Page 81 of Devilish

“Yes. How I, um, came to be in his…possession.”

A muscle twitched at the side of Lucien’s jaw, but beyond that he remained silent and still as a statue—a good indicator to me that he was holding back what he truly wanted to say.

“There’s a lot of rich men in this town who think they can buy whatever and whomever they want,” I began. “I’m sure you’ve met a lot of them.”

“No doubt,” Lucien said.

“Well, sometimes guys like me get…passed around.”

“Passed around?” Lucien let go of my hand and shot to his feet. “What the fuck does that mean? As in sex? At a club? Obviously I know guys who are into?—”

“As in bought and sold. Traded. From one rich, bored guy to another…as their plaything to do whatever they like with.”

Lucien balled his fists as he stared down at me. “That’s how you ended up with Rupert? Hepaidfor you?”

“I mean, it’s not really that much different than selling myself on the street.”

“Yes, it fucking is. That’s a horrible way of life, but at least it wasyourchoice and you were doing it to survive. These men were selling you for their own gain. That’s very fucking different.”

I swallowed. Deep down, I knew he was right. His anger was completely justified, and man was he angry.

Iprobably should’ve been angry too. I’d just been in that way of life so long that I felt…resigned.

“Did he ever…” Lucien had to work to unclench his jaw. “Hurt you?”

“You mean physically?”

“I mean inanyway.”

“He never hit me or anything like that, but it’s not something I would’ve put past him if I’d acted out. I just lay low and did whatever he wanted me to. I didn’t go out with him a lot, though. He kept me locked in my room for the most part unless he wanted me.”

The fire in Lucien’s eyes simmered dangerously, and I had to look away. I didn’t want that gaze trained on me when he was thinking murderous thoughts about Rupert.

“That’s not why I brought him up, though, not why I’m telling you all of this.”

Lucien took in a deep breath and gritted his teeth.

“Remember the other night, when you were telling me about being a keeper of secrets? That you often find yourself in possession of information and knowledge because of the people you’re around and their willingness to talk…”

Lucien cocked his head, intrigue filling his eyes. “I do.”

“And that sometimes if a person is bad you might, um, use that to?—”

“Bring a motherfucker down?”

“Yeah, that. What if I told you I had some about Rupert? Secrets, that is.”

If anyone had asked me right then, I would’ve sworn to seeing twin flames light in Lucien’s eyes.

“Could you use them to help you in the fight for the club?”

“Most definitely.” Lucien reached for my chin, and as he tilted it up, I winced. The sun behind him cast a bright, shimmering glow, making his silhouette tower over me. If Father Vitale had looked like an angel, Lucien in that moment looked like a fallen one, ready to avenge any and all he cared for.

“I would use it to fight for my club…and you.” He reached for my hands.

“Me?”

“Yes, you. For all of the cruelty he subjected you to. And for any who might follow.”

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