Chapter 25 Chapter 25
Aurora stopped rubbing her eyes and lifted her head.
The first face she saw was his.
“Mr. Stranger?” Her eyes lit up instantly. “You here?”
My heart skipped violently.
“I came for you,” Lucien smiled.
I froze.
I was amazed at how quickly his expressions changed. One moment he was cold, ruthless, and dangerous… and the next, his face softened, as if he were nothing but a harmless man standing before a child.
“Really?” Her tiny gaze shifted to the bouquet of daisies and the basket of strawberries resting on the table. “Did you bring these for me?”
“Yes,” he nodded. “All for you.”
The warmth in his voice clawed into my chest. His tone was gentle, patient, and affectionate. It could melt anyone. It once melted me too.
Instead of reaching out to her, Lucien sat on his knees and waited for Aurora to come to him. Aurora’s lips curved into a smile as she took a small step toward him. Before she could take another, I moved between them.
“Go back to your room and sleep. Mumma is coming,” I said, trying to keep my voice soft.
But it still came out firm.
“But mummaa—”
“Aurora.”
My single word stopped her.
She looked up at me, confused.
Behind me, I could feel his presence, the heat of his body.
Lucien bent slightly, peering past my shoulder to look at her. I felt his breath brush my skin, as if he wanted me to feel him there, to tell me he was always there.
Aurora glanced at him once and then at me before turning around and walking back to her room.
The moment the door shut, I locked it from the outside.
I walked toward the table, grabbed the bouquet and the strawberry basket, and dumped them straight into the trash bin.
"What did you just do?" Lucien asked in pure anger.
His nostrils flared and veins stood out on his neck.
“I don’t want you,” I said, facing him without backing away, “or anything that belongs to you anywhere near my child.”
“She is mine too,” he said sharply.
“She is not yours.”
“Enough.”
A loud gasp escaped my throat and I flinched when he walked to me and slammed his hands on both sides of my head.
"Enough of you talking and me listening," he breathed heavily. “I let you walk away once and erase me from your life." His eyes darkened. “But you don’t get to keep my blood away from me.”
My heart pounded violently as he leaned closer. He was now so close to me that I could feel his hot breath fanning my face.
“I stayed silent the last time you took her away because I had no proof.” His gaze burned into mine. “But now that I know she is mine, I will not stand aside and watch you decide my place in her life.”
My fingers curled as I looked straight into his eyes. I could fight for my life for my baby. I will not let him make any decisions about her.
She is mine. Only mine.
"Power or force doesn't give you any rights over her!" I stated through gritted teeth.
“That’s exactly why I haven’t touched her, haven't pulled her out of the room or snatched her from you forcefully” he replied coldly. “And that's the reason why you are still here instead of my bed with your legs wide open"
I raised my hand to slap him but he caught my wrist midway and slammed it against the wall. I tried to free my wrist from his hold only for him to tighten it more.
His fingers were now digging sharply into my skin to make me cry but I didn't make any sound.
I just kept staring into his eyes with equal intensity.
"You are already well aware of what I am capable of. I can do whatever I want still I never touched you without your consent. I waited for you to come to me on your own"
He leaned his face further towards me and pressed my head tightly against the wall. Our noses almost brushed against each other as our breaths mingled
"...because I don't believe in force. I believe in control"
His eyes flicked between mine and a chill ran down my spine.
"I want her to choose me happily and you to surrender to me willingly" he whispered
"It will never happen" I spat. "I will not let you take her away from me"
His expressions changed from anger to amusement as if he already knew how this story would end.
“Fine,” he said calmly. “Then let’s not take her”
My breath hitched. I knew he wasn't going to let it go so easily. Something else was going on in his head.
Slowly, he lifted one hand from the wall and brushed his knuckles against my hair. His eyes followed where his fingers touched me.
The touch was light and very gentle yet my whole body stiffened.
His calmness always scared me more than his anger.
I waited for him to spill out his next words, and when he did, I forgot how to breathe.
“Just give me another reason to stay away from her”
My eyebrows drew together.
“I lost years because of you,” he said quietly. “I lost all those precious moments that I can never get back.”
His voice dropped, and so did the temperature of the surroundings.
I shivered and pressed myself more into the wall when he brushed his nose along my jaw.
"Step back, Lucien." My voice shook, and I slapped myself for stuttering.
He wanted this fear from me and I was giving him exactly that.
Instead of listening to me he just moved down to my neck and inhaled deeply as if I were the only air left for him to breathe.
“I came back home every night hoping you’d be there, only to find silence” his voice turned rough as his jaw clenched tightly. “I drank myself numb because sleeping sober reminded me of you, of every promise you made to me, of every smile you gave to me that I thought was only for me"
A soft cry passed my lips when I felt his teeth scraping against my skin, to leave a mark there.
"Lu..."
"I let you take everything from me but this..."
I inhaled a sharp breath when he moved closer to me, not letting even the air pass through us.
He was lost in his own world, as he continued, "I couldn't hear her first cries, I couldn't hold her fingers when she learnt to walk, I couldn't carry her on my back, I couldn't console her when she cried at night,"
His eyes flashed with raw pain. I swallowed hard and tried to make distance from him, but he had already trapped me from all sides.
“I want those years back.”
My chest tightened painfully.
“Lucien—”
“I want a life I was robbed of.”
The way he was all over me without touching me, the way I could hear his heartbeat that matched with mine, the way I could still feel his pain, scared me to the core.
My whole body was trembling like a leaf.
"Stop your madness, Lucien" I let out a shaky breath. "Just leave! You can never get what you want. It's impossible"
He tilted his head slightly so now his lips were just at a hair distance from mine.
"Then give me what's possible"
My breath caught in my chest as I looked into his eyes.
"Another baby"