She let out a laugh that we both knew was completely fake. \u201cHa. Ha.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I wanted to get up and leave right then, or maybe practice some of the fighting techniques Kiara had\u00a0<\/p>\n
taught me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But I forced myself to stay calm and focused on my phone instead, refusing to take the bait.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was clearly trying to start something, hiding behind her victim status like it gave her permission to be cruel. I wasn\u2019t going to engage in whatever game she was playing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou love him,\u201d she continued, her voice taking on a mocking tone that made my skin crawl. \u201cI know you\u00a0<\/p>\n
have feelings for Tri I can see it in the way you look at him.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My jaw clenched, but I kept my eyes on my phone screen. She was definitely trying to provoke me, and I knew Tristan would be furious if I caused a scene with an injured woman in a hospital bed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
Besides, I\u2019d been working on controlling emotions, learning to stay calm in difficult situations. I\u2019d heard worse things than this. Whatever poison she wanted to spill couldn\u2019t possibly hurt me if I didn\u2019t let\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I pity you, you know why?\u201d she asked in that same mocking tone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I continued ignoring her, scrolling through social media posts I wasn\u2019t actually reading.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause he\u2019ll never see you as anything but his baby sister,\u201d she said with obvious satisfaction. \u201cYou could throw yourself at him naked, and he\u2019d just wrap you in a blanket and send you to bed like a good big brother would.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The words stung, probably because there was a grain of truth in them that I didn\u2019t want to acknowledge. But I\u2019d survived worse attacks on my self\u2013worth. I could handle this too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then she said something that made all my rational thoughts disappear in a blaze of fury.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI know you\u2019re happy he lost his mate and baby, because now you think you can take their place.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The phone slipped from my numb fingers and clattered to the floor.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The accusation hit me like a physical blow, so cruel and twisted that for a moment I couldn\u2019t even process what she\u2019d said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sat, Jan 3\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 70\u00a0<\/p>\n
945\u00a0<\/p>\n
The suggestion that I could ever, in any universe, be glad that Tristan had suffered such devastating loss \u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
that I could celebrate the death of an innocent woman and child for my own selfish purposes \u2013 was so far beyond anything I could have imagined that it left me speechless.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I turned to look at her fully for the first time since this conversation started. She was smiling, clearly pleased with herself for finally getting a reaction out of me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHow dare you,\u201d I whispered, my voice shaking with rage. I really wanted to hit her so bad, I could feel\u00a0<\/p>\n
Claire moving angrily.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She wasn\u2019t Daxon, so of course she doesn\u2019t stand a single chance. Even if she\u2019s completely okay, she\u00a0<\/p>\n
wouldn\u2019t dare stand in a fight with me\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019ll detach her from her wolf and she knows it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHit a nerve, did I?\u201d she asked sweetly. \u201cThe truth usually does.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stood up slowly, every muscle in my body tensing for action. The rational part of my mind was screaming warnings about hospital security cameras and assault charges, but I was past caring about consequences.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nobody, absolutely nobody, had the right to suggest I was happy about Tristan\u2019s pain. Nobody could accuse me of celebrating death and trauma for\u00a0<\/p>\n
or my own benefit\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know nothing about me,\u201d I said, my voice deadly quiet. \u201cNothing about what I feel or what I want or what kind of person I am.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI know enough,\u201d she replied, looking far too satisfied with herself. \u201cI know you\u2019ve been waiting in the wings your whole life, hoping something would happen to clear the way for you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re sick,\u201d I breathed. \u201cYou\u2019re actually sick in the head if you think anyone could be happy about something so horrible.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAm I wrong?\u201d she challenged. \u201cTell me you weren\u2019t at least a little bit relieved when you found out his perfect wife was gone. Tell me you haven\u2019t been hoping he\u2019d finally notice you now that she\u2019s not in the picture anymore.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I took a step toward her bed, my hands clenched into fists at my sides. \u201cYou have no idea what you\u2019re talking about.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t I?\u201d she laughed again, and the sound was like nails on a chalkboard. \u201cYou think I can\u2019t see what\u2019s happening here? You think I\u2019m stupid?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
20:38 Sat, Jan 3\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 20\u00a0<\/p>\n
3.9%\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think you\u2019re a manipulative, hitter woman who\u2019s trying to drag everyone down to her level,\u201d I shot back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I think you\u2019re using your trauma as an excuse to be cruel to people who\u2019ve done nothing but try to\u00a0<\/p>\n
help you.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her smile faltered for just a moment, but then she recovered and pushed even harder.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAt least I\u2019m honest about what I want,\u201d she said. \u201cAt least I\u2019m not pretending to be the grieving sister while secretly celebrating my competition\u2019s death.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
That was it. The last thread of my self\u2013control snapped completely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I lunged toward her bed, ready to show her exactly what I thought of her accusations, when the door opened and Tristan walked back in.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s going on?\u201d he asked, immediately sensing the tension in the room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I froze halfway to Seraphine\u2019s bed, breathing hard, my whole body shaking with fury.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seraphine\u2019s expression instantly shifted to innocent confusion. \u201cNothing\u2019s wrong,\u201d she said in a small,\u00a0<\/p>\n
frightened voice. \u201cAthena S\u00a0<\/p>\n
got a little upset about something. I think she might need some air.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stared at her in complete disbelief.\u00a0<\/p>\n
actually impressive in its calculated\u201d speed with which she\u2019d transformed from vicious to victim was\u00a0<\/p>\n
cruelty.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tristan looked between us, clearly trying to figure out what had happened in the few minutes he\u2019d been\u00a0<\/p>\n
gone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAthena?\u201d he asked gently. \u201cAre you okay?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I opened my mouth to tell him exactly what his precious Seraphine had just accused me of, but then I saw the concern in his eyes and realized how this would look.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Me, standing over an injured woman\u2019s hospital bed with clenched fists and fury written all over my face, while she cowered like I\u2019d been threatening her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Who would he believe? The woman recovering from near\u2013fatal injuries, or his supposedly unstable sister who\u2019d already shown a tendency toward dramatic emotional outbursts?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI need some air,\u201d I managed to say through gritted teeth.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then I turned and walked out of that room before I did something we\u2019d all regret.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland\u2019s breathtaking cold.<\/p>\n
Memories Drifted Into Soft Silence by Kyx Frost 70 She let out a laugh that we both knew was completely […]<\/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":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26227","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-second-gear-of-love-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26227","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=26227"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26227\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26227"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26227"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26227"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}