+8 Pearls
Third Person’s POV
Outside the grand silhouette of Duskgrave Manor, Kael Vale stood rigid, fists clenched at his sides, amber eyes zing with fury. His <b>usually </b>aristocraticposure had shatteredpletely the moment he saw what was happening inside.
His <b>voice </b>cracked through the night like <b>a </b>whip.
“Open the door! Now!” he roared, storming up to the manor’s gate, mming his fists against it with a madness only shameful desperation could summon. “<b>Lucien</b>, you filthy bastard! Get your hands off my sister!”
“You think she’ll be happy with a <b>wolf </b>like you? You’re cursed–violent–poisoned from bloodline to soul!”
Inside the manor, the warmth of golden light spilled down the grand <b>staircase</b>. From behind the heavy oak doors, Mrs. Beck and Mia stepped into view. The two seasoned servants of the Duskgrave household exchanged a knowing nce.
They had heard every word Kiel shouted. And they were utterly unbothered
Especially after hearing what he’d said about Lucien kissing Riley.
“Oh, <b>Matriarch </b>is going to love this,” <b>Mia </b>whispered, her eyes twinkling with barely concealed delight.
They didn’t argue.
They <b>didn’t </b>open the door.
They simply turned and walked away–to deliver this delightful piece of gossip to the old matriarch herself.
When Matriarch Duskgrave heard the news, she practically glowed.
“Well, finally,” she beamed. “I thought that boy would die celibate at this rate. Took him long enough.”
Back outside, Kael fumed. The door <b>had </b>been mmed in his face, <b>and </b>the silence inside was deafening.
He continued yelling obscenities at the second floor,pletely forgetting the real reason he hade.
Next to him. Theo Hale stood quietly, his <b>sharp </b>eyes fixated not on <b>Kael’s </b>tantrum but on Riley’s shadow through the window.
Riley sometimes responded to Kael’s curse words, but most of the time she ignored them.
She wasn’t reacting at all.
Not to the screaming
<b>Not </b>to the usations.
Not even when her name was barked like a curse through the night.
It struck Theo with <b>sudden </b>rity–a hollow thud in his chest.
She couldn’t hear it
Upstairs, in the softly lit bedroom, Lucien held Riley close. His hand rested firmly at the curve of her waist, not possessive, but grounding–like a silent promise. Riley’s body remained tense against his chest, her heart beating wildly as she tried to understand what was happening between them<b>, </b>
Her sleep dress clung to her slight frame, <b>and </b>Lucien’s heat seeped through every fiber, branding her skin <b>with </b>his scent- cedar, snow, and faint tobo. That intoxicating blend muddled her thoughts.
She whispered a thank you, her voice barely audible, tremulous with uncertainty
Lucien <b>said </b>nothing
3:41 PM p p.
Instead, he simply gazed down at her. Not with lust–but with something deeper. Something primal.
The shouting outside went unanswered
Lucien knew <b>now</b>–Riley wasn’t ignoring it
She was deaf to it.
<b>And </b>that realization hit him harder than Kael’s insults ever could.
His jaw tightened.
+8 Pearls:
He drew her closer, as if shielding her from all the noise, all the pain, all the past she had never spoken aloud. He could almost feel the bruises of her memory against his chest.
“Lucien..” Riley murmured again, her voice trembling as she pushed at his chest–feeble, uncertain.
But Lucien didn’t let go.
Instead, his lips trailed slowly up the side of her throat, his breath like wildfire skimming her skin. Riley’s pulse fluttered wildly beneath his mouth, heat flooding her cheeks until her entire body felt alight.
She tried to pull away again.
He finally eased his grip–just enough to let her breathe, though his arms remained loosely wrapped around her shoulders.
“You should get some sleep,” he murmured, his voice <b>a </b>softmand.
Riley gave a faint nod and turned toward the window, about to close the curtains when Lucien moved again. In <b>one </b>swift motion, he <b>swept </b>her off her feet and carried her effortlessly to the <b>bed</b>.
She didn’t struggle.
She didn’t even protest.
Her body simply surrendered to the safety of his arms, though her heart still waged war with itself.
<b>Kael’s </b>angry <b>voice </b>carried through the walls<b>, </b>a distant echo now.
Lucien ignored itpletely.
He ced a <b>ss </b>of warm <b>milk </b>on the nightstand and handed it to her.
Under his gaze, Riley drank every drop
When she handed it back, Lucien gave her a rare smile–crooked, teasing, almost boyish–and then strode back to the window
Kael was still there.
Lucien met <b>his </b><b>gaze</b>, cool <b>and </b>unbothered.
Their eyes locked
Karl’s face contorted in rage. “She’s not well, Lucien. She can’t handle–someone like <b>you</b>.”
Lucien’s lips curved <b>into </b><b>a </b>slow, dangerous <b>smile</b>. Then, <b>without </b>a <b>word</b>, he yanked the curtain shut, cutting off the outside world
Kael staggered back like the rejection had physically <b>struck </b>him.
Inude Lucien turned <b>back </b>toward the bed
Riley sat tucked beneath the feather soft <b>duvet</b>, her hands clenched <b>tightly </b>around the edge. Her cheeks were stained at delicate rose, but her eyes never left Lucien’s retreating figure.
“Lucien she called our <b>softly </b><b>as </b>he neared <b>the </b><b>door</b>.
He paused
+8 Pearls
Only half of his face was lit by the bedside <bmp</b>, the other lost in shadow. His cor <b>was </b>slightly open, <b>revealing </b>a sliver of his corbone beneath his ck shirt.
He turned <b>his </b>head toward her. “Yes?”
The air between them thickened.
Riley swallowed hard, staring at <b>him </b>like <b>he </b><b>was </b>a puzzle too dangerous to solve. “Why… Why are you being so kind to me?”
The question slipped from her lips before she could stop it. But it had been buried inside <b>her </b>chest for too <b>long</b>.
Lucien’s eyes softened, just a fraction.
He crossed the room again and sat on the edge of the bed.
The mattress dipped beneath his weight, and Riley tensed, <b>breath </b>stilled.
He studied her in silence for a moment.
Then he said. “Maybe because I see you.”
Her <b>breath </b>caught.
“And maybe,” he added, his voice a whisper of something far more dangerous, “I don’t like the idea of anyone else trying to break what’s already been shattered.”
Riley <b>didn’t </b>reply.
She couldn’t.
Because for the first time, someone hadn’t asked her to exin her scars.
He had simply stepped into the <b>dark</b>–and sat beside her.
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