Page 105 of Greed: The Savage
“Call her by her bloody name again and it’ll be the last word you ever utter in your depraved life.”
The possessive flint in Malric’s eyes together with the lethal threat couched in his tones stirred hope within her heart.
Malric swung his commander’s gaze back to Addien. “Let me speak, Addien,” he harshly demanded.
Addien gave a tight shake of her head. “I need to finish this.”
“I’d rather you not,” he gritted out. “I would be lying to you if I did not say some part of me wanted to hurt you as you hurt me.”
A frisson appeared in the hard set of his features, the first crack in his composure.
She’d hurt him.
More tears fell. “For that, I will never forgive myself, Malric.” Addien took steps to shorten the gap between them and distance the space between her and the dryly amused duke.
“I do not want any more of this from you, Addien,” he said sharply.
Addien went on, ignoring his demands. “But it was wrong because I had no right to try and hurt you. It is not your fault you do not love m-me—”
His eyes blazed. “Stop!”
“As I love you,” she finished.
Collecting the champagne bottle, the duke beside them poured himself another and baldly watched.
They ignored him.
“Not another bloody word of your apologies, Addien,” he bit out.
Addien dipped her head. “I deserved that.”
“You deserve a whole host of things, all of them from me, Addien, but a self-lashing is not one of them.”
Blinking slowly, she picked her gaze up enough to meet his.
The force of emotion blazing from his eyes stole her breath.
“What I’d intended to say before you went on a lengthy diatribe against yourself…” A dark frown formed on his lips. “You will not do that ever again, Addien. Do you hear me?”
Dizzy with confusion, she managed a cross between a nod and a shake. “As I was saying,” he repeated, his baritone husked with emotion. “I owe Argyllnothing.” Malric moved closer, his gaze fixed on her. “As for you, Miss Killoran,” he said with a gentleness that threatened to shatter her in different ways, “I owe you everything, Addien.”
Her heart climbed.
“I owe you an apology,” he said.
An apology.
Her heart fluttered painfully back to its regular place inside her chest.
“You do not owe me an apolo—”
“In God’s name, Addien,” he gritted out, “will youpleaselet me speak?”
Wide-eyed, she nodded.
“You’re really rubbish at this,” Argyll observed lazily from his comfortable seat. “It is a wonder she didn’t fall to my charms.”
“Shut your bloody—” Malric stopped. His eyes blazed with the promise of death; he looked briefly at the duke and then at Addien. “You didn’t.”
