38 (Lucian’s POV) Inner Turmoil
Lucian
The timing couldn’t have been worse.
Mara and I had just started getting it right-finally seeing each other, choosing each other-and now I was being handed the reins to Steel Corp. Just like that.
A gift wrapped in pressure. What should’ve felt like an achievement only felt like a threat to the time I needed with my
wife.
Why now?
The only thing that made this breakfast worth it was Mara’s honesty. The way she claimed me in front of them. No
hesitation, no sugarcoating-just truth.
She was blunt, and beautifully aligned with my own thoughts. She wasn’t going to let Martha’s niece slip through the
cracks. She didn’t trust her. Neither did I.
Martha was predictable, really. She’d tried everything else-guilt, manipulation, exclusion-and now she was trying charm.
Pretending to be warm.
Trying to plant a pretty little mole in my office like I wouldn’t notice. Like I didn’t grow up watching her play these exact
games.
I couldn’t believe my father couldn’t see through her. Love might make a man blind, but this was bordering on stupid. She
shouldn’t even be back in this house. But here she was-smiling, scheming, and still circling Nighthorn money like a
hawk.
Moving out was no longer optional. I needed Mara and me out of this house. Away from the power plays, the ghosts, the
poison disguised as family.
I wanted Mara completely-wanted to claim her. But it had to be her choice. I wasn’t going to rush her. I’d wait until shewa nted it, not because of obligation, but because she needed it as much as I did.
I touched her under the table, gently tracing her inner thigh while we sat through that ridiculous breakfast. I could smell her arousal-subtle but strong-and I knew Darian could too.
That was intentional. I wanted him to feel it. To know she was mine now. That whatever fantasy he’d been clinging to was
dead and buried.
His eyes, red and wet, said he got the message.
I get it, you can stop tormenting her, he linked.
Who said I’m tormenting her, little brother? I’m just getting my wife ready, I sent back without looking at him.
Let him stew in it.
My hand stayed where it was-just on the edge, never crossing the line. Mara tried so hard to stay composed.
Her skin glistened slightly, just a hint of sweat on her forehead, and it took everything in me not to pull her into my lap
right there.
We spoke about minor things-safe topics to fill the silence. Tiffany sat quietly, her eyes dull. I could see the neglect
written across her face.
She was still wrapped around Darian, chasing his scraps like they meant something. Poor girl didn’t realize Darian only
1/3
ever wanted what was already claimed.
And then there was Lacy.
Persistent.
Too persistent.
Every opportunity, she tried to speak to me. Kept pushing, kept smiling, kept pretending she didn’t see the wall I’d already built between us. Her determination wasn’t innocent-it was tactical. And that made her dangerous.
Martha was using her for something. I didn’t know what yet, but I intended to find out before it reached Mara… before it reached me. Because I had something to lose now.
And her name was Mara.
We barely made it through the door of the left wing before Mara was on me.
There was fire in her eyes-wild, unfiltered need.
She pushed me back with urgency, and I caught her, lowering her to the floor.
Her body was trembling, her breaths quick and shallow. I ripped her lace panties without a second thought-they were soaked through. All for me.
I yanked her dress up, revealing the glistening heat between her legs, and bent down to kiss her there. She gasped, fingers digging into my hair.
I sucked gently at her clit and slid two fingers into her, curling them just right. She was so tight, already pulsing around me, already on the edge.
But she wanted more.
Her hips rolled against my face, her body silently begging. And when she came, it was with a cry that echoed in the space
around us. I didn’t wait.
I stripped in seconds and thrust into her, hard and deep, burying myself in the heat that had been torturing both of us
since breakfast.
She was so wet, so tight, that it took everything in me not to lose control immediately.
“Lucian, please,” she whispered, breath ragged.
I picked up the pace.
“Harder,” she demanded.
That was when it hit me-what I’d done to her at the table. I’d wound her up past the point of patience. And I liked it.
I slammed into her, faster, deeper. My wolf clawed at the surface, demanding to mark her.
I held him back, gritting my teeth, forcing myself to stay present. But the way she clenched around me, the sounds she
made, the way her body moved with mine-it was pure madness.
She came again, shaking, clutching me like she might shatter. And only then did I let go, burying myself inside her as I followed her over the edge.
We lay there, breathless. Her hair was a mess, her dress ruined, and we hadn’t even made it to the couch.
“Don’t ever do that to me again,” she warned, breathless, glaring at me with mock rage.
I couldn’t help but laugh. I pulled out of her and stood, running a hand through my hair as I shut the front door. Had the staff seen us?
< 38 (Lucian’s POV) Inner Turmoil
“Guess I won’t be wearing this again,” Mara said with a laugh, lifting her shredded clothes.
“If we keep going like this, you’ll burn through that closet by next week.”
She shot me a look over her shoulder, amused, and disappeared into the bathroom.
My phone buzzed.
I picked it up, still grinning, still warm from her, until I saw the name on the screen.
Tina.
And just like that, the warmth drained out of me.
My heart sank. My stomach turned cold. The message was short, but it hit like a blade. I hadn’t even fully processed what she told me before. But now, seeing her name-seeing the consequences spelled out again-I couldn’t escape it.
Unlike Darian, I knew it was mine.
Unlike Darian, I didn’t believe in abortion.
But just like him… I didn’t want to lose my wife.
I couldn’t.
And that was exactly what was at risk now. Not just my marriage-but Mara. The love we were finally letting ourselves feel. The peace I’d only just tasted.
Would she hate me? Would she see this as betrayal? Would she think I trapped her-just like I was trapped?
Even if she stayed, would it be out of love… or fear of rejection, fear of being cast out?
I didn’t know. I’d judged Darian before. But now that I was here, in the same mess, I understood the panic. The shame. The guilt.
And I couldn’t blame Tina entirely. I should have said no. I should have used protection. She didn’t drug me. She didn’t
force me. It happened. We both let it happen.
Now I had to deal with it.
But how?
Mara was young. Too young for this kind of betrayal. Too hopeful for this kind of burden.
And I didn’t know if I was strong enough to face her when she found out.
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