He Wants An Open Marriage? Done!

"I will do it," Richard said, the words sounding as though he had forced them through a tightly clenched throat.

Roxanne looked at him for a quiet moment, taking in the deep tension holding his shoulders stiff. Exhaling a sharp breath, she clicked her seatbelt open and reached for the door handle. "I will take a cab home, and we can meet over there," she said softly.

Richard’s face twisted with instant disbelief. "What? No!" he snapped, his voice sharp as a whip. "That is absolutely not happening. You take the car, and I will take a cab."

Roxanne let out a soft sigh, turning her head to meet his intense stare. "Richard—"

Richard shook his head firmly, cutting her off before she could protest. "No, Roxanne. That is not happening," he stated, his dark eyes ablaze with protective fury. "I am not leaving you alone in a random cab tonight."

"But our plan will not work if we do what you are asking," Roxanne insisted in a low tone, trying to remain calm despite the frantic pounding of her pulse against her ribs.

"I don’t care," Richard said, his tone unyielding. "I don’t care what Cara, my mother, or anyone else in that house thinks about it. I will not leave you by yourself in the dark. No! And that is final."

Roxanne stared into his resolute eyes for a long beat, realizing instantly that there was no point in arguing with him when his mind was made up. A quiet wave of affection washed through her chest. She gave a small nod, relenting. "Fine then."

Outside the car, Cara’s voice was trembling with a volatile mix of anger and desperation as she continued hitting her palm against the window.

"Stop ignoring me, Richard!" Cara yelled, her chest heaving as Richard kept his back turned to her. "You cannot just drive off like this! I am the one carrying your child, so you have to choose me!"

Neither Richard nor Roxanne gave her the slightest attention. They remained completely absorbed in each other.

Frustrated, Cara banged her palm against the glass again. "Richard! Answer me right now!"

Still, there was no answer from inside the vehicle.

Cara’s heart hammered wildly against her ribs as panic set in. She needed to do something, anything, that would force him to step out of that car. Then an idea dropped into her mind, and her eyes narrowed into thin slits.

There was no way Richard would ignore a direct threat to his corporate standing.

Taking a deep breath, she slapped the glass once more, staring at the back of his neck. "If you do not get out of this car right now, then don’t blame me when I take every secret I know directly to the press!" she threatened, her voice dripping with venom, even as a flicker of doubt buzzed in the back of her mind.

At that exact moment, Richard turned his head, looked at her through the glass, and unlocked the car doors with a click.

A massive sigh of relief escaped Cara’s chest before she could catch herself.

The door swung open, and Richard stepped out onto the gravel driveway, his tall frame looming over her with a stern expression. But his harsh look did not bother her. All that mattered was that she still knew how to manipulate him. She was certain he would never risk a public scandal.

Smiling with trembling lips, she reached out and touched his forearm. "I knew you wouldn’t want that to happen," she purred.

Richard did not even spare her a glance. He coldly shrugged her hand off his arm and walked straight past her toward the passenger side of the sedan.

Cara’s brows furrowed in complete confusion, her pulse pounding in her ears as she whirled around. "What are you—?"

The words died in her throat as Richard opened the passenger door, holding it gently for Roxanne. He completely ignored Cara, keeping his dark eyes fixed entirely on Roxanne as she slid out of the seat, treating Cara as if she were completely invisible.

The cold rejection stung like a slap, but Cara forced her face to stay neutral. She refused to let Roxanne see her break.

"Thank you," Roxanne said softly, brushing past Richard to walk around to the open driver’s door.

Cara’s mind raced at a thousand miles an hour. What on earth were they doing? Were they still leaving the villa? Despite her threat?

"What exactly is going on here?" she demanded, her voice rising as Richard walked past her to stand beside the driver’s window.

Richard leaned down slightly, looking through the open window into Roxanne’s eyes. "I love you, Roxanne," he said, his deep voice carrying a pleading edge.

Cara felt the words pierce her chest like a sharp blade as she stood on the gravel.

Roxanne held Richard’s intense gaze for a lingering second. Beside them, Cara shook her head slowly, unable to bear hearing them express their love for each other. But then, without saying a single word back to him, Roxanne rolled the window all the way up, cutting off eye contact.

Cara’s eyes narrowed into sharp slits as she watched the glass rise. Wait. Was she misreading the room? Why would Roxanne cold-shoulder Richard like that? Were the cracks in their relationship already widening under the pressure?

A sudden spark of triumph bloomed in her chest. If they were turning on each other, that was better than she could have ever hoped for.

Roxanne shifted into gear and smoothly pulled the sedan down the dark driveway. Cara stepped closer to Richard, but he didn’t look at her. His eyes remained fixed on the red taillights fading into the night.

Only when the car disappeared completely through the iron estate gates did Richard turn around, though his face remained cold and unreadable.

"What just happened, Richard? Did she say something terrible to upset you?" Cara asked, stepping into his path and looking up into his eyes. "Or did she finally realize she cannot compete with what we have?"

Richard held her gaze for a brief moment. Then his jaw hardened into a firm line. "You should be thrilled, Cara. You won," he said coldly, turning on his heel and walking toward the grand steps of the villa.

Cara’s jaw dropped in shock. She stared at the closed gates, then whirled around to follow his tall, retreating figure up the stairs. "Wait, Richard!" she called out, hurrying her steps behind him. "Are you trying to say that Roxanne just broke up with you?"

Richard did not answer. He kept moving forward, his footsteps echoing across the stone porch.

Cara slowed her pace, a wicked glint illuminating her eyes as a victorious smile spread across her face. She had won.

Roxanne was finally out of the picture, and now the path to taking Richard for herself was wide open.

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