Mr. Longfield wants me gone. I feel used. I feel sad. What did I do? What the hell did Lucius tell him in that message to make them order me to clear out my room? And to top it all off, here he comes, walking toward me with that same calm look on his face, like he didn't just betray me in the cruelest way possible.
Killian and Annia are heading toward the dock with two bottles of wine, completely unaware they're turning their backs on the apocalypse—because I'm about to explode.
Lucius looks at me, confused, and asks,
"What's wrong with you, kid?"
I clenched my fists and punched him in the chest. Once. Then again. And again. And again. Of course, I didn't move him—the bastard felt like he was made of steel. He didn't even have to grab my arms. I just stared at him, too furious to speak, until I tried to scream again. In one quick move, he covered my mouth with his huge hand and said,
"Shhh, enough! Calm down and tell me what's going on, because I honestly have no idea why you're suddenly losing your mind."
He slowly pulled his hand away from my mouth.
"Your father just kicked me out of Longfield Manor," I said. "I have to empty my room before sunrise, and Ursula told me you're behind it. How could you? Knowing I'll lose Mary Garden—how could you?"
He stepped back a few paces. His eyes turned dark, almost feral, and he shook his head.
"Kid… now you've really fucked up. That's what you think of me?"
He closed the distance, wrapped his hand around my throat without squeezing, leaned into my ear, and whispered,
"You really screwed up this time. Yeah, you're leaving your room because of me… but not for the reason you think. Tomorrow you're moving to the fourth floor—where the big leagues of this mansion live. Turns out one of my companies is the world's leading perfume manufacturer, and that weird talent of yours for picking apart fragrances is extremely valuable. You—yes, you, you silly, distrustful little thing—are getting an extra contract to work directly under me. And you punch me for that? You're welcome. You'll be saving Mary Garden a lot sooner than you thought."
My mouth opened, and all the built-up anguish came pouring out in tears. He looked annoyed. He didn't hug me like I wanted. He just took my hand, gave me his handkerchief, and said,
"When you're ready… when you've pulled yourself together, we'll head to the dock. We need to catch up with my brother and Annia."
I used the nearest bathroom to wash my face, bring down the swelling in my eyes, and breathe. His handkerchief smelled like pure masculine beauty, and I felt like an idiot. I fixed my hair in the mirror and stepped out without saying a word.
He offered me his arm. We walked through the gardens toward the dock. Up ahead, Annia's loud laughter rang out, and it made me smile again. It was ridiculously contagious.
But Lucius wouldn't look at me, and I couldn't blame him. When we entered the grove of trees, I couldn't take his silence anymore. I stopped him and said,
"You're right, I ruined the night. Please forgive me—if you can even understand why I lost it. Let's just pretend this never happened."
He answered with a crooked, dangerous smile.
"Oh, I'm not pretending nothing happened. You behaved very badly… so get ready, because I'm going to have to punish you."
With that wicked, captivating smile, he started walking again, then suddenly turned, grabbed my arm, and said,
"You're coming with me. I'll figure out exactly how to teach you a lesson. For now, if it's not too much trouble, I'd like to relax and have a drink without any more childish drama…"
When we reached the dock, Killian and Annia were walking along the shore, talking and laughing. The moment she saw me, Annia opened her arms wide and shouted with a grin,
"Carmilla! Get over here, quick, before I forget everything and actually start liking this guy!"
I glanced at Lucius. He stayed quiet, then gave a small gesture with his hand.
"Go on," he said. "You can go."
I walked toward her without breaking eye contact with him. His light blue eyes looked darker tonight, deeper, and the way he gave me permission—like a schoolgirl asking her teacher—made my stomach flip. I even stopped halfway just to look at him again. God, he's beautiful.
Annia pulled me into a tight hug the second I got close and whispered,
"Here's my offer: besides the big shipping companies, we have a few others. We could use your talent with fragrances in one of them. What do you think?"
I confessed that Lucius had already hired me for that. She rolled her eyes.
"Damn it, I knew he'd beat me to it. Fine. When I marry that Thor-looking Longfield, our groups will merge anyway, so it'll basically be the same thing."
That's when I realized Lucius—knowing all the Vandereck companies—had guessed Annia would try to recruit me. That's why he texted his father immediately. And here's something I have to admit to you, my friend: his sharp intelligence and cold beauty turn me on twice as much.
I left Killian and Annia chatting with one warning:
"You two figure out a way to fix this marriage mess without me having to watch you kiss or have kids someday. Just keep being exactly who you are. Something has to be possible. I'm going to sit with Lucius while you work on it."
When I got back, I stood in front of him and asked,
"How are we? Have you stopped hating me?"
He patted the seat beside him.
"Come here. Stop talking nonsense. I'm never going to hate you. Lean on my chest, rest, and stay quiet for a while. I'm not the type who forgives quickly. I'll think of the perfect way for you to make it up to me."
I obeyed and curled up against him. I love his scent and the sense of safety he gives off. Without meaning to, I closed my eyes and fell asleep.
When I woke up, I was in Annia's arms. She whispered with a smile,
"Welcome back, Sleeping Beauty! Your princes went for a walk to sort out the differences they had today because of you. Those boys are enchanted. Killian said your name like twenty times, and Lucius couldn't stop staring at you like you were his greatest treasure. It was so cute. Okay, now I'm ready to tell you which one I think loves you more… but you have to kiss me first. Being around those two makes me need to remind myself I only like women. They're too damn handsome…"
She said it as a joke, but I raised my arms, pulled her in, and gave her a small kiss on the lips. She laughed.
"Yeah, I definitely like women. Confirmed. Carmilla, you're really hot… you know that, right?"
I grabbed one of the couch cushions and lightly swatted her with it.
"Stop! Tell me—which one do you think it is?"
She put on a deep voice, took a sip of wine, and said,
"I don't think you're going to like my answer."
"Come on!" I begged.
She passed me the glass.
"Fine. Killian definitely loves you, but in my opinion, he's a giant full of fear. And I don't mean cowardice. He's scared of his own power—scared of what he'll become when he takes full control of the Longfield empire. He's terrified of turning into a dangerous man. He believes he's the one destined to inherit everything, and marrying me will give him insane industrial power—something never seen before. His brother marrying Sarah, the president's daughter, will give the family massive political power. We all know their father is sick—or at least that's what Mr. Longfield wants everyone to think. Maybe it's just strategy. He never shows his cards. Killian wants that power and fears it at the same time. I'm not sure he's the right one for a real relationship."
I widened my eyes and joked,
"You bitch. A few hours with him and you already want him out of my life. I thought you didn't like men."
She laughed hard and continued:
"As for Lucius… it feels worse. I don't know, Carmilla. There's something different with him. He looks at you like he's known you for five past lives. This could get ugly, because whether it's real love or pure obsession, he's not letting you go. Ever. I think you're in trouble, pretty girl, and eventually someone is going to get hurt. Badly."
The brothers came back walking very seriously, barely speaking to each other. At least things had improved a little—they were sharing the wine bottle instead of smashing it over each other's heads. That was something.
While the four of us talked about ways to stop the wedding without destroying both families, I noticed that seven out of ten ideas involved faking their own deaths and running away. Apparently, that's a recurring fantasy among young billionaires. They admitted it—they often dream about pretending to die and escaping to a secret island or the other side of the world.
I told them straight-up:
"You're not getting any pity from me—not in a million years. Don't lie to yourselves. The second you have to live like normal people, you'd run straight back to your mansions. You love this life. You just need to find your own path. Be better than them—more determined, more noble. Never betray each other, and never marry someone you don't love. Sorry for that last part, but this whole thing pisses me off. I've read too many novels where marriage was the ultimate prize, the most beautiful thing… I refuse to accept it as just another business deal."
Annia smiled.
"Smart. You said that really well. Can I fight for your hand too?"
And just when everything seemed to be ending on that light note, when I was thinking Lucius would take me to his room and sensually punish me for my meltdown…
From the shadows beyond the trees, we all saw her.
She walked toward us wearing a tiny golden bikini wrapped in a sheer gauze cover-up, paired with matching high heels. She smiled from a distance, then dropped onto the couch right between Annia and me and said to the Longfield brothers with total ease:
"Hey there, handsome… I'm Evangelina. Who's up for a swim with me?"