Filed to story: Watch Out, I’m The Lady Boss (Eleanor & Sebastian) Book PDF Free
“That doesn’t mean you’ve won, you know,” she said with a flicker of her old confidence.
“Seb will leave you for me eventually.”I studied her.
After everything Sebastian had done to her, how could she still believe she had a chance? Even back in my high school days, when my infatuation with Daniel was at its peak, I would have turned against him instantly if he’d tried to make me sleep with another man pretending to be him.
Yet here was Genevieve, confronted with my marriage to Sebastian and my carrying his child, still utterly convinced she would win him over one day.
Was she that arrogant, or just profoundly delusional?
“I want you to leave.” My hand hovered over the call button.
“Wait! Don’t you want to know why Sebastian has always protected me?”My hand stilled. That question had been a thorn in my side for a long time, but I refused to give her the satisfaction of knowing it bothered me.
Genevieve leaned forward.
“I’ll tell you. My brother died for Sebastian. Seb gave his word that he would take care of me.”Her statement only spawned more questions. Who was her brother? When did this happen? How did he die? And what exactly did “taking care of” entail? Did his promise include marrying her?
Genevieve crossed her arms, looking smug.
“If you don’t believe me, go ask Cassian. He knows all about it.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“I want you to know that no matter what happens, Sebastian will never hurt me. He always keeps his word.”
“That doesn’t mean he’ll be with you,” I said, though the statement sounded weak even to my own ears.
Genevieve shrugged.
“Maybe he will, maybe he won’t. To be honest, I don’t even like him that much. But I will have him. The title of Mrs Laurent will be mine. His money, his houses, his assets… everything he has will eventually be mine.”
“So you’re just after his money.”She smiled.
“Now you’re finally catching on.”
“You won’t succeed.”
“Just watch me.” Genevieve glanced around the room.
“Quite a nice setup you’ve got here. A private room, a fridge, a minibar, even security at the door. All of this should have been mine. My brother died for Sebastian. If it weren’t for him, Sebastian wouldn’t even be alive today. He owes me.”She gritted out the last sentence with such venom that I believed her. Not that I believed Sebastian truly owed her anything, but I believed she was utterly convinced of her own entitlement.
“Were you behind the kidnapping?” I asked before I even realised the question was on my mind.
BUNUN
Genevieve paused.
“Didn’t Daniel Granger confess to that? He and your father orchestrated the whole thing, or so Sebastian told me.”Sebastian had told her? Had he been meeting with her without my knowledge? The thought left a sour taste in my mouth.
“Maybe I had something to do with it, maybe I didn’t,” she said smugly.
“But you’ll never know for sure.”I took a deep breath.
“Get out.”I rested a hand on my stomach.
The gesture seemed to trigger her. Genevieve’s face hardened, and she spat out a vicious warning.
“Sebastian is mine. Eleanor, my advice is to get out of the picture before you get hurt. Truly hurt. You got lucky this time, managing to escape and snag another man to help you. But now you’re pregnant… you should be extra careful. Otherwise, next time it might not just be you in danger, but that baby as well.”I slowly got up from the bed, my eyes scanning the bedside table until they landed on the fruit knife.
Was she so arrogant because she was certain Sebastian would never let me harm her? Because she thought I was powerless?
I reached for the knife and pressed the cool blade against her neck.
“Genevieve, don’t mistake my restraint for weakness. I’m not someone you can push around.”Her eyes widened in panic. With the blade at her throat, she didn’t dare move.
“If you hurt me, Sebastian will never forgive you!”
“Shall we test that theory?” I murmured, my voice a low threat.
Genevieve shrank back, too scared to speak, her gaze locked on the knife in my hand.
“Tell me the truth!” I demanded coldly.
“Never!” she hissed.
I applied a little more pressure, and the blade nicked the skin behind her ear. A bead of blood welled up, then another, dripping onto the tip of the knife.
“If you don’t start talking, the next cut will be across your face.”
“You… you bitch!” Genevieve was on the verge of tears, her voice trembling.
“You wouldn’t dare!”
“Do you really want to find out if I would?” I gave a light, almost playful laugh.
“No, please, don’t!” Genevieve flinched as she felt the blade break skin again. She was shaking uncontrollably.” I’m sorry, I’ll talk, I’ll tell you! Just please, let me go.”I scoffed.
My eyes flicked towards the door. I clenched my jaw, shoved Genevieve away, and threw the fruit knife into the bin.
The moment she was free, Genevieve grabbed the nearest chair and swung it at me.
There was a loud thud as the heavy chair connected with my body, followed by my pained grunt.
“Elean!” Sebastian burst through the door and rushed to my side, pulling me into his arms.
“Are you all right?”His eyes were full of a cold, murderous fury.
I could have dodged the chair when Genevieve swung it. But the moment I saw Sebastian in the doorway, I changed my plan. I wanted to see if he would still take her side after watching her try to hurt me.
“Call a doctor!” Sebastian barked at the guards by the door.
I shook my head.
“No, it’s fine.”I got to my feet. The chair had smacked my shoulder, and it stung, but it was nothing serious. As for me ending up on the floor… well, that part was for show.
“Genevieve, what the hell is wrong with you?” Sebastian’s voice was a low, dangerous growl.
Hearing his anger, Genevieve panicked.
“Seb, she started it! She cut me with a knife! Look at my neck!”She pointed to the scratches on her neck. They were there, but they were shallow.
Sebastian didn’t even look at her.
“I don’t care. You hurt her.”
“She hurt me first! Why can’t I defend myself? Seb, how can you blame me?” Genevieve whined, her lips trembling as she fake-cried.
“I told you to stay away from her!”Genevieve’s crying hitched. Then she amped up the sobs, pouring on the misery.
“Fine! If you don’t want me here, I’ll go!”She spun around, snatched her bag, shot me a look of pure hatred, and flounced out of the room.
The door slammed shut, leaving a sudden quiet.
Sebastian looked me over, his hands on my shoulders.
“Are you all right?”I pulled myself together.
“I’m fine.”Sebastian pulled a stunning blue crystal from his pocket and dropped it into my palm.
“It’s a powerful anaesthetic. If you’re ever in trouble, use this. One drop will put most people on the floor.”I looked at the small blue vial. It was clear and glittering, looking more like a piece of fancy jewellery than anything else.
“The case is pliable. When it’s empty, you can take it apart and put it back together as a blade.” He pulled another empty blue bottle from his pocket.
He pried the empty one apart and slotted the pieces together into a thin, transparent dagger. It was so beautiful my hand moved to touch it on instinct. But his fingers closed around my wrist before I could.
“It’s razor sharp. You’ll cut yourself.”He dragged the tip lightly across the glass coffee table, and it left a deep scratch.
A cold shock went through me. Hell, that could have been my finger. I stared at my hand, almost feeling the cut even though my skin was untouched.
Sebastian took the dagger apart, fitting the pieces back into a bottle. Then he found a red cord, threaded the crystal onto it, and tied it around my wrist like a bracelet.
I looked at it. It was delicate and pretty, completely innocent. No one would ever guess it was a weapon.
But still…
He’d go to all this effort to arm me, but he wouldn’t say a damn word about punishing Genevieve. Was this bottle his way of making it up to me? Was this her sorry?
I wanted to ask him, but the question clogged in my throat.
He’d had Daniel tied up and dealt with. He had people hunting Frank. He did all that for me.
So why did he turn into a blind, stupid fool when it came to Genevieve? Why did his guards let her waltz into my room? Why did he see the hate on her face and do nothing?
I knew Sebastian didn’t have feelings for her. I was sure of it. If anything, he couldn’t stand her. So his patience had to be about what she’d said: he thought he owed her.
What the hell had her brother done to make Sebastian put up with all this?
I snapped back to the present and found myself flat on the hospital bed. Sebastian’s mouth came down on mine, a hard, claiming kiss that stole my air and my thoughts until all I could taste was him.
I kissed him back, my arms locking around his neck as I pressed my body against his. He was just as gone as I was, and my response was like throwing petrol on a fire. It exploded, hot and wild.
Sebastian tore his mouth away, breathing rough, my lips left stinging. He shifted over me, caging me in with his arms.
I put my hands on his chest and shoved, flipping our positions. Now he was under me.
I drew a slow circle on his shirt.
“This is a hospital. It’s a bit public, don’t you think?”Sebastian’s eyes went dark. His voice was gravel.
“It’s a private room. No one’s coming in. The guards are right outside.”I knew how much he wanted me. I wanted him too. Those few days I’d been gone felt like a lifetime.
But…
I leaned in, licked the edge of his lip, then bit down-hard. I launched myself off the bed and bolted into the bathroom, slamming the door shut.