Beneath Her Bastard Boss

Roman sat at his desk. It was getting late, but he stared at his phone, knowing he needed to make a few more calls before he could take Blair home and make love to her. The first call was the one he worried about the most.

He had made plenty of difficult calls in his life, high–stakes business negotiations, shutting down enemies before they even became a threat, but this? This felt different. It wasn’t about business; it was about Blair.

With a deep breath, he scrolled through Blair’s employment file to find the number he needed. Once he had located it; he dialed Sutton.

She answered on the second ring. “Sutton speaking…” He could hear the wariness in her tone. She wouldn’t recognize the number.

“Sutton, it’s Roman Kingston,” he said smoothly

“Roman?” She sounded surprised by his call. “What is it?”

He smirked at her directness. “I need a moment of your time.”

“You sound serious,” she said. “That’s rarely a good thing.”

Roman leaned back, his voice steady. “I’m calling because I want your blessing to marry Blair.”

There was a pause, then a knowing laugh. “Why are you asking me now when you’ve already asked her?”

Roman grinned, shaking his head. He should have known Blair would have already told her sisters. They were that close. “Because you’re the head of the family, and I respect that I know how much she values you and your opinion. I wanted to do this right.”

Sutton was quiet for a beat, then her voice softened. “Blair deserves someone who puts her first, who won’t let her down. Someone who doesn’t cheat.”

“She’s my priority. Will always be.”

Another pause, then Sutton spoke, her words firm. “Then you have my blessing. But if you ever hurt her, Roman, I don’t care how powerful you are… I will come after you.”

His smirk returned. “I’d expect nothing less” He really did like how protective Sutton and Keira were of Blair. But he believed the one who would harm him more was Keira.

“Good and congratulations, Roman. She deserves happiness. I hope you do, too.”

Ending the call, Roman sat back for a moment, letting it sink in. It wasn’t just about marrying Blair; it was about building a life with her and he’d make damn sure she had everything she deserved.

Next, he called his parents. His mother answered, her voice lighting up the moment she heard him. “Roman! To what do I owe this surprise?”

“I wanted you and Dad to be the first to know I asked Blair to marry me.”

There was a gasp, followed by his mother yelling, “John, get in here! Your son finally did something romantic!”

Roman sighed “Mom…” He had told his parents months ago how he felt about Blair. He hadn’t wanted it to be a big surprise once he got her to agree to marry him.

His father’s deep voice came through the line, “Marrying Blair?”

Wed,

“Yes.”

“Smart decision. She’s good for you, Keeps you in line.”

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(+28)

Roman had told them how she never took his crap in the office. His parents had known about his feelings and wishes before Blair had He often talked about her.

His mother’s voice overlapped, “Roman, I am so happy for you both! Tell me you planned something special when you proposed. Don’t tell me you did it in the office like some business deal.”

His sister’s voice suddenly came over the line. “Hold on–did you actually get down on one knee?”

Roman pinched the bridge of his nose. “Do I seem like the type to get down on one knee?”

“So no” His sister Rose laughed “Poor Blair.”

“She said yes, didn’t she?” Roman countered. He could not tell them that he had wanted her so much that he had used the problem with Jessica to get Blair to marry him.

Yes, he was a ruthless bastard, but his family didn’t need to know that His intentions had been good–he just wasn’t willing to wait and had taken the opportunity to secure her hand

“Miracles happen every day,” Rose teased

His mother shushed them both. “Roman, we will celebrate properly. Just make sure you bring her down to meet us as soon as possible.”

“I will” He promised

Ending the call, Roman exhaled One last call to makenoveldrama

He dialed his media contact, who picked up almost instantly. “Roman, I was just about to call you. There’s some noise about your ex–wife trying to sell a story.”

Roman’s jaw tightened “I figured as much I want you to shut it down before it even makes it to print Make sure every outlet knows that if they so much as run a headline with her name and mine in it, they’ll regret it.”

“Understood. We’ll make sure she’s blacklisted No one will touch her story,”

Roman’s voice was cold. “Good, and make sure she understands one thing if she tries anything. If she so much as breathes Blair’s name to the press, I will sue her into oblivion.”

His contact chuckled. “Consider it handled.”

Hanging up, Roman leaned back, satisfaction settling in his chest. Blair was his and no one, no past, no scandal, no bitter ex, was going to touch what they had.

But he wasn’t done yet

Roman stood and walked to the window, looking out over the city skyline His mind was already moving ahead Blair would be his wife, and that meant ensuring she was protected–not just from the past, but from anyone who might try to interfere

in their future

He picked up his phone again and made another call, this time to his private investigator “I want you to keep a closer eye on Jessica If she makes any moves beyond selling a story, I want to know about it immediately And if she meets with anyone, I want their name.”

“Understood. I’ll keep you updated.”

16:13 Wed, 18 Jun

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Roman ended the call and sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He knew Blair wouldn’t love him going to these lengths, but he didn’t care. Keeping her safe wasn’t optional.

He sat back down at his desk, a rare smile crossing his face He could already picture the look on Blair’s face if she knew about his calls She would be frustrated at him being overprotective, the inevitable eye–roll, but underneath it all, the warmth that said she liked it

For the first time in his life, Roman felt like everything was exactly where it should be

Now, all he had to do was make sure nothing, and no one, messed with what they were building together

And when the time was right, he would tell her exactly how he felt about her