Chapter 4
"I'm not saying this just to piss you off. Honestly, even the blood on Mr. Reed's hands is way cleaner than your fake heart," Serena snapped.
"You..." Adrian was shaking all over, so angry he could barely get the words out.
"Mr. Reed," Serena said, turning to him and reaching up to hook her fingers around his tie, pulling him down so he had to look at her. "Do you still mean what you said earlier?"
Lucas's pupils contracted sharply, the possessiveness he'd kept bottled up for years threatening to swallow Serena whole.
His Adam's apple bobbed, his voice rough as sandpaper. "Serena, you better think this through. Once you step into my car, you're mine for life. The only way you'll ever leave is in a coffin."
Serena smirked. "I've already died once. That doesn't scare me anymore."
Serena decisively swung open the door of the black bulletproof Rolls-Royce and climbed inside without hesitation.
As the door slammed shut, Adrian's contorted, rage-filled face was completely shut out, left staring helplessly from outside the window.
*****
Inside the car, it was dead silent.
The windows were laminated with the highest-grade bulletproof film; no one outside could see in, but from inside, Serena could clearly see Adrian pounding on the glass like a madman.
"Serena, get out here! Serena!" Adrian shouted, his voice desperate and wild.
Lucas lounged in the leather seat, lighting up a cigarette with a careless flick. The sharp tang of nicotine seeped through the cramped car as he turned, eyeing Serena in the intermittent glow from his cigarette.
"Regret it?" he asked, blowing out smoke, his tone dripping with mockery.
"I regret not giving him those two slaps sooner," Serena said coolly, her gaze locked on Adrian's blurred silhouette outside the window.
Lucas suddenly let out a low laugh, the sound oddly piercing through the tense silence in the car. He leaned in, trapping Serena between the seat and his arms.
"Serena, you've changed," he murmured, breathing in the subtle scent at her neck, the fragrance he'd longed for over ten years. "You used to be like a delicate flower, too fragile for the wind. Now... you're more like a dagger, sharp and ready to cut."
Serena didn't back down, locking eyes with him. "How am I supposed to survive in a city that chews people up and spits them out if I don't have some thorns? Mr. Reed, you wanted to know who I'd pick, right?"
Her slender fingers slid up his chest, stopping right over his heart.
"I choose you. As long as you help me reclaim the Kent family and make the Kelsen family ruined, broken, and wiped out," she said.
Lucas gripped her hand so hard it was as if he meant to crush her bones.
"Deal," he said.
He suddenly dipped his head, stopping just an inch from her lips, his voice twisted with possessive madness.
"But Serena, you better remember this. Your eyes are only for me now. If I ever catch you even glancing at Adrian again... I'll rip his eyes out with my own hands, then lock you up in Reed Manor so you'll never see daylight again."
Serena let her eyes flutter shut and boldly pressed her lips to the corner of his mouth, making the first move without hesitation.
"Couldn't ask for more," she said.
In her last life, she'd spent years begging for status and protection. But this time, she was done pleading. She'd join forces with this beast and drag every last enemy down to hell with them.
Early morning sunlight cut through the mist, lighting up the gold-lettered sign of Cloudmere City's marriage registration office.
Serena slipped into a plain white dress, her dark hair falling over her shoulders, making her look cool and distant, like she didn't belong in this world. She glanced at her watch; it was barely eight o'clock.
The screech of brakes sliced through the morning calm.
Dozens of black Hummers spread out in formation, and at the center, a Rolls-Royce with the plate "Cloudmere A 66666" came to a perfect stop. Lucas stepped out, dressed in a midnight-black suit, his gaze cold enough to freeze the air. In his right hand, he held a marriage certificate, strangely out of place against his intimidating presence.
He strode up to Serena, and the overwhelming pressure of his presence enveloped her.
"Ms. Kent, you can still change your mind," Lucas said, his gaze flickering with both self-deprecation and possessive intensity. "Once you step inside, there's no turning back. Forget about divorce; it's off the table for good."
Serena looked up, a bold and radiant smile curving her lips, one she'd never dared to wear in her past life.
"Mr. Reed, cut the crap. I don't want that lunatic Adrian showing up and stinking up the place," she said.
Lucas's gaze turned cold. He grabbed her hand and marched inside, not giving her a chance to hesitate.
*****
Fifteen minutes later.
Two fresh marriage certificates were handed to Serena.
In the photo, Lucas still looked icy and hard-edged, but if you looked close, there was a nervous tightness in those eyes, eyes that had always been all steel and danger.
Serena was still looking over the marriage certificates when the door behind her burst open.
"Serena! You're not allowed to get that certificate!"