After Divorce I Married a Tycoon-Chapter 210: Kiss

At the announcement of this punishment, Roxanne Peyton was completely stunned.

She had never in a million years imagined that her own best friend would make her kiss Silas Rowan. And with a time limit, no less.

Thirty seconds...

She wouldn’t even dare a light peck, yet she was supposed to hold it for thirty seconds.

Silas Rowan, for his part, was completely lost, a look of utter bewilderment on his face.

He couldn’t understand how a duel between Roxanne Peyton and Claire Mercer had managed to drag him into it.

He was just a bystander, hoping to watch the show.

He never expected to be forced to become a player in the game.

But when Claire Mercer saw that Roxanne Peyton had finally stopped laughing, she herself started to smile. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"Roxanne, this punishment isn’t illegal or criminal. You’re not thinking of backing out, are you?"

"You were so enthusiastic just a moment ago. How come you’ve lost all your steam?"

Roxanne Peyton had indeed lost her earlier enthusiasm.

If she had known her best friend would dish out a punishment like this, she wouldn’t have been so worked up earlier.

Talk about a boomerang. It had come right back to hit her.

"I’m not trying to back out..."

Claire Mercer grinned, enjoying the show. "Then what are you standing around for?"

"I’m just wondering what Silas Rowan thinks about it..."

Claire Mercer smiled at Silas Rowan and asked, "Silas, do you have any objections?"

"He won’t have any objections," Adrian Sutton answered for him first.

"It’s just a game, and he’s a good sport, right, Silas?"

Silas Rowan shot Adrian Sutton a look but didn’t say anything.

Seeing that he wasn’t taking a stance or giving a clear answer,

Roxanne Peyton assumed he was unwilling.

She didn’t feel embarrassed, but a sudden pang of bitterness rose in her heart.

She looked at Claire Mercer and said,

"How about I kiss someone else? It looks like Silas isn’t willing."

The moment he heard she wanted to kiss someone else, Silas Rowan’s heart clenched for no reason.

He couldn’t help but blurt out,

"How can you just go around kissing other people?"

Roxanne Peyton couldn’t help but retort.

"You’re not willing to play along, so why can’t I switch to someone else?"

"I..." Silas Rowan was at a loss for words.

The others all turned their gazes to him.

Everyone was waiting for what he would say next.

Silas Rowan wanted to say he wasn’t unwilling.

But...

He was just too embarrassed to say it out loud.

It wasn’t until Adrian Sutton nudged his shoulder that he cleared his throat and spoke.

"Since it’s a game, I’m not a bad sport..."

"So, are you willing or not? Just give me a straight answer," Roxanne Peyton pressed him.

Silas Rowan instantly choked on his words.

’Isn’t my meaning obvious enough?’

’Is she too drunk to understand?’

’How can she ask so directly?’

Anyone who didn’t know better would think they were in the middle of a love confession.

Stella Thorne, who was dead set on getting Silas Rowan and Roxanne Peyton together, couldn’t help but urge him on.

"Silas, you’re a grown man, can’t you be more straightforward? We’re just playing a game, why are you being so coy?"

If this were any other time, Stella Thorne wouldn’t have been so bold.

But with a few bottles of beer in their systems, and the girls being lightweights,

Although they weren’t blackout drunk, their heads were already a little fuzzy.

Even though it was a game, Silas Rowan felt the act was a bit inappropriate.

It wouldn’t reflect well on Roxanne Peyton.

Today, it was him here, and Claire Mercer was telling her to kiss him.

What if it were some other guy?

Would she still be such a stickler for the rules of the game and kiss someone else?

As he thought about this, his chest tightened uncomfortably.

But he didn’t want her to kiss someone else, either.

’Rather than watch her kiss another person, it might as well be me.’

With that thought, Silas Rowan’s reservations vanished.

"I’m willing to cooperate," he said.

Upon getting Silas Rowan’s affirmative answer, the others instantly cheered and clapped.

The surrounding jeers and catcalls made Roxanne Peyton’s cheeks flush bright red.

Her fingertips clutched the hem of her skirt tightly as her gaze darted away from Silas Rowan, her heart pounding so fast it felt like it would burst from her chest.

The teasing from the others continued unabated.

The warm yellow light fell on Silas Rowan, softening his usual cool and aloof aura.

He lowered his gaze slightly, his long lashes hiding the complex emotions in his eyes, leaving only a subtle tension in his jawline.

He was expectant, yet his chest felt a little tight.

"Hurry up, don’t dilly-dally!"

Claire Mercer urged with a smile, trying to break the stalemate between the two.

Stella Thorne also chimed in. "Roxanne, don’t try to back out now. Silas has already agreed."

Seeing her two best friends excitedly egging her on, Roxanne Peyton took a deep breath.

She had already talked big; she didn’t want to go back on her word.

After an intense internal struggle, she seemed to have made a momentous decision. Her body slowly moved closer to Silas Rowan.

They were very close—so close she could smell the crisp scent of cedar on him, mixed with a faint hint of smoke, which made her already flustered heart beat even faster.

There was just a tiny distance left.

But she, Roxanne Peyton, grew timid and pulled back.

Her mind was in utter chaos.

Claire Mercer and Stella Thorne watched the two with knowing smiles, their eyes brimming with amusement. Claire leaned over to Stella’s ear conspiratorially, wiggling her eyebrows as she whispered:

"See what’s going on here?"

Stella Thorne nodded with a grin. "I’m not blind. That was a great dare you gave her."

"But looking at Roxanne, you don’t think she’s going to bail at the last second, do you?"

Claire Mercer laughed. "Her personality can’t resist being goaded. You know what I mean?"

Stella Thorne winked at her. "Watch me."

Then, she turned to the beet-red Roxanne Peyton and said, "Roxanne, if you can’t handle it, we can just switch to a different punishment. Don’t force yourself."

Just as expected, those words provoked an emotional response from Roxanne Peyton. "Am I, Roxanne Peyton, the kind of person who can’t take a loss? Since I dared to face Claire in a 1v1 duel, I never planned on backing down."

"Get the timer out. Thirty seconds. I won’t short you girls by a single second."

With that, before Silas Rowan could even react, she closed her eyes and planted a kiss directly on his cheek.

This sudden move caught Silas Rowan completely off guard.

He froze like a wooden post, staring blankly at her beautiful features.

Her lips were cool to the touch, but they couldn’t extinguish the heat suddenly rising on his cheek, or the fervent pounding of his heart.

Thirty seconds. It wasn’t long, but it wasn’t short either.

Roxanne Peyton had always been someone who honored her bets. Sure enough, the moment Claire Mercer shouted, "Time’s up!" she immediately pulled away and sat primly back in her seat.

With trembling fingers, she picked up the steaming cup of hot tea in front of her and took several gulps, trying to hide her shyness and embarrassment.

She gritted her teeth inwardly. ’Claire, how could you do this to me? Just you wait, I’ll get you back for this.’

After composing herself, she proposed another round against Claire Mercer.

Claire Mercer readily accepted the challenge, and the two played another round of rock-paper-scissors.

This round, Roxanne Peyton put all her effort into winning, and she actually managed to pull it off.

Roxanne Peyton finally felt vindicated. She proudly lifted her flushed little face to Claire Mercer and said,

"Claire, you lost. What goes around, comes around."

"First, finish the drink in front of you. Then, for your punishment, you have to kiss Adrian Sutton."

"And you know what I mean by ’kiss,’ right? Not on the cheek. On the lips."

"No need for a French kiss, just lips on lips is fine. For at least one minute."

"Claire, I know you’re not a sore loser, and besides, kissing your own husband is barely a punishment for you. I’m already going easy on you, you know."

"You lost fair and square, so don’t even think about backing out. I’ll give you one minute to prepare."

Claire Mercer didn’t hesitate. She picked up the glass in front of her and downed the entire drink in one go.

Because she drank too quickly, beer trickled down her chin.

Adrian Sutton quickly pulled out a tissue and wiped the liquor from the corner of her mouth.

"Don’t drink so fast, you’ll get drunk..."

The words had barely left his lips when Claire Mercer, her eyes slightly hazy, stared straight at him.

Then she reached out with her warm hands, cupped Adrian Sutton’s face, and without a moment’s hesitation, pressed her lips to his.