\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 4\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian finally caught sight of me in the crowd. His expression hardened instantly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the hell are you doing here like this? Trying to wreck Vivian\u2019s night?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t answer. Blood dripped from my fingers, splattering on the marble floor. Julian\u2019s eyes dropped to it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Something flashed across his face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and thrust it at me. \u201cWrap it. You\u2019re making a scene.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was about to shove him away when I saw it, the thing around Vivian\u2019s neck. An antique silver locket. The\u00a0<\/p>\n
metal was tarnished, and there was a tiny crack I\u2019d know anywhere.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was the only keepsake Mom had left me. Years ago, Mom had given it to me for protection-a cheap Saint Christopher medal she\u2019d cherished. I\u2019d worn it every day until it disappeared from my nightstand days ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So it had been here all along.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian followed my gaze. \u201cVivian liked it, so I gave it to her. Looks better on her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you want one that badly, I\u2019ll buy you a diamond pendant tomorrow. Something that isn\u2019t junk.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked him straight in the eye. \u201cJulian. Not everything is for sale. I used to beg for your help. Now I don\u2019t\u00a0<\/p>\n
want anything from you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I shoved past the security guards and went straight for Vivian. My broken fingers screamed, but I grabbed the\u00a0<\/p>\n
locket and ripped it free.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cGet off me! Lily, you\u2019re insane!\u201d Vivian shrieked. The chain cut into her neck.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLily, let go!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian grabbed me and flung me aside. I hit hard. My palms scraped against the marble.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He pulled Vivian behind him, shielding her. I got to my feet, blood running from both hands now. I looked at\u00a0<\/p>\n
him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cJulian, you\u2019re nothing to me. We\u2019re done.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I closed my fist around the locket and turned away. Julian\u2019s voice cut through behind me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLily! Don\u2019t you dare walk away from mol If you walk out that door, you\u2019re dead to this city!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then he turned to the crowd. \u201cLily is blacklisted. Effective immediately. She is never to set foot in our world\u00a0<\/p>\n
again.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His voice carried across the ballroom. The room went silent.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t stop. I didn\u2019t even slow down.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 4\u00a0<\/p>\n
40.00%\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julian, I was done stopping for you.\u00a0<\/p>\n
:<\/p>\n
Cedella is a passionate storyteller known for her bold romantic and spicy novels that keep readers hooked from the very first chapter. With a flair for crafting emotionally intense plots and unforgettable characters, she blends love, desire, and drama into every story she writes. Cedella\u2019s storytelling style is immersive and addictive\u2014perfect for fans of heated romances and heart-pounding twists.<\/p>\n
The Blackened Odds by Mark Twain 4 \u00a0 Chapter 4\u00a0 Julian finally caught sight of me in the crowd. His […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20210","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-broken-heart"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20210","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20210"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20210\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20210"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20210"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20210"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}