Liam listed, his thumb moving to her lips. "Lacking in courage. Lacking in wit. Lacking in the fire that makes a woman interesting."
He dropped his hand from her face as if he were bored with touching her.
"You are loyal, Jane," Liam said, stepping around her, walking toward his bed. "Like a dog is loyal. But do not mistake your obedience for value."
He sat on the edge of his massive bed. He looked back at her, standing alone in the center of the room, devastated by his words.
"Marissa," he said, saying the name like a prayer. "She is not lacking. She is full."
He lay back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling, his hands behind his head.
Jane's crimson dress was bunched in her fists, the expensive silk wrinkling under the pressure of her humiliation. She stood rooted to the spot, the echo of the carriages departing still vibrating in the air, but the echo of Liam's words was far louder in her mind.
"Lacking on everywhere."
