Page 177 of The Penalty

Victoria’s hand flew to her mouth, muffling a pained gasp.

Undeterred, Jordan leveled an angry stare at me. “You pissed me off acting all heroic like you didn’t use and discard girls on a whim. Thought you needed a lesson.”

The only reason I didn’t get up and end his life was Victoria. She shook with rage beside me. I held her chin, turning her head to face me.

Jade-colored flames burned in the depths of her eyes.

“Strength,” I whispered. “For Charlotte.”

After a few seconds, Victoria stood and went toward Jordan. Her curvy, petite frame cast a large shadow over his seated form. “If you do anything to Xavier, anything, I will give the green light to not one, but every major news outlet in England run with the story.” He scooted back an inch when she leaned closer. “That is not blackmail. That is a fucking promise.”

She turned on a heel and strode toward the French doors.

I stared at Jordan. At his defeated posture, his sullen expression. After all the years of being at one another’s throats, I finally saw him for what and who he really is.

Standing up, I shoved my hands in my pockets and approached him. An icy stare greeted me.

“Here to gloat?”

“No.”

“Then what the fuck do you want?”

The overwhelming urge to slam a fist into his face dissipated. “Thought you should know one more thing before I leave.”

A trickle of blood slid from a nostril and pooled on his lip.

“When Victoria told me what she’d learned, she said you were just as common us. I’ll probably be in trouble for saying this, but she’s wrong. You’re not common.” A slow, patronizing smile curled my lips. “You’re nothing.”

A muscle in his jaw jumped. The harshness of his new reality took hold.

Approaching Victoria, I pulled her into a tight embrace. “Well played, city princess.”

“Couldn’t have done it without you, country prince.”

We walked out of the library, leaving Jordan behind for good.

“Everything alright?” Cade rushed over. “Bennet filled me in.”

Victoria reached for Cade, and hugged him. Then she hugged Bennet. The sight of the three most important people in my life all in one place filled me with yet another unrecognizable emotion.

“Thought maybe one of you’d be coming out on a stretcher,” Bennet said, nodding his head at the door. “Does he need medical attention?”

“No,” I chuckled. “Maybe a new tie.”

Holding Victoria’s hand, I led her to the front door. We rode in silence back to my flat. The second we walked inside, I captured her mouth in a deep, tender kiss.

“What was that for?”

I lifted a shoulder in a small shrug. “Felt like it.”

A thoughtful expression appeared. “Come here.”

She led me to the bossy chair and sat. Tapping the ottoman with her foot, she grinned up at me. “Sit there, Mr. Maddox.”

Intrigued, I did as she instructed and asked, “Feeling okay?”

“Yeah.”

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