coat. She tapped Richard’s contact once more and pressed the phone against her ear.

Pick up, Richard. Pick up the damn phone! she screamed in her head, her nails digging into the hard case of her device.

The ringtone stretched out, long and painful. Just as the call was about to disconnect and route to voicemail, a faint click sounded across the line.

"Richard!" Cara blurted out, her pulse hammering wildly in her ears.

Relief flooded through her chest, making her dizzy. "Listen to me. You need to fix this right now." Her voice rushed through the speaker, high and trembling. "Please. Just let me inside. Don’t stand there and let these people humiliate me. I am begging you, Richard."

A heavy silence answered her, making the knot in her stomach twist even tighter.

"Hello? Richard?" Cara asked, her breath catching in her throat. Cold sweat trickled down the back of her neck. Going into the building was her only way to escape the flashing lenses behind her. "Can you hear me?"

"Yes," a female voice answered. The tone was smooth and icy, a stark contrast to the frantic pounding in Cara’s chest.

Cara pulled the phone away from her ear, her eyebrows pulling together as she glared at the glowing screen. She had dialed Richard’s private number. Why was a woman answering his phone?

The realization hit her a second later, and a sudden wave of heat washed over her face.

She pressed the phone back to her ear, her breathing shallow and uneven. "Who is this?" she demanded, trying to hide the quiver in her voice.

"Hello, Cara," the voice replied, completely unbothered.

"Roxanne?" Cara asked, her voice dropping an octave as she fought the urge to scream. "What are you doing with Richard’s phone?" Her blood boiled in her veins, and her free hand curled into a tight fist at her side.

Upstairs in the quiet office, Roxanne rested the phone on the smooth wooden desk and tapped the speaker button, a faint smile touching her lips.

"Is that really what you called to ask?" Roxanne said, her tone dripping with light mockery. "Given the mess you are standing in right now, I assumed you had something urgent to say."

"Answer the question!" Cara spat out, her voice filled with barely restrained anger. "Why are you answering his phone?"

Roxanne glanced across the room at Richard. He stood beside his desk, his jaw set tight and his knuckles white as he listened to Cara’s voice echoing from the small speaker.

"For someone who is backed into a corner, you are wasting your breath on the wrong details," Roxanne said calmly.

Cara’s harsh breathing came through the line, loud and heavy. "I know this is your doing. You are the reason Richard is treating me like this," she said, her voice laced with venom. "You are manipulating him, and I will not let you get away with it!"

Roxanne shook her head softly, her expression unchanged. Across the room, Richard walked over to the floor-to-ceiling glass wall, looking down at the tiny figure standing on the plaza steps below.

"If you do not let me inside in five seconds, I will make sure—"

"Have you still not realized that threats do not work anymore?" Roxanne cut in, her voice smooth and steady. "Since you are clearly not ready to have a serious conversation, I will let you get back to your audience."

"Don’t you dare hang up on me!" Cara cried out, the composure draining from her tone. "Don’t even—"

"I do not understand why you are so upset," Roxanne said, leaning back in her chair. "You wanted a media circus, and now you have one. Why are you complaining?"

"This is your fault!" Cara shouted back, her voice cracking over the speaker. "I never wanted any of this. I only wanted to tell the truth. That I am pregnant with my fiancé’s child!"

Over by the window, Richard’s hand tightened into a solid fist, his posture rigid. Roxanne stared at the glowing phone on the desk. Her heart beat a little faster, but she refused to let Cara’s wild claims break her cool facade.

"Then you should have no reason to be afraid of the reporters," Roxanne said smoothly. "Tell them your truth. Tell them everything. When Richard is ready, he will address your claims in his own time."

"Put Richard on the phone," Cara demanded, her breath coming in ragged gasps over the speaker. "Tell him I need to speak to him right now. He cannot just leave me out here like a dog."

Roxanne looked back at Richard. He remained motionless by the glass, his eyes fixed on the street below, giving no sign that he wanted to touch the phone.

"He does not want to speak to you," Roxanne stated flatly.

"That is a lie!" Cara snapped. "Why are you keeping him away from me? Why can’t you just leave us alone?"

"It seems you really do not have anything useful to say," Roxanne said, reaching her hand out toward the red disconnect button on the screen. "When you are ready to talk sense, you can let me know."

"Wait! Don’t hang up! Please!" Cara’s voice surged through the speaker, stripped of all its previous anger.

Roxanne paused, her hand hovering over the glass screen as a quiet smile crossed her face.

"You have to let me inside," Cara said, her tone shifting into a desperate plea. "Please, let’s just talk about this."

Roxanne narrowed her eyes slightly. The power dynamic had shifted completely, and she had Cara right where she wanted her.

"Just tell me what you want," Cara added, her voice sounding small and defeated through the small speaker. "I just need to get inside, away from this crowd."

Silence stretched through the office.

Roxanne kept her eyes fixed on the phone, saying nothing. Richard turned away from the window, watching Roxanne quietly, waiting to see how she would handle the moment.

"We can handle this like civilized people," Cara coaxed, her voice trembling. "There are things you do not know about this situation."

Roxanne’s eyes narrowed. "If you want me to end this humiliation, Cara, I have one condition."

A beat of absolute quiet hung in the air before Cara answered. "A condition?"

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