Page 117 of Goldsin

“I know.”

“Make her believe you’re attracted to her.”

Won’t be too hard. I may like guys, but the girl is gorgeous. The power she radiates lures you in even if you don’t want it to.

That’s what happened to me that night at Lavish Eden.As much as I hate to admit it, I didn’t really choose to get drunk; I just lost track of everything and allowed her to steer me around.

“Trust me, I can be very persuasive when I want to be.”

He heads for the door, hand on the doorknob as he tells me firmly, “Your plan had better work. We can’t afford any mistakes.”

“I know,” I whisper back. The more distance he puts between us, the more the heaviness from before weighs on me. “I won’t let you down.”

“Good.” He fixes his stare on me. “Because if you fail, there will be no coming back from this. The Inferno Consortium may think they’ve found their target, but it wouldn’t take much for it to get redirected onto you.”

And what will Lucian do to me this time? He won’t go easy on me. He won’t kill me. He’ll do far worse.

He’ll turn me into my mother.

“Then let’s make sure I don’t fail,” I reply steadily.

He nods, the lower side of his lips twitching.

That has always been his way of showing me he’s proud.

“Before I go and leave you moping?—”

“I am not moping!”

“Do you want me to keep Julian informed about what we discussed?”

My scowl eases a little at hearing his name.

“Yes. I think he’ll enjoy knowing her days are numbered.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

JULIAN

“You’re not fucking killing her.”

The door slams shut behind me as I barge into Aurelia’s bedroom, the abrupt noise echoing in the silence of her room. The only sound is the ragged rhythm of my breath as it matches the pounding in my head.

I was lying in bed unable to sleep when Valentine called to inform me of Aurelia’s plan with Victoria. Without even needing to get dressed, I rushed here.

She’s lying in bed, blinking the fogginess from her eyes. “What time is it?” She squints up at me, a sleepy frown stretching her features.

A pillow is trapped between her legs as she hugs it to her side. A long shirt covers her body, leaving her bare thighs on full display.

I pause for a second. That looks a lot like my shirt. The one I gave her the night she slept at my place.

She looks so vulnerable rightnow.

So tempting.

“Three in the morning,” I reply, standing at the foot of her bed to hover over her delicate body. Her bedsheets are long forgotten.

She rubs at her eyes. “Have you lost your mind?”

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