His Bride, His Blood Price

Chapter 14 — Velvet and Venom

The moment the car stopped in front of the palazzo, flashbulbs exploded,not paparazzi but men with lenses sharper than cameras. Watching,judging and calculating.

The Palazzo d'Oro was a fortress of power disguised as elegance,white stone stepsgold-trimmed doors,crystal chandeliers glittering behind stained-glass windows. Music drifted into the night,soft, slow jazz but beneath it pulsed something darker.Power.

As Lucien stepped out of the car, people took notice.As she stepped out beside him… they stared.His hand hovered at her lower back but not touching but the message was clear:This woman belongs to me.

Aria held her head high.She didn't shrink under the weight of their eyes,not when she recognized diplomats, mafia bosses, arms dealers, and their surgically enhanced wives and not even when someone whispered "That's not Isla."

She walked forward with Lucien Moretti beside her and a blade of steel behind her ribs.

Lucien was used to attention.He was used to whispers and fear and women who tried too hard but tonight ,every glance passed him and landed on Aria and she wore their attention like a crown unbothered, effortless and dangerous.He watched her move through the room with calm grace, not clinging to him, not seeking safety in his presence and that should've pleased him and made her easier to manage but instead, it made something hot coil in his chest especially when they reached the center of the ballroom and he felt her hand slip from his arm, polite and casual and it left him cold.

The ballroom was full of shadows pretending to dance.Lucien drifted toward the VIP circle — a group of old, ruthless men in black suits and darker intentions. She didn't follow immediately,instead, she stood at the edge of the marble platform, watching the couples twirl, glass of champagne in hand and that's when she felt it, the eyes on her.

From across the room, a man approached,younger than most here.He was tall and had a bronze skin,his hair slicked back, too perfect and he had the kind of smile that had drawn blood before.

"Lucien's wife," he said smoothly. "You don't look like what we expected."

"I get that a lot."Aria replied.

"Cristiano Romero," he introduced himself, lifting her hand without asking and brushing his lips against it. "Nice to meet you."

"My pleasure,"

Cristiano chuckled, eyes drifting far too low. "Moretti has good taste."

She didn't respond because she didn't have to and because Lucien appeared at her side a moment later,silent as a storm cloud.

Cristiano straightened instantly."Lucien," he said, as if they were friends. "You never told us your bride was this…"Lucien's hand slipped around Aria's waist.Possessive,unmistakable.Cristiano's smile twitched.

Lucien's voice dropped an octave. "Finish that sentence, and I'll finish your career."Cristiano lifted both hands. "Easy, my friend.""I'm not your friend," Lucien said coolly. "And she's not your subject."Aria said nothing but she felt the storm brewing beneath his skin.He led her away without another word.

Lucien shouldn't have cared.He'd brought her here to be seen, for her to be admired and to make them all shut up and stare but he hadn't expected that.

He hadn't expected Cristiano, that arrogant, smug, pampered brat barely leashed to undress her with his eyes.He hadn't expected Aria to let it happen.No. That wasn't fair.She hadn't encouraged it but she hadn't needed him, either.She stood on her own, regal and untouchable and it made him furious because he wanted that to be his and not theirs.

They stood at the edge of the upper balcony now, overlooking the dance floor below. The string quartet swelled into a new rhythm. People watched from a distance, murmuring about them.Lucien hadn't spoken since they left Cristiano behind.He just stood there, arms folded, jaw tense.

"You're angry," she said softly."No," he replied, voice clipped. "I'm just territorial."

She sipped her champagne, keeping her tone even. "You invited me into this world and this is how it works."

"I didn't expect men like him to try you that fast."Lucien said.She looked up at him.

"I can handle myself."Lucien's eyes met hers which was hard and unreadable.

"That's not the point."

"Then what is?"Aria asked.He stepped closer,his voice dropped lower, just for her.

"You're mine tonight, Aria. I didn't bring you here to be seen by other men."

"Then what did you bring me for?"

He didn't answer,not with words,only silence,hot, sharp, burning behind his eyes.

He should walk away but he didn't.He leaned in closer than he should've. His hand came to rest at her hip, just for a second."I brought you to remind them what they can't touch."She stared up at him, heart pounding."And what about you, Lucien?" she asked quietly. "Can you?"

He froze,every wall inside him flinched but his eyes didn't leave hers.He let that question sit between her breath and his control before finally pulling back, just slightly.

"Not here," he said darkly.

Not tonight.