Page 73 of Lords of Ruin: Savage

She looks up at me as Damien dumps me in the seat and sits next to me. “Hi, I’m Damien, Willow’s boyfriend. You found me at my school arena and asked me to talk to her for you.”

She sniffles and nods. “Hi Damien, I remember you.”

"Listen," he starts, turning to me, "I know Willow is not ready to forgive you, and that's fine. But until she is, you are going to live at our penthouse for now. They’ll take you there."

I feel the anger rise again, my pulse spiking. “What the fuck do you mean? She doesn’t get to waltz back into my life like this, Damien! She doesn’t get to walk in, screw everything up, and then expect a place to stay like nothing happened.”

Damien's jaw tightens, but he doesn’t back down. "She’s dying, Willow. You’re going to have to deal with that sooner or later. Cast is helping her for now because you’re not ready. But that doesn’t mean you can shut her out completely."

I’m about to explode, the words burning on the tip of my tongue, when my mother looks up at me, her eyes wide, her voice desperate. "Willow, please…"

I cut her off with a sharp glare, and Damien speaks ahead of me. “Go, Mrs. Carter.”

She looks at me, sadness piercing in her eyes before leaving the diner and walking up to Vincent and Cast. I stare at her empty seat as silence stretches between us, thick and suffocating, until Damien stands up and walks to the door, looking back at me over his shoulder. "I’ll be outside.”

I can’t contain the frustration building up inside me. As I watch them leave, I finally snap. "I’m so fucking glad I’m Vincent’s fiancé and not yours!" The words fly out of my mouth before I can stop them, the venom in my voice sharper than anything I’ve ever felt.

Damien stops in his tracks, his back stiffening. His eyes flicker darker, and I know I’ve crossed a line. Without a word, he turns around and storms out of the diner, a blur of motion before Ieven realize what’s happening. Cast is driving off from the diner in his car just as the sickening crack of a punch rings across the parking lot.

27

WILLOW

Damien bringsout the worst in me. His presence ignites a raw, and uncontrollable weakness.

Vincent stumbles, blood dripping from his nose, and fury burns through me. I grab his face, not out of concern, but to keep everything from unraveling.

"You alright?" My voice is sharper than I intended.

Vincent winces, grinning through gritted teeth. "What do you think?" He glares towards a pacing Damien. "What the hell’s his problem?"

I exhale hard, pulling away. "He thinks he owns me," I spit, the words cutting deep. "Like whatever we had gives him some fucking claim?—"

Vincent’s brows shoot up. "Wait—he thinks you belong to him?"

I hesitate, everything crashing down—Damien’s punch, Vincent’s arrogance, my mother’s abandonment.

“Fuck him," I mutter, hands trembling. "He thinks he can just ruin everything because he feels like it.”

Vincent’s gaze sharpens. "He has no right. But neither do you. You’re engaged to me, Willow. You made that choice."

The words land like a slap. My breath catches.

"Do you really want to do this right now?" I hiss, stepping back.

Vincent’s voice is cold. "Maybe I do."

My anger boils over. "Then let me be clear—I’m not yours. I am not anyone’s, I belong to me."

Silence. Vincent wipes his nose, his eyes filled with determination. "Not true, Princess, you know where you belong and who to."

“She belongs only to you now?” Damien’s voice cuts in, eyes wild.

“Yup.”

Damien points at Vincent, anger pulsating as he speaks. "You’re lucky I didn’t do worse to him." He looks right past Vincent to me. "But if you’re playing games, we’re done. Understand?"

I meet his gaze, my voice shaking. "Done with what, Damien? You think I’m playing games?"

---