Ruin

Janet Winget POV

“It’s surprising.”

What does he mean? Of course I would think this way—after the way he kissed me, after not telling me why he helped me or what he wanted.

Now he’s taken me to this expensive hotel for dinner, and this is the only thing running through my head: he wants to sleep with me.

“What is surprising?” I said, taking a bite of my food. It melted on my tongue, burning it slightly.

His eyebrows lifted. “That without even drinking a sip of wine, you’re already drunk enough to ask that.”

I narrowed my eyes. He was definitely teasing me.

“If you don’t want to sleep with me, then why did you kiss me?”

“I didn’t say I don’t want to sleep with you.”

My blood ran hot. “Why are you confusing me?”

“There’s nothing to be confused about. You asked, and I replied.” Lucian cut his food with elegant precision.

How can he move so gracefully when we’re talking about something so filthy?

“Are you playing games with me? What exactly is your problem? Why do you keep throwing more questions at me?”

Lucian set his fork down with deliberate calm. “Janet, I already answered exactly what you asked. Now it’s you who’s getting all worked up.”

I gritted my teeth, feeling my face flush hotter by the second. “Maybe because you’re making everything sound so twisted.”

He leaned back, gaze steady, unreadable. “Or maybe because you’re thinking too much.”

The nerve of him. “Thinking too much? You’re the one who kissed me out of nowhere and now acts like it’s no big deal.”

A slow, infuriating smile tugged at his lips. “It was a big deal. For me.”

My breath caught, the words lodging somewhere between my chest and throat. I hated how easily he could throw me off balance—how a few simple words made my heart trip over itself.

He picked up his glass, swirling the wine lazily before taking a small sip, never breaking eye contact. “The question is, Janet... was it a big deal for you?”

I shifted in my seat, forcing a nonchalant shrug. “Why do you think it’s not a big deal for me?”

I can't give him more than he’s already taken.

How humiliating would it be if he ever found out it was my first kiss—especially after being engaged to Dalton for so long?

Lucian’s chuckle rolled across the table, warm and maddening. His lips curved into a knowing smirk. “See? You can’t even answer a single question.” He leaned in slightly, voice dropping like a secret shared between us. “But you expect me to answer all of yours... seems a bit unfair, don’t you think?”

“The kiss was unfair to begin with,” I said, forcing a smile. “I didn’t think Lucian Ashford would be so self-centered.”

“You don’t know me.” His pause made my heart skip. “You’ll get to know me... we have plenty of time.”

I swallowed, the back of my throat dry despite the water I'd sipped earlier.

"Plenty of time for what, exactly?"

Lucian’s smile was slow, almost lazy, but his eyes burned sharp. Intent. Dangerous.

"To understand. To learn things about each other... things you won't find in polite conversations."

A shiver ran down my spine. I masked it by reaching for my glass, pretending to be normal.

"I don't need to know everything about you," I muttered.

He chuckled low in his throat, the sound sinking straight into my bones. "You say that now, but curiosity has a nasty habit of growing."

He wasn’t wrong—and that terrified me more than anything.

I was already curious. About his motives. About the way his touch had felt—dangerous but electric. About what he wanted from me.

'You can't afford to fall into this, Janet,' I warned myself. 'Not again. Not after everything you just escaped.'

Still, I found myself leaning in a little closer, like a moth drawn to a flame.

"And what if I don't like what I find out?" I lifted my eyes to meet his.

Lucian’s smile deepened, slow and unapologetic. "Then it’ll be too late, darling."

"Don't call me that." A shiver ran down my spine.

Him calling me darling did something to me—my whole body heating as if I were sitting on a frying pan.

"Call what?"

He knew exactly what I meant.

"Whatever you called me before."

"Darling, what did I call before?"

My grip tightened around the fork. "Stop."

He smiled, completely unaffected by my glare.

"Why should I stop?" His voice dropped to a low drawl. "You're the one who started it."

My teeth ground together.

"I didn't start anything," I snapped, control slipping.

Lucian leaned forward, elbows resting casually on the table, wine glass dangling loosely between his fingers.

"You started it the moment you looked at me like that."

"Like what?" I demanded.

Lucian's eyes gleamed, sharp and hot.

"Like you wanted me to ruin you."

My heart jolted—violently, like someone had slammed it against my ribs.

I dropped my gaze to my plate, heat rushing up my neck. My appetite vanished, replaced by something far more dangerous.

He didn’t blink. Didn’t flinch. He just sat there, sipping wine like he hadn’t just said something that practically ripped the floor out from under me.

"You’re imagining things," I murmured, even though my voice had thinned into something breathless. Weak.

God, why did I sound like that?

"Am I?" Lucian said smoothly, setting his glass down. "Because I’m fairly certain you haven’t stopped looking at my mouth since I walked in."

I hadn’t noticed.

I hadn’t noticed—but now I was painfully aware of where my eyes had been.

I looked up sharply. "You’re awfully sure of yourself."

Yeah, right. He’s trying to intimidate me—but I won’t let him. There’s no way I’ll let him get to me. Not now. Not ever.

He smiled, slow and confident, like he already knew how this night would end. Like he already had the upper hand. "I’m only sure of you.”

I chugged the wine from my glass, the weight of his words hammering against my mind—words I wanted to dismiss as lies.

But deep in my conscience, a crack of doubt bled through. What if it’s true?

Without caring, I grabbed the bottle and drank straight from it.

Maybe it was the stress of today. Maybe the humiliation still clawing at my skin. Either way, the alcohol dulled it—just enough.

“Slow down, Darling.” Lucian reached for the bottle, his hand brushing mine.

My vision blurred at the edges, the bitter taste on my tongue turning strangely sweet.

“Is that so?” I tore my mouth from the bottle and brushed my lips over his fingertip where he held it.

“You know what you’re doing?”

“I don't, but I’d love to find out.”

Courage, reckless and hot, surged through me. I sucked lightly on his fingertip, letting my sandal slip off as I dragged my bare foot up his leg.

Fuck it. I need a hell of a lot more than this to forget today.

“Don’t do something you’ll regret later, Darling.”

I blinked hard, trying to hide the sadness creeping in as the word regret pinched deeper.

“Everything I did up until now ended in regret. I don't know anything anymore. All I ever wanted was love and affection... and now I’ve ended up like this.”

In my sane mind, I would never have said anything like this—but undeniably, he was hot, and his kiss felt so good. I wanted his mouth on every inch of my body.

I wanted him to make me feel precious.

I wanted him to tell me I wasn't the trash my family and Dalton had made me believe I was all those years.

“Ah—”

A moan slipped from my lips as Lucian lifted me into his arms.

I hadn’t even noticed when he stood and crossed the space between us.

His scent wrapped around me, dark and soothing.

I clutched the back of his neck with trembling hands, pressing a kiss to his Adam’s apple as it bobbed with a hard swallow.

“Kiss me again, please."

“I’m not just going to kiss you, Darling!” he snarled, voice rough and close. “I’m going to fuck you!”