Page 59 of Vengeful Princess

Eden’s near continual stream of chatter proved so distracting that I hadn’t noticed Lucian Forsyth sitting with Cassian on the far side of the courtyard. It wasn’t until Eden paused for breath and inhaled sharply that I looked up.

“What?”

“Lucian Forsyth is here. He’s such a silver fox,” she swooned, fanning her face with a napkin. “Tatler did a feature on him last year. I swear, if he wasn’t happily married, I’d hit that.”

“How do you know he’s happily married?” Given the way he’d practically assaulted me at the ball, the image of him as a devoted husband didn’t quite gel.

“Have you not seen photos of his wife? She’s, like, the most exquisite woman ever. He’d have to be nuts to look elsewhere.” For a girl who’d grown up with male cousins, Eden was surprisingly naïve at times.

“I’m no expert,” I ventured with a wry smile, “but having a lovely wife does not make a man a faithful husband.”

“Well, whatever, I’d still go there.” She licked her lips while sneaking glances in his direction. “I bet he knows what and where the clitoris is.”

I nearly choked on my coffee. “What?”

Eden sighed dramatically. “So, while you were living the dream and attending the social event of the year, I hooked up with Matt, the art student who’s been flirting with me for, like, ages.”

I didn’t know, but whatever. Eden had probably told me, but I tuned out a lot of the shit she came out with.

“And it wasn’t good?”

“No, it was far from good, Thea. So far from good that there are no words to describe just how bad it was.”

Being a virgin and all, I could hardly claim to be an expert, but I could hazard a few reasons why sex with this Matt guy had been bad.

“He couldn’t, um, please you?”

Eden looked at me, frowning at my awkward phrasing. “I’m not sure he could please anyone. The guy needed a GPS app to find my clit, and then he lasted all of 30 seconds before nodding off. I waited until he began to snore and then hauled ass out of his room.”

“Sounds terrible,” I commiserated. It was clear I hadn’t missed anything while my virtue remained intact. Although, I suspected that sex with Landon would be a very different experience.

“You’re so lucky,” Eden lamented, reading my mind. “Landon knows how to please a girl.”

I snorted. “Because he has a lot of experience?”

“Well, yes, but also because he’s hot. I mean, I bet a girl could come just from admiring his abs, am I right?”

“I wouldn’t know,” I muttered, no longer enjoying the turn this conversation had taken. Although I hadn’t forgotten the blissed-out expression on Landon’s face as he came. His o-facehad starred in all my fantasies since my escape from Blackwood Manor. As had his very impressive dick.

But Eden didn’t need to know that.

“Lucian keeps staring at you.” My head snapped up.

“Why would he be staring at me?”

“No clue, but he is.” She shrugged. “Maybe he’s in the market for a new sugar baby.”

“Yeah… I think I’ll pass, thanks.”Not in a million years.

“Well, if you change your mind, let me know and I’ll step in.” Eden winked before standing. “Gotta go. I have a class in 10 minutes. Later!” She skipped off like a demented fairy.

I drank the rest of my coffee and pretended not to notice Lucian and Cassian, but I could feel Lucian watching me. Did his wife have any idea how he behaved around other women?

Deciding I’d had enough of being watched, I grabbed my bag and walked away, intending to head to the library to read for a bit. It wasn’t until I reached the main entrance that I remembered I’d forgotten to pick up a cheese roll for lunch, so I headed back.

I turned a corner just in time to see Lucian push his son against a wall, despite the height difference between them. Judging by the furious expression on his face, Lucian was pissed off about something.

What had Cassian done?

---