Page 86 of King of Rage

“I’ve shown her more care in the time I’ve known her than you ever did when she was with you,” he said, his voice rough with contempt. “So don’t stand there pretending you’re the one who gives a damn about her.”

Stella went still.

She had never seen Shane lose his temper like this. He was usually composed, the kind of man who kept his anger under control even when someone provoked him. But now his eyes burned with fury, his breathing had grown heavier, and his fingers were clenched tightly against the bed.

“You cheated on her,” Shane continued, his gaze locked on Lucius. “And now you’re standing there acting like some fucking devoted boyfriend? Give me a break. You destroyed what you had with Stella, and now you’re pretending you have no idea why she walked away.”

Lucius’s expression shifted. The fury in his eyes faltered, replaced by a flicker of confusion.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” he demanded.

He turned toward Stella, his brows drawing together as he searched her face. His fingers closed around hers again, though this time he made no attempt to pull her anywhere.

“When the fuck did I cheat on you?”

Chapter 14 You Look So Beautiful

Stella immediately tore her hand from his grasp. She stepped back, pressing her lips together as she struggled to steady her breathing.

“When we were together,” she replied, her voice strained. “I know you were cheating on me. That’s why I left.”

Lucius stared at her as though she had accused him of something incomprehensible. His jaw tightened, and he shook his head once.

“I have no fucking idea what you’re talking about,” he said, his voice dropping into a rough, disbelieving growl. “I never touched another woman, Stella. I didn’t even hold another woman’s hand.”

Stella gave a bitter laugh, though there was no humor in it. “You’re still denying it?”

“Because it’s the truth.” Lucius stepped closer, his eyes hardening as he tried to force her to look at him. “What the hell do you think I did?”

“The day before I broke up with you, I called you, and Catherine answered.” Stella’s voice trembled as the memory resurfaced, but she forced herself to continue. “She told me you were taking a bath. I didn’t want to believe what I was hearing, but then you came home with lipstick marks all over your shirt.”

Her eyes glistened as she looked at him.

“I saw them, Lucius. They were right there on your clothes. What else was I supposed to think? You slept with her before you came home.”

“No, I sure as fuck didn’t.” Lucius’s voice cracked through the room. He dragged a hand over his face, then dropped it to his side, his disbelief giving way to mounting frustration. “The day before you broke up with me, I was at a resort with several of my business partners. I told you where I was going before I left.”

He took another step toward her, his gaze never leaving her face.

“I went swimming before I came home, and the staff took my clothes away to dry them. I have no fucking idea where those lipstick stains came from, but I didn’t sleep with Catherine. I never fucking touched her.”

Stella went completely still.

Lucius wasn’t lying. She could see it in his face, hear it in the raw disbelief threaded through his voice. For the first time in a year, uncertainty began to creep through the certainty she had built around her memories.

‘Could I have misunderstood everything?’

Her gaze flickered as another possibility took shape in her mind.

‘Did Catherine do it on purpose back then?’

Before Stella could make sense of it, Lucius caught her by the waist and pulled her against him. His face was flushed with anger, his eyes burning as he looked down at her.

“You never trusted me?” he demanded, his voice low and furious. “Not once? When the fuck have I ever given you a reason to believe I’d be disloyal to you? I was always with you, Stella. There was no one else. I never even looked at another woman.”

“No, I did trust you, but—”

“But what?” he cut in, his jaw tightening. “You saw some fucking lipstick on my shirt, and that was enough for you to walk away from me?”