“Oh, don’t feel sorry for me, Tessa.” He leaned forward. “By the time I was a teenager, I made the most of my trust fund and parental disinterest, trust me.” He sipped his coffee. “I idolized my father when I was a boy, like most boys do. I dreamed he’d come to my baseball games, or be sitting in the crowd at a school event.” Ro shrugged. “He used to promise, then never show. Once I got older, I worked out what he was really like. Keeping any sort of promise isn’t much of a priority for him. Then, I didn’t care anymore.”

But he did. A part of him did. “Aunt Emily came to all my volleyball games. I was terrible at it. But she was always there for me.”

“You’re lucky.”

I was.

He set his mug down, reached across the table, and rested his hand close to mine. I knew he was conscious of the staff and guests in the room. His pinkie brushed mine. “Have dinner with me tonight. In my penthouse.”

I pulled a face. “I can’t. I have plans.”

His face smoothed out. “Of course.”

I immediately thought of that boy scanning the crowd, hoping to see his father. Reaching out, uncaring of who was nearby, I covered his hand with mine. “My girlfriends have demanded a cocktail night. It’s at my place, so I can’t say no.”

He relaxed and squeezed my fingers. “Tomorrow night?”

“Deal.”

I sipped my tea again, savoring the flavor. A strange creaking noise caught my ear. I glanced around, and heard another creak. Wood? Metal? It was difficult to tell. Across from me, Ro was frowning.

Creak.

Then I looked up. I blinked. The chandelier was crooked.

No, the chandelier was falling.

I had no time to think. I tossed my cup, then dived out of my chair and aimed at Ro.

His eyes went wide. “Tessa⁠—?”

I hit him at full force. His chair tipped over and we both fell backward. He rolled us, and ended up on top of me.

He must have instantly realized what was happening, because he covered my body with his.

Crash.

The chandelier made a horrible noise as it smashed into the floor. Shards and chunks of glass sprayed everything in a twenty-foot radius. I felt things ping off us.

My heart hammered in my chest, making it hard to breathe. Oh. My. God.

Someone had really tried to kill Ro this time.

Was he hurt? Had the glass hit him? I turned my head. “Ro, are you okay?”

“I’m all right. What about you?” He sat up, pulling me with him.