Page 98 of Burn With Me

I shake my head. “No, about Damien.”

“Damien?” she repeats, her brows lowering as her lips pucker.

“Yes.” I look around. “Is there somewhere we can talk privately?”

My mother frowns down at me. “What’s this about?”

“I’d really rather discuss it somewhere else. Not here,” I hedge, wincing when a couple passes by with glasses in hand. They smile and pause to congratulate my mom on her recent marriage. I’m forced to stand back and watch the shift come over her. Her confused expression disappears quickly and she smiles brightly, laughing as she thanks them and tells them to enjoy themselves.

It’s only once they’re gone that she turns back to me and the facade drops away. “I’ll make sure Damien knows that Eric isn’t to be invited to anything ever again,” she states. “So, please don’t worry, darling. We don’t need to make it a big thing.”

“It’s not about Eric,” I repeat through gritted teeth. “It’s aboutDamien. Forget Eric.”

My mother blows out a breath. “Do we really have to do this here?” Her tone turns pleading. She reaches out and touches my hand, holding it in hers. “If you have any issues with him, I’m sure I can talk to him, but can we discuss it later? Maybe you, me, and Carmen can go for a girl’s day?”

“No—Mom—” I flip my hand over and grasp hers tighter when she tries to pull away. “It needs to be now. You need to know—”

“Know what?” I freeze as the semi-familiar deep voice intrudes, interrupting my next words.

Damien Icari appears out of nowhere, like a monstrous creature sliding out of the shadows. He steps up right behind my mom and slides a hand around her waist, pulling her back into his chest with such a quick movement that her hand is ripped from mine before I realize what’s happening.

“Damien!” My mother giggles gleefully. The sound makes my insides churn, and I have to resist the urge to reach for her and yank her away again.

“I missed you, dear,” Damien says, dipping his head towards her throat. Despite the fact that his body covers her, that his arms encircle her, his eyes remain on mine.

My mother laughs again. “We were just together,” she says.

“Seconds are far too long to be apart from you,” he says.

Liar.I narrow my gaze at him. The dark look each of us gives the other is interrupted by none other than my mother as she smiles and turns, her white dress swirling around her legs as she lifts her hand to his face and strokes his cheek. Damien’s eyes immediately go to her.

How can she not see it? The lies. The deception. Why? I don’t understand. Does she want love so badly that she allows herself to be controlled by such a man?

Two figures step into my line of sight, right over Damien and my mother’s shoulders. Isaac. He’s back, but this time, he’s different. His face is pale as he readjusts his suit coat. His friend, the taller one—Shep—is at his side, a similar expression of abject discomfort on his face as well.

I can’t stand it anymore. All this fakeness. My mother’s own naiveté. It’s pathetic. It’s depressing. It can’t go on. Fine. If she only believes lies … then lies she’ll get. I know it’ll hurt, but maybe … it’s better than the alternative.

I blurt out the worst thing I can think of, the one thing that I know she couldn’t bear from a partner and the reason many of her marriages in the past had fallen apart. “He’s cheating on you.”

Four words. I’m not even sure if they’re true or not. I don’t expect that Damien would be a loyal man. He’ll do anything to get what he wants. Just like his son. Neither of them can be believed, but one thing is for sure, this marriage can’t continue. And there’s one surefire way to get my mother to question everything she knows about a man.

“What?” My mother’s hand falls away from Damien’s face and his jaw goes slack with shock. She turns to me as I clench my hands into fists at my side.

Like a record scratching, the nearby surroundings come to a halt. My words hadn’t been a shout, but they certainly hadn’t been quiet either. The room is too big for everyone to have heard my claim. But every head in the vicinity has turned our way as if they’re sharks sensing freshly spilled blood.

“He’s not loyal,” I say, more confidently. “You think he loves you, but he doesn’t. He’s just using you.”

My mother blinks at me, her eyes watering slightly. The hurt on her face makes me ache, but it’s for the best.

“Emilia.” Damien tries to reach for her.

She blinks rapidly, reaching up quickly to wipe away the evidence of her sudden tears. When Damien’s hand touches her arm, she jerks away. She stumbles and I jump forward, catching her before she can fall.

“No.” Despite my words, she shakes her head and turns to look at me. “No. Aurora, darling. You must be mistaken. Do you have…” Proof? No. I don’t. But I’ve sown the seed of doubt and that’s all that matters.

“I’m sorry, Mom,” I say instead of answering her unspoken question.

A glittering of tears lingers on her lashes. Damien’s expression darkens when he looks back at me. “She’s lying,” he growls. “Emilia, you can’t truly believe that I would ever—”

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