Page 17 of The Heart of a Villain

I’d never hurt her, but oh, I will punish her. She must read it on my face as a raspy breath slips past her lips, and I crook my finger at her.

She swallows hard and then steps toward me, but the girl grabs her elbow. “It’s all right, Emmaline.” Aileen says reassuringly as she pats the girl’s hand and comes to me.

And it finally hits me.

Emmaline? As in Emmaline King?

Oh, fuck.

I give him a sideways glance. “You kidnapped a King?” Has he lost his mind?

“Of course not. That’s a crime, and I’m not a criminal.” The fucker doesn’t miss an opportunity to throw an insult my way. He spits blood on the ground and runs his fingers through his hair. “I married a King.” Satisfaction coats his voice, and he blows a kiss to Emmaline, who flips him off, which only makes him laugh harder.

Fucking what?

Although I should have expected this, shouldn’t I?

We Wrights always collect our dues, and the girl made a big mistake a long time ago when she unknowingly crossed my brother and almost destroyed his career.

Or rather, she did destroy it in a way and forced him to start over. He barely survived the scandal, and it’s a wonder he managed to climb this high in his career despite that. And no matter his victories and accomplishments, he never managed to clean up his reputation after the damage done to it by Emmaline.

Sometimes I wonder what kind of lawyer he would have been had he not crossed paths with the King heiress.

Rafael is a ruthless fucker who’d hold even a child’s mistake against them. Emmaline is just three years older than Aileen, so it’s not like she knew what she did anyway.

But like many things when it comes to Rafael, he clearly doesn’t give a flying fuck.

All thoughts about my brother and his bride fly from my mind, though, when Aileen’s sweet scent twitches my nostrils and awakens the desire that permanently resides in me, reminding me that I have claimed every inch of this woman.

I fist her hair and pull her closer to me, her gasp fanning my mouth as she places her hands on my chest. “Hello, my darling.” I lean closer to her while the air hitches in her throat, and her pulse speeds up, the vein in her neck pumping rapidly. “Surprised to see me alive?”

She tenses, her nails digging into my chest, and I put my other hand above hers, sliding it down to the bandage. Shame fills her open eyes that beg me for forgiveness, but it’s too late for that.

“Wounded but not dead, darling. I guess we’re even.” I press my lips to her ear so no one else will hear what I have to say to her next. “After all, I made you bleed when I took your virginity, didn’t I?”

A tremor rushes through her, and a smile curves my mouth at her reaction.

The princess can despise the villain, but she is addicted to his touch all the same.

But this knowledge doesn’t lessen my anger, especially when she’s wearing a shirt that belongs to my brother. Only because his wife is around, I don’t destroy him right now.

Tightening my hold on her hair, I tilt her head back while she gulps for breath. “Get in the fucking car.”

“Hey! Don’t talk to her like that,” Emmaline calls, running toward us, but before she can reach me, Rafael catches her midway, raising her into the air. “Let me go!” she screams at him while he throws her over his shoulder. She’s kicking and screaming as she does her best to hit him hard on the back.

“I raised you both better than that.” William sighs in resignation, shaking his head at us, and isn’t that hilarious?

“You didn’t raise us at all,” Rafael says, and the butler pales while pain crosses his face, and George hugs him, glaring at my twin. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to tend to this little thing.” He slaps her on the ass.

“You did not just do that!” she yells and thrashes in his hold, hitting him wherever she can, but he merely chuckles.

Rafael spanks her again while addressing us all. “Now, get the fuck off my land… unless you want me to bring up our agreement again?”

“Stay away from her,” I warn him, hoping he reads between the lines and understands I won’t spare him just because he’s my brother. “Don’t meddle in my business.” Pulling Aileen by her hair until she stands in front of me, I grip her hip. “And don’t fucking touch her again, or I swear, Rafael. I will forget that you are my twin and end your existence.”

“Whatever you say, brother,” he replies, and we share a long stare, each one of us communicating without speaking that they don’t give a fuck about each other’s threads, and then I spin around, dragging Aileen toward the car.

“You’re hurting me,” she says, trying to free her hand, and she halts her movements, which only pisses me off. “Rush! Don’t you think we need to talk first?”

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