Page 98 of Lucian

Truthfully, Lucian knew Kate was only looking for a reaction out of him and she’d gotten it. He couldn’t even find it in himself to care at that moment.

“You are nothing but a used up, disgusting, bitter bitch of a woman,” he told her, enjoying the flash of fright in her eyes. “Everyone is so entirely over your pity party and you just can’t handle it, can you? Poor Kate, her husband messed around; now she’s a widow. Hasn’t had a child of her own, or another man to carry her through life with his wealth. Cry me a river. You did this to you, not me or anyone else. What have I ever done to you?”

“You were born,” she hissed.

Lucian’s jaw ticked at that admission. “Throw your stones at me all you want, Kate. I am more than a big enough man to take the hits. I have for years and I’m not any worse for wear because of it. But let me make this one thing so clear between us it’s like looking through crystal. Don’t ever turn your vile self on Jordyn like that again, certainly not in front of me. If you want a quick way to piss me off enough to end your useless life, that’s a great way to start.”

Kate laughed snidely. “You don’t have the balls.”

“Do you want to test that theory?” Lucian asked. “Who protects you, now? No one.”

“Don’t you think they’d know, Lucian?”

“Frankly, I don’t give a good goddamn at this point. You haven’t had the chance to hurt someone I love since I was a child, but I’m not a little boy anymore. If you think I’d make it easy on you to die, I wouldn’t. For my mother and my father, I’d watch you bleed and enjoy it. But for Jordyn? For her, I’d slit your vocal cords so I could watch you scream for days and not hear a fucking thing. You have no idea what I am capable of doing for that woman. And you really don’t want to find out.”

“Such violence,” Kate said with a tsk. “Do you kiss her with that mouth? Does hers taste as dirty as yours?”

“Don’t push me, Kate. I’m so done with your bullshit.”

Lucian bared his teeth in warning, but the tender placement of a hand lying flat to the spot between his shoulder blades stopped him from saying more. Jordyn’s touch calmed him instantly. He would know her smell, her aura, and her presence anywhere without her even needing to say a thing.

“Lucian?” Jordyn asked quietly. “Everything okay?”

No, he wanted to say. It was far from okay.

Fact was, he was too close to Kate and for her safety, needed to move away.

Jordyn’s arm curling around his side and pushing him backwards so she could move almost protectively in front of him saved him the time. Really, it only irked him more, because now she was too close to the bitch against the wall.

“Good evening, Kate,” Jordyn greeted, her hand fisting into Lucian’s dress shirt to keep him rooted in place behind her. “We haven’t had the chance to speak tonight, so let’s do that now.”

“I’d rather not,” Kate said. “I think I’ll go find my sister.”

“Oh, no, I think you won’t,” Jordyn responded severely.

“Sweetheart …” Lucian started to say.

“Shush.” Jordyn’s one word effectively quieted Lucian from opening his mouth again. “Do you know how much his brothers adore him, Kate?”

When Kate said nothing, Jordyn flicked Lucian a look over her shoulder that showcased a gentle smile.

“Enough that they barreled into his room at seven in the morning to douse him with cold water because he hadn’t gotten up first to do it to Dante. I didn’t know, but it’s a tradition between the three. Too bad I was in the bed and they didn’t think about me. Funny thing is, Lucian hasn’t been soaked on his birthday morning in years because he’s never been able to sleep as well as he does beside me.

“And Cecelia,” Jordyn continued in her same, soft tenor. “She knows he’s a grown man who certainly doesn’t need to be babied or coddled, but she still kissed his cheek good morning and sang him happy birthday, just like she did for his brother. What about Antony? Lucian didn’t want gifts from his family, but his father didn’t listen. The custom watch he’s wearing with the Marcello crest engraved in the face … just another reminder of where he belongs.”

Kate looked as if she’d swallowed cyanide. “What is your point?”

“It eats at you, doesn’t it?” Jordyn asked sweetly. “That they love him and hold him so much closer than they do you. It must be awful to know he’s succeeded, thrived even, in this world that should have been yours. The nightmares you must have knowing his father made damn sure he would never want for a thing, but the man couldn’t even be bothered to leave you the marital bed he fucked you in.”

“You little bitch—”

“Oh, I wouldn’t start tossing names, Kate,” Jordyn warned. “Because I guarantee the names you have for me won’t compare to the ones already labeled and stuck to you for the rest of your life. Don’t you see? You can call me anything and it’s really not going to make a difference. Unfortunately for you, it doesn’t matter how much silicone and plastic there is under your skin to make you pretty, everybody still knows exactly who you are underneath it all. You’re so dirty. That feeling on your hands you can’t get off no matter how many times you wash? That’s called filth. It’s ingrained in your pores. It’s never coming out.”

“Jordyn,” Lucian murmured, squeezing her waist gently. “It’s all right, bella.”

“No, I don’t think it is,” Jordyn replied, shrugging. “I think someone needs to say it.”

“I don’t have to listen to a thing from you,” Kate said, trying to sound dismissive but failing miserably. “You’re certainly not worth the effort.”