Page 99 of Unwritten Rules

“The best part was that she was so broken by some complete idiot who was too stupid – or honourable – to take what was offered to him on a silver fucking platter. So it took little to no work before she spread her legs on my desk, practically begging me to fuck her young pussy…”

My chest heaves, and my stomach roils, threatening to expel the dinner I didn’t eat as I clench my fists so tight in an effort to get my rage under control.

Not here, Hawthorne. Keep calm. Keep calm. Grace under pressure.

“The memory of her little star-shaped birthmark winking at me from her inner left thigh—”

Uncaring of the crowd gathered behind us, I fist Jameson’s tuxedo jacket, pulling him right up into my face, grateful that my superior height means his toes are the only part of him touching the earth as I hiss in his smug face.

“Shut your damn mouth, you worthless piece of horseshit. You can trust me when I say…” I trail off, bringing his ear closer to my lips, letting my voice drop to a fierce whisper. “By the time I’m through with you, they’ll need dental records to make an identification.”

Pulling back, I release him to allow his body to drop onto solid ground with a bang as he staggers backwards, trying to find his footing but landing solidly on his ass.

I smirk darkly down at him. “If they can even find you, that is.”

CHAPTER 29

MILA

As we descend the library steps, my sense of euphoria disintegrates at the sound of my mother’s voice, knowing that Taylor won’t be far from her side now that she’s returned from her travels.

“You never told me you were back in the U.K., Mum.” I’m unable to withhold the hurt in my tone.

“Darling, I arrived just this afternoon. I needed to see Taylor first to ensure we are still on track with everything.”

My heart sinks. I don’t want to tell her, but I can’t allow this to continue.

It’s wrong on so many levels.

What I’d been hesitant to tell a soul – not even Nate or Eliza know, though idiotically I’d placed my trust in the one person I believed was bound by the law to hold my secrets – was that my grandfather, Mum’s father, had died heirless late last year.

He had made a fortune through his friendship with my father, Enrico.

Dad had shared investment plans with him before supposedly seducing my much younger mother, resulting in me and her subsequent disinheritance.

Neither of my parents had heard from my mother’s family since then – until shortly after my return from Devon last summer.

The last will and testament of Frank Hamilton had resulted in a series of hoops for Mum to jump through to claim her inheritance.

The second to last of these had been a six-week-long pilgrimage to several holy sites throughout Europe to repent for her sins.

Namely, me.

Upon her return, her final hoop was to marry a man of a similar social standing as the Hamilton family. Only then would she be worthy of inheriting her late father’s estate and all that should have been hers had it not been for my untimely arrival.

And that’s where my misplaced trust came into play.

I’d begun to see my therapist, Taylor Jameson, twice a week after Henry’s wedding and Nate’s hurtful actions. And for a while, it had helped.

He helped me to open up and confide in all manner of things, in the belief that what was spoken about between doctor and patient was sacred.

He knew everything. All about Nate’s cruel words. All about the relationships in my life. How I’d been my father’s pride and joy. How my eldest brother, Henry, doted upon me like his own child. How I was wildly in love with Nate.

But it was all a cruel trick. A cosmic joke reminding me of my own youthful naivety and downright stupidity.

He was only biding his time. Gathering information, he made his move when all the pieces were in the right place.

Unbeknownst to me, he’d begun to woo my mother shortly after I’d confided the tasks ahead of her to win her familial legacy back. My mother, only eight years his senior, had never introduced me to any of her paramours, of which I knew there’d been several over the years. Still, none had been serious enough to warrant an introduction.