Page 48 of King of Rage

“Stop touching me!” he snapped, shooting her a disgusted look without even sparing her a proper glance.

Then he lowered his head against Stella’s stomach again.

“Stella, my stomach hurts,” he mumbled, his voice muffled against Stella as he pressed his face more firmly into her.

Catherine’s expression tightened, her embarrassment deepening as she stood rigidly beside them.

Behind her, Juliet, Cassian and Xavier moved closer to each other, watching the scene unfold with growing interest. Triston leaned his head forward to hear what they were saying, allowing them to include him in their whispered conversation.

“Who invited this white worm here?” Juliet asked quietly, pointing toward Catherine.

Catherine was dressed entirely in white, and her complexion was so pale that it nearly matched her outfit. Her makeup was equally light, while the excessive highlighter on her cheeks made her look as though she might glow in the dark.

“If someone switched on a light, her cheeks would turn into two fucking tube lights,” Juliet muttered.

Xavier glanced between Catherine and the other men before turning his attention to Triston.

Triston looked at each of them in turn, then shrugged at once.

“I don’t know her,” he said.

Before Juliet could say anything, a sound from the doorway drew everyone’s attention.

They turned to find one of the club’s waiters standing there, looking unusually pleased with himself. He glanced at Catherine with an expression that suggested he had just delivered some very interesting news.

Triston studied him for a moment before murmuring, “I guess white worm has planted an informer at the club.”

Juliet clicked her tongue in frustration before turning toward Triston.

“Goddammit, I don’t want this woman anywhere near Lucius from now on. Stella is the only woman I’ll accept as Lucius’s wife. Anyone else he marries is my enemy. I will never, ever let her live in peace.”

Triston raised his eyebrows at her, his expression filled with disbelief.

“You don’t get to decide who Stella marries,” he pointed out.

Juliet immediately shot him an angry look.

“I can if I want to. Are you going to object?” she challenged, raising both eyebrows as she waited for his answer.

Triston gave her an unimpressed look.

“Of course I am. I won’t let Stella get involved with him.”

Juliet’s face twisted with irritation.

Meanwhile, Stella’s temper continued to rise as Catherine insisted on taking care of Lucius.

“I’m going to take care of him. You don’t need to interfere. Get away from him,” Catherine snapped, her voice sharp and her expression openly hostile as she tried to push Stella aside.

By then, Lucius had already reached for another drink from the table. He was about to take a sip when Stella quickly leaned over, took the glass from his hand, and slammed it down on the table.

She turned toward Catherine, her eyes narrowing.

“Can’t you see that he’s sick? He needs to take some medicine. He’s clearly drunk, and he can’t even sit up properly,” Stella said.

Catherine ignored her. She picked up another glass from the table and carried it over to Lucius.

“Don’t interfere with what he wants. It’s his choice, and I’m going to give him whatever he wants,” she declared, pressing a new glass of whiskey into his hand. “If you want more, just let me know, honey.”