Billionaire's Second Chance At Love

Chapter Forty Six

For the rest of the day, Ronin did everything he could to shake off the unease crawling under his skin. He couldn't help it. After everything that happened in less than 24 hours, his thoughts were running rampant. He needed to figure out a way to stop Grandpa from whatever crazy plan he was cooking up—it was dangerous. He had to stop Carmen from making the worst decision of her life.

But with the way Grandpa had treated him this morning, as if he was an outsider and not Carmen, Ronin wasn't too hopeful. He knew the old man was stubborn, and pushing harder might just make things worse.

So, what were his choices?

Not many apparently.

He had one shot left, though. Whether it would work in his favor or not, only time would tell. But the question was—was it worth the risk? Could he lower his guards enough to make any logic?

There was no way to be sure, as far as he could tell. Not unless he tried.

And perhaps that was why, when he spotted Carmen leaving Grandpa's room and heading out of the suite, likely on her way home, he grabbed the keys to his car and decided to follow her.

He waited until Carmen was out of the hotel and standing in the driveway, ready to get into the car that had arrived to drop her home, probably called by Grandpa. But he couldn't let her leave just yet, he had to try his last shot.

Without thinking twice, he jogged after her.

"Carmen!" he called out, making sure no one from his family was around. Fortunately, none of them really were. His mom and Eric had already left for the airport, leaving only him and Grandpa behind. "Wait!"

He watched as Carmen spun on her heels fast enough to give herself a whiplash. Her eyes were wide and her juicy lips were parted as if this was the last thing she expected. She shook her head when he was close enough to hear her mumbling. "Ronin?"

But Ronin didn't have time to watch her recover from the shock. He was quick to get to the point. "We need to talk."

She blinked up at him as if he was making no sense, the shorter strands of her hair dancing in the air. But then, surely and slowly enough, she angled her face and pinched her eyebrows. "About what?"

"You'll see," he replied, glancing over his shoulder one more time to ensure they were alone. "It's important."

"Ronin, if this is about what happened earlier, I swear I have no—"

He cut her off, rolling his eyes. "It's not about that." Although he couldn't deny that he had been a little offended at the way Grandpa had treated him earlier, there were more pressing matters to worry about. "But we should do this somewhere else. Do you have any place in mind?"

To him, it seemed like she wasn't quite on the same page as him, as she looked at him as if trying to assess his intention. But thankfully, she didn't take too long to return to her senses. "There is a coffee shop just down the road."

"Great." He said to her before he asked the valet to bring his car.

The car ride to the coffeehouse was filled with an odd mix of tension and anticipation. Carmen guided Ronin with the directions, and to his surprise, they weren't as complicated as he expected. In no time, they parked the car and stepped inside the cozy coffee shop.

Carmen, as if knowing exactly where to go, led the way to a remote booth.

Ronin followed suit, taking the seat across from her, glad that it wasn't a rush hour.

The moment they settled into their places, a heavy silence fell between them like always. It was unavoidable, as they both struggled to find matters to talk about.