Chapter 12

Back then, she must've really believed he loved her. That's why she tried so hard-being sweet, doing whatever he wanted, trying to please him like her life depended on it. But ever since she showed up at that wedding, she'd gone cold on him. These past couple of days, her attitude had made him restless just thinking about her. Ariella turned her face away, refusing to look at him. She hated how she once pretended to fall for him, how she'd lost herself in the act. "Look at me! Say it-did you fall for me or not?" Lucian grabbed her face, forcing her eyes to meet his. "You made me rush back just to ask some stupid question like that?" Her tone was clear and sharp, snapping herself out of the momentary daze. Lucian ignored her icy vibe. He kept staring into her eyes, desperate for the answer he wanted. "You did that whole handshake-with-Ryan thing in front of me... just to piss me off and make me jealous, didn't you?" She wasn't even trying to hide it. It was her petty payback for the way he always kept women around him. Ariella's eyes shifted slightly, then she chuckled under her breath. "So, it worked. You got jealous." "You..." How had he never noticed how sharp her tongue was before? Every word felt like a slap in the face. The calm he'd just regained was shattered again. He was ticked off. Angry. He grabbed her chin again, voice low and cold between clenched teeth. "Keep dreaming." "Oh, I'm dreaming? Then why'd you come running over here like a man on fire? Here to mark your territory or what?" She didn't care that his grip hurt-looked him right in the eye without a trace of fear. Lucian was so mad he couldn't speak for a second. Then he let out a mocking laugh, tugging at his belt. "Yeah, you got it. I'm here to sleep with you, plain and simple. You're already mine, don't you dare even think about crawling into my brother's bed." The chill from his words cut deeper than she wanted to admit. She hated how she'd almost let herself believe in him, even for a second. To him, she was nothing. Just some cheap thrill. Her nose stung, but she refused to cry in front of him again. She didn't argue back, just shut her eyes and braced for the worst. All at once, she went quiet. That fierce, fiery attitude from a minute ago? Gone. Like a balloon with all the air let out. Lucian caught the shine of tears at the corners of her eyes. She was holding them in-he could tell. "What's with the sad face? You acting like sleeping with me isn't your job or something?" He wanted to say something softer, but it still came out cold as ever. "Go ahead. I'm not stopping you," Ariella said, voice dull. "You think playing the victim'll change my mind? Think I'll go easy on you? Who do you think you are?" "You seriously think that? You've never once showed me the tiniest bit of softness. No matter if I was happy or falling apart, I never dared hope you'd care how I felt." Her voice finally cut through, pushed out by his cold indifference. Her feelings? Lucian felt like someone just sucker-punched his chest-something heavy and dull pressing down on his heart. He didn't argue back. He climbed out of bed, picked up his scattered clothes off the floor, and slowly started getting dressed. He's actually leaving because of that one sentence? Ariella blinked in surprise, watching him pull up the zipper. Guess that means... he does care about her. At least a little bit, right? But then, a thought hit her hard-she honestly would've preferred if he didn't. If he was just cold and heartless, it'd be easier to walk away. She couldn't afford to feel even a flicker of doubt. He was her friend's husband. She needed to kill any last shred of wishful thinking. Just as Lucian moved to leave, her phone buzzed on the bed. A message. "Is it Ryan?" he asked, alert like a switch had flipped. He lunged back to the bed and grabbed her phone before she could react. "You have no right to go through my stuff!" she snapped. "If it's got anything to do with my brother, then I have every right!" She reached for it, but couldn't win the tug-of-war. He unlocked her screen fast. It wasn't from Ryan, though. "Ariella, Ryan asked for your number-should I give it to him?" It was from Fiona. "Give it back!" she rushed out, panicking that Dominic might've texted next and Lucian would see it. "Just let me reply this one, then it's yours." Lucian held firm, and she didn't even care that she was still half-naked-she wrestled his arm, trying to stop him. Somehow, he stayed completely calm, one hand pinning her down, the other typing briskly. As the message whooshed out, he smirked, lips curling just a bit in smug satisfaction. "Here. Knock yourself out." Ariella yanked her phone back, furious. She opened the sent message file. "Tell Ryan I have a boyfriend. Ask him to stop bothering me-I'm not into it." "You had no right to send that!" Her glare shot up at his towering frame, sheer anger in her voice. "You really thought this would stop me and Ryan from seeing each other?" "Say that again?" His guilt for overstepping briefly existed-until she said that. Her words instantly wiped it out. His reaction was automatic. He grabbed her chin firmly, staring right into her like he was burning holes through her soul. Try saying it again and see what happens. He wasn't bluffing-he was furious. And this time, the fury in his eyes was something she'd never seen before. It was terrifying.