AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I make a sound of protest from behind Lucian. Wiggling out of his grip, I finally break his hold on me and step away from him.
Cristo snorts. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were claiming her.”
I inhale sharply.
A laugh, the hysterical kind, bubbles up inside me and spills out.
I’d stake my life on the fact that Lucian Popescu would never claim me.Never.He can barely acknowledge me in public. He called me disgusting. He sure as hell didn’t save me. None of those behaviors speak of a man who cares one ounce for a woman.
I’m no better than the dirt under his shoes.
He grabs me again, cutting off my giggle as he drags me back to his side.
Fury billows off him in waves, which isn’t surprising since he doesn’t have much of a sense of humor. He can’t appreciate Cristo’s joke.
But instead of rejecting me like I expect, he only repeats, “She’s under my protection. There will be no more problems.”
Humph, that’s what he thinks.
I’d shake him off again, but I want to get out of here, and to do that, Lucian needs to show he has control of the situation. For that to happen, I’m willing to go along and let him think he’s in control.
But there will be a price—a heavy price.
I may not be fighting him and throwing his hands off me, but I give him a glare of pure loathing.
Payback is gonna be a bitch, Lucian, and I won’t stop until I’ve madeyoucry.
CHAPTER7
LUCIAN
Satisfied with his scolding, Cristo leaves me alone with Star. I can feel her glare burning a hole into my face.
Fuck, it’s easier confronting Cristo than dealing with an angry female.
Strife with women is not part of my daily life. As the man of the house for years now, my mother and kid sister defer to me. Sure, Zoe can be annoying, but when push comes to shove, she worships the ground I walk on.
The same could never be said of the woman standing at my side.
Ignoring the tension wafting over from her direction, I pick up her ratty backpack from the floor.
Inclining my head toward Cristo’s front door, I command, “Let’s go to my house and talk in private.”
Her eyes narrow. Her lip curls into a snarl, unwittingly flashing me her broken tooth. I clamp my jaws together and bare my teeth to force out the breath painfully caught in my throat. I hate seeing her perfection marred like that. I hate knowing I had a hand in it. It may not have been intentional, but there’s no denying I unwittingly played into Star getting hurt.
Star crosses her arms over her chest and snorts in disgust before she snatches at her backpack like she can’t stand the fact that I’m touching it. I may be pleased by her little show of spirit, but I lift it out of her reach and give her a no-nonsense glare.
Yes, I know I fucked up in the cafeteria, but what did she expect?
Sure, it got personal between us in private, butprivateis the pertinent word here. I may have shown her my human side, what little remains, but that doesn’t mean I’d tolerate having my personal business flaunted in public. What was up with mentioning the tutoring in front of Dinu and every other Popescu male in the vicinity? Was she delusional?
And she seemed to be under the impression that I was avoiding her.
I was working.
What would a precious princess like her know about having a nonstop, around the clock job on top of school? All I ever see her do is read her books or work on her laptop without a care in the world.
I sigh.
