Page 159 of Ruthless Kings of Havoc

“It’s Warren, seeing as you’re currently being my ‘bodyguard,’ seeing as I’m so HIGH MAINTENANCE!”

“For fuck’s sake, V. Stop being a spoiled brat and calm down.”

“WHO IS IRIS!” she snaps, her hands slamming on the desk as she rises out of her seat, knocking her chair behind her.

I don’t remember the last time Verena ever raised her voice, but it makes me freeze while I stare into her angered eyes. They’re not simply angry. There’s something more there. Jealousy? Envy? Disgust. Heartbreak.

There are so many emotions flickering in her eyes, I can’t figure it out, but it suddenly dawns on me that she was awake the entire time.

Did… she talk with Theo? No. Did he set this whole thing up? Did he… want to fuck me over? No. He had to forgive me by now. It’s been years. He can’t possibly still hold a grudge from all those fucking years.

I want to believe he wouldn’t dare, but I know Theo.

Theo is as patient as me.

He’ll wait for whatever amount of time is needed to get his form of revenge, whether big or small.

I fucked up.

“My previous Ruthless Maiden,” I finally admit, realizing I can’t avoid it. “That’s all I’m saying.”

“So you kissed me because you wished I was her,” she declares. When I don’t argue with her, I can see the hurt in her expression before it fades away. “You don’t want to be a Ruthless King.”

“I never…” I hold my tongue because this isn’t a conversation that I’d have with her. If it was with Matteo, it would be blunt and unapologetic, but with V… “I didn’t expect Matteo to chooseme to be a fourth. If it was my choice, I wouldn’t have accepted it.”

“No.” She shakes her head at my response. “You would accept it.”

“No, I wouldn’t.”

“No, you would.”

“Verena.”

“You don’t want to be MY Ruthless King, Aries,” she says with a break of her voice.

That seems to make me realize how my simple actions have just broken V’s heart.

Shit…

“Verena…”

“You don’t love me,” she whispers.

“That’s not?—”

“You know, deep in my heart, I know I’ve loved different times. Some I remember, and some… are what haunt me in my dreams, but one thing I’ve come to realize is that love is different. It has layers and reflections. Love is so beautiful and wondrous because you never know what you’re getting until you experience it,” she reveals as her eyes grow glassy. “I didn’t know what love was weeks ago… not its full extent, but now that I’ve had a taste of it, I can see it now. See that love and lust are too different things.”

“V… I didn’t lust over you. I do… care for you.”

“Caring is an obligation. Loving is effortless,” she whispers. “You’re obligated to protect me. Bound to ensure my health is on point, and I have enough in my system to keep me going. You’re chained by contract to protect and serve me because I’m your client. Not the apple of your eye.”

“That’s simply my role, Verena. It doesn’t defy my feelings. I do… love you.”

“And yet you hesitate. You struggle. You’ve done no action outside of your line of duty to prove to me that I’m worthy enough not to be a simple afterthought that pleases your employer.”

“I’ve… done shit, Verena.”

“Like what? What have you done in the last six weeks?” She tosses to me as her hands turn into fists, and her tears run freely down her cheeks. “Since the moment you went on that stage and were crowned our fourth Ruthless King, you’ve been nowhere to be found. You’re present when you need to put on a show with your piercing and styled hair that makes you unapproachable. You sit for breakfast and dinner, yet look bored out of your mind unless you get to jerk off watching me be ravished by the three men who want to touch, feel, and kiss me. The only time you’ve shown affection is when I’m confronting you and saying I want more!”

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