He stays alive. As long as he doesn’t come near her again, that is.
“Neil!” Barclay roars, sending a renewed surge of anger up my spine.
I might’ve been rude to Neil, but he hasn’t been my caretaker.
You’d think Barclay would show some gratitude, even if his nurses are being paid to be here.
“Neil!”
Of course he doesn’t.
I’m willing to bet he’s been just as rude to Elowyn, if not more.
His little sister.
My. Woman.
“Neil, you lazy motherfucker, where the fuck are you? I need my painkillers!”
“Not Neil.”
I don’t bother closing the door after I barge into Barclay’s room. No one’s going to stop me from doing what I came here for.
“You.” Pale blue eyes narrow at me. Barclay isn’t surprised or scared. He’s ugly and hateful. “Took you long enough to show your face. Then again, you’ve always been beneath us. A coward.”
Reminding him that I wasn’t so beneath him when I helped him out of trouble would be pointless. A waste of breath, just like Barclay.
I cross the room, my hand quick to hook into the collar of his sweatshirt. “Still feeling brave?”
“Of course I do. The question is, what about you?” He laughs in my face. Doesn’t even try to pry my fingers off. “The loser in a mask. The one who’s been in hiding for a decade. Manipulating my naïve, dumb?—”
Crack.
The sound of my fist connecting with his nose is incredibly satisfying. Blood trickles down his mouth, over his chin. Instead of wiping it, Barclay gives me a disgusting red smirk.
“You can talk shit about me all you want.” I shove him onto the bed, holding him down.
Finally, he winces.
Right before he’s right back to opening his big, stupid mouth. “What makes you think I won’t?”
I’m tempted—incredibly so—to twist his collar until he chokes. To watch the life drain out of this bastard.
“Don’t give a fuck. Elowyn, though?” The veins in my hand pulse, electricity swarming through every inch of my body. “Off. Limits. She’s done being your sister. Done being your nurse, your maid, your whatever-the-fuck-else. You won’t call her. Won’t reach out. Nothing.”
“She’s my blood.” He’s wheezing, but I don’t let up, not even a little. “A Montgomery who’s supposed to marry a man of her status. Old money. A way for us to claw back into society. Someone who’ll help me rebuild our business. Being with you doesn’t fit my plans. So…send her back. Immediately.”
His insults roll right off my back. The only approval I need is hers, and I have it. More importantly, I have Elowyn’s heart.
“Never,” I hiss, leaning in, catching his wretched breath, the iron tang of his bleeding nose. “Elowyn is mine. My home is hers, and she’s not leaving. With me, she’ll be treated like the queen she is. Free to be whatever and whoever she wants. Not forced to give up her life for someone who tears her down every chance he gets.”
“The way you basically did, by forcing her to quit her job?” Barclay’s voice drops, barely more than a breath. “Is dating someone who cleans beneath His Highness’s standards? And before you ask, I didn’t mind her cleaning for a short while. We needed that money,” he blurts, as if I care that he doesn’t make sense. Truth is, I don’t care about him at all. “Just until she came to her senses and married the right man.”
“Listen to me, fucker. If Elowyn chooses to go back to cleaning, I’ll be the first person to support that decision.” I emphasize every word. Mean every one. “But she won’t risk her life doing it. Commuting to and from Manhattan alone, in the dark, defenseless. Did you ever think she could get assaulted out there?”
He opens his mouth, probably to remind me he saved her life once, all those years ago. Fuck him.
“And your meds, you selfish prick.” My voice hardens. “It didn’t bother you that she could’ve been caught and thrown in prison? As long as you got what you needed, you used her.”
