“You were the one...?” The guard glowered at him. “Why would you...?”
“Because as much as I’m tempted to kill her—as much as I’m struggling not to end her for what she’s done, I’m doing my best to restrain myself.”
Wait...what?
“Why would you restrain yourself?” The guard frowned. “You’ve never stopped yourself before. The girls are just ants for your entertainment and pleasure. To bed and discard as you see fit.”
Great, I was no longer a rat but an ant.
Not exactly an improvement.
“I know.” Lucien tightened his arm around me until I tripped against him. “But this one’s different.”
Different.
My stupid heart reacted, not able to tell the truth from a lie anymore.
I gulped as he nuzzled my neck, murmuring loud enough for the guards to hear, “The moment we met, I knew she’d ruin me. And...I didn’t really care. I certainly wasn’t able to stop myself.”
My pulse skyrocketed.
What was he doing?
What is he saying?!
A couple of the guards glowered. “Regardless, step aside and we’ll remove her for you. Our incinerator has been idle the past few days.” Rain continued to fall, making them glance at the sky with impatience to get back inside.
Lucien huffed and rested his forehead on my temple. Such an intimate position yet it felt so threatening. “I’m quite capable of killing her myself, thanks.” His eyebrows drew together, tickling me. “Don’t you want to know why I haven’t?”
A dark-haired one shrugged. “Look, Mr. Ashfall. We’re all getting wet. Can we wrap it up so we can get dry?” He arched his chin at me. “Whatever you’re doing, it’s not our place to ask questions. This is your turf. Your rules. But she’s holding a knife. You’re our top priority. Allow us to clean up your mess and—”
“My mess?” Lucien snapped, swooping to his full height and glaring at them. “You’re calling the fact that I finally succumbed a mess?”
The guards shared a look, as confused as me. Before they could respond, Lucien added, “I gave her the knife, so I didn’t snap and kill her. I’m protecting her from you, so you don’t get trigger happy.”
“But you’ve never cared before—”
“You’re right. I haven’t. But she’s my ticket out of here. And if you destroy her before I get to use her—if you kill her the moment I let her go—Marcus will be extremely pissed.”
The nearest guard drew himself up. “Mr. Ward would be angry? Why?” He frowned and shook his head. “I...don’t understand.”
My head throbbed, trying to follow along with this disjointed script Lucien hadn’t allowed me to audition for. Bitterness flooded my tongue as he slipped into the man he’d been when we first met: cold and heartless and savage.
His arm tightened like a cobra, binding me to him as if he truly did hate me. As if every word out of his mouth was real. “I vowed I’d never lose control and touch one of Marcus’s little rats, but...” He shrugged and shot me a careless smile before locking gazes with the guards again. “This one was too tempting. I touched her. Rather a lot, actually.”
Wait...
I choked.
I coughed.
I threw him a look that he completely ignored.
Lucien snaked his arm tighter around me, slipping beneath my rucksack to splay his hand directly over my lower belly. The same hand that had made me come this morning. The same hand that had clenched in agony and reached in tenderness.
His fingers dug into my flat stomach. The move was so possessive—so inherently, proudly male that my core clenched, believing, just for a moment, that he was talking about a miraculous conception and he’d somehow knocked me up.
“Of course, once I’d slipped...it was easy to keep slipping.” He ran his tongue over his bottom lip and shrugged. “Every day that she’s been in my quarters—away from your little cameras—I’ve had all kinds of fun.”
He shot me a smirk before his face shadowed. “But that fun ended when I found out.”
“Found out?” a guard asked, perplexed even as my heart started to race. “Found out what?”
No...
He couldn’t mean to—
“I was going to kill her the moment it was confirmed. But...I’m tired. I’ve had enough. I’ve reached the end of my limit and...Marcus has finally won.”
The guards shifted on the spot; their guns still trained on me. “Won? What did he win?”
“I’m finally willing to take Marcus up on his offer. So run along like good little dogs and tell him.” He wafted his hand condescendingly. “Go on. Shoo.”
The men shared a look.
Dressed all in black, they ranged in age, but the handsome middle-aged redhead seemed to be in charge. His fingers flexed around his gun as he cocked his chin at the blade in my hand. “We’ll happily pass on any message you want to Mr. Ward. However, we can’t leave while she’s armed. You’re weak from blood loss and can’t afford to stand in the rain any longer. Either disarm her and give her to us or we’ll use our full authorised force to protect you.”
“I told you,” Lucien snarled, a surge of heat flaring from his body. “I was the one who gave her the knife. Are you not listening?”
“Regardless of whether you gave her the knife or not, we can’t stand down unless—”
“No one is touching her,” Lucien hissed. “Including me, do you hear? She can’t be killed. Under any circumstances.”
My ears ached at the foreshadowing in his tone. At his unspoken commitment toward whatever was about to happen. He wasn’t doing this to get himself free—he was doing this to ensure I stayed alive when he died.
Oh God.
My chest seized and grey spots danced over my vision.
“Our orders are that no one is allowed to harm you, sir. Even you. No matter what is going on, we—”
“Oh for fuck’s sake,” Lucien cut in. “Your idiocy is ruining my big moment.”
“Excuse me?” the guard barked.
Lucien rolled his eyes. “Ask yourself...why am I delivering her to you? Why am I doing my best not to kill her? Why the fuck would I give her a knife to protect herself from me when I’ve spent the last couple of decades exterminating every woman you’ve thrown in here?”
“Um...” The guards shared a worried look.
Lucien’s sanity strayed far too close to that crazy line again.
“Look, sir.” An older one cleared his throat. “How about you just tell us—”
“I’m delivering her to you because I want her out of my sight before I change my mind.” Lucien rolled his eyes with a dramatic groan. “Get it?”
“You’re going to have to be clearer, sir.” The redhead guard scowled.
“Fuck, if I knew you were this dumb, I would’ve staged a coup years ago,” Lucien muttered, barely loud enough for me to hear.
“What did you say?” The redhead leaned closer. “You’ll have to speak louder, sir. And clearer if you don’t mind, I’m confused.”
God, I knew the feeling.
My vision went hazy again.
“Fine.” Lucien exhaled hard. “Let’s just get this over with. Allow me to unconfuse you.”
Unwinding his arm from my waist, he slung it over my shoulders and dragged me into him. My hand swung—bringing the knife dangerously close to his chest.
The guns shot up, drilling into me. “Mr. Ashfall. Either disarm the girl or we’ll shoot.”
Lucien ignored them.
His body vibrated with hidden tension and his energy burned me alive. His lips burned my cheek as he kissed me, mocking and cruel.
My heart cracked right down the middle.
I wished it was just us.
I wished he’d talked to me.
Whispered his plan and told me what I was supposed to do.
But then he nuzzled my ear, looked at the guards, and announced loud enough to inform all of Cinderkeep. “She’s pregnant, you idiots. Now, do you understand?”
Chapter Three
THE GUARDS GASPED IN UNISON, TAKING a collective, giant step backward.
