Page 114 of Lovely Venom

I let them take their fill as I pull her closer to whisper in her ear. “What’s the matter, principessa? Nothing smart to say now?”

“You’re eye-fucking me in front of everyone,” she counters.

“Am I?”

She heaves out an annoyed breath. “You’re so⁠—”

“Charming?”

“Is that what they’re calling deranged these days?”

A shadow of a smile passes over my face. “Tell me in an hour.”

Her eyes narrow suspiciously. “What does that mean?”

“You’ll see.” My fingers trail the length of her bare back, and goosebumps ripple over her.

“Audrey, do you happen to know where the powder room is?” Chantel asks.

“I’ll show you,” Audrey volunteers.

Chantel pulls away, and I track her with my gaze as the two women head toward the main salon. As my eyes do a quick sweep over the crowd, I find I’m not her only observer. One guest in particular leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

From the fly bridge, Marco watches her with a narrowed gaze as he sips from the whiskey in his glass. Between the beatings he took from me and Mariella, his face still looks like he got gutter-stomped. Bruises in various stages of healing mar his face, but even that won’t stop him from a party.

“Hello, gentlemen.” Lucinda Wainwright approaches us, glancing up to see what has my attention.

“I’m surprised he’d even show his face here after the way he acted at his party,” she says. “I hope Chantel wasn’t too rattled.”

When I meet her gaze, it’s obvious to all of us I don’t know what she’s referring to.

“He was acting like a lunatic,” Daniel explains. “He tried to drag her upstairs by force, and when she refused, several other men had to step in before he hurt her.”

“That was after he called her a whore and demanded that she have sex with him,” Lucinda adds. “I was about two seconds away from macing his ass before the men intervened.”

Slow-burning rage bleeds through me as I think back on that night, realizing it must have happened after I stepped outside. I wasn’t there long before Chantel appeared, and I could tell something was off.

I attributed it to what had happened with her near-fall and Marco’s general stupidity. But hearing this account only adds to my regret that I let Angelo stop me from murdering him at Eden.

Knowing what I do now, it’s a mistake I won’t make twice.

Lucinda seems to sense my dark thoughts, but she simply offers me a smile. It’s an indication of how far Marco has fallen when she can’t muster up an ounce of concern for his fate.

“I’ve always liked you, Cristian Vitale.” She pats my shoulder. “You two look good together.”

With that parting remark, she drifts back into the crowd just as Audrey and Chantel return.

“Did we miss anything exciting?” Audrey stares after Lucinda in question.

Daniel defers to me with a sidelong glance.

“Nothing of significance.” I press my hand to Chantel’s lower back. “But I need to steal her away.”

The women say their goodbyes, and I keep Chantel close as we cross the deck. Social hour is over, and it’s time to finalize my intentions for the night.

I find what I’m looking for once we reach the aft lounge.

Chantel nearly skids to a halt when she notices Bastien and Jolie, but it’s too late for her to run. They’ve already spotted us.