Bella's pulse hammered so hard she could feel it in her throat.
What if Lucian is right?
The thought was a crack in her reality, thin at first, then widening the longer it sat there. Bella hated it instantly. Hated the way it made her look at Cassie's hand on her arm and wonder if the grip was a little too firm. Hated the way it made Alan's smile look less like love and more like appetite.
Bella forced the thought down.
Cassie was her friend.
Alan was her future.
Lucian was a mistake.
That was the story. That had always been the story.
Bella's eyes flicked to Lucian's hand at her back. It wasn't squeezing. It wasn't rough. It was just… there. A steady pressure that said: stay with me.
Bella turned slightly, meeting his gaze.
His eyes were dark and unwavering. No anger. No jealousy. Only that warning again, like he could already see the moment where things would go wrong and he was trying to hold it off with sheer will.
Bella hated that it made her hesitate.
Alan noticed the hesitation.
His smile sharpened. "Bella," he said softly, "are you really going to let him speak for you?"
Cassie's nails pressed a fraction harder through Bella's sleeve. "Bells," Cassie whispered, still smiling, "it's one conversation. Don't make it dramatic."
Don't make it dramatic.
Cassie's favorite phrase.
It always landed in Bella's chest like a restraint. Like Bella's emotions were something to apologize for. Like intensity was a flaw and Cassie was the only one generous enough to tolerate it.
Bella inhaled, shallow.
Alan held out his hand slightly, palm up, casual as if inviting Bella to a dance.
"Come on," Alan murmured. "Five minutes. That's all."
Lucian's voice cut in, low and calm. "No."
Alan's eyes flicked to Lucian. "You don't get to decide that."
Lucian's gaze didn't move. "I do."
A small sound of laughter rose from someone nearby—nervous, curious. A few heads turned. The kind of attention that spread like fire in rooms like this.
Cassie's smile turned brighter as if she enjoyed the tension. "Guys," she said lightly, "please. Not here."
Bella's cheeks heated.
Not here meant not in public.
Not where people could see Bella being tugged between men like she was a prize.
Bella's stomach twisted with humiliation and anger.
"Stop," Bella snapped, louder than she meant to.
All three of them paused.
Bella exhaled hard. "Stop talking about me like I'm not standing here."
Cassie's eyes widened, instantly soft. "Bells…"
Alan's smile turned indulgent. "Okay. Then say it."
Lucian's hand at Bella's back tightened a fraction, not to hurt—just a reminder.
Bella's throat tightened.
She wanted to say yes to Alan. She wanted to go with him because Cassie was watching, because the whole room felt like it was watching, because Bella needed to prove this marriage wasn't real.
But Lucian's rules echoed in her head.
Don't disappear.
Don't drink anything you didn't watch being made.
Don't let anyone pull you into a room alone.
Like he expected danger.
Like he knew something.
Bella's voice came out strained. "We can talk here."
Alan's smile faltered. "Here?"
Bella nodded, forcing steadiness. "If it's just a conversation."
Alan stared at her for a beat, then laughed softly like she'd said something cute. "Bella… you're not serious."
Cassie leaned in, whispering, "He's embarrassed, Bells. Don't push too hard."
Bella's chest tightened again. Cassie always managed to translate men for her. Always framed Bella's instincts as too much.
Bella forced her spine straight. "I'm serious."
Alan's smile thinned.
His gaze moved over Bella's face slowly, assessing. Then he leaned in, voice dropping low enough that it felt private anyway.
"Is he hurting you?" Alan asked.
Bella blinked. "What?"
Alan's eyes stayed on hers. "Because if he is, I'll end it."
End it.
The words lit something up inside Bella, hot and desperate. For a second she almost believed him. Almost saw herself stepping out of Lucian's shadow and back into Alan's world where everything felt brighter.
Bella opened her mouth.
Lucian spoke first.
"She's not hurt," Lucian said calmly. "She's protected."
Alan's jaw tightened. "Protected from what, Lucian? From her own choices?"
Cassie laughed softly, again like it was fun. "Okay, stop. You two are going to start measuring—"
"Cassie," Lucian cut in.
Cassie turned to him, still smiling. "Yes?"
Lucian's eyes were flat. "Don't encourage this."
Cassie blinked innocently. "Encourage what?"
Lucian didn't answer. His gaze shifted to Bella again, and that was worse than any argument. It felt like he was trying to speak to her without words.
Bella's skin prickled.
She wanted to ask him what he was so afraid of.
She wanted to ask Cassie why her grip wouldn't loosen.
She wanted to ask Alan why his hand was still on Cassie's waist while he asked Bella if she was hurt.
Her mind felt loud.
"Bells," Cassie murmured, voice warm, "let's go to the powder room for a second. You're overwhelmed."
Bella's stomach dipped.
Powder room meant private.
Bella almost said yes out of habit—Cassie always took her away when she got overwhelmed. Cassie always knew when Bella was about to crack.
Then Lucian's rule struck again.
Don't let anyone pull you into a room alone.
Bella hesitated.
Cassie's smile didn't change, but her fingers tightened again. "Come on. Just a second. You're shaking."
Bella realized she was.
Her hands were trembling slightly around the glass of sparkling water.
Bella swallowed and tried to pull her arm free gently. "I'm fine."
Cassie's eyes flashed—so fast Bella would've missed it if she hadn't been staring.
"Bella," Cassie said softly. "Don't do this here."
Don't do this here.
Not again.
Bella's chest tightened until it hurt.
Alan leaned closer, voice low, coaxing. "You don't have to stay with him, Bella."
Lucian's hand pressed at her back.
Cassie's grip held her arm.
Alan's gaze hooked her like a promise.
Bella stood between them and felt, for the first time, the terrifying truth of what Lucian might mean.
Cornered.
Not by walls.
By people.
Bella forced herself to breathe slowly.
Then she made the smallest decision that still felt like rebellion.
"I'm not going anywhere," Bella said, voice firming. "Not with you, Cassie. Not with you, Alan. If you want to talk to me, talk to me here."
Silence.
Cassie stared at her, smile still on but strained now, like the muscles were working too hard.
Alan's expression shifted—surprise first, then irritation.
Lucian didn't move, but Bella felt the pressure of his hand change slightly.
Looser.
Like he'd been waiting to see if she could stand still.
Cassie recovered first, because Cassie always recovered.
She giggled, light and pretty, and touched Bella's cheek like Bella was a child having a tantrum. "Okay," Cassie said sweetly. "Okay. No powder room. No drama. We'll talk here."
Bella's stomach twisted at the touch.
Cassie turned her bright smile on the small cluster of onlookers that had inevitably gathered. "Sorry," Cassie chirped. "Bella's been stressed. New marriage and all."
A few people laughed politely.
Bella's face heated with humiliation. Cassie had just narrated her again. Framed her again. Made the story Cassie's to tell.
Bella's hands curled at her sides.
Cassie kept going, voice soft but loud enough to carry. "You know how she is. She gets… intense. But she's my girl."
My girl.
Claiming.
Bella's throat tightened.
She glanced around the room and caught a few expressions—curiosity, amusement, pity.
And there it was again, faint and unwelcome: what if Lucian is right?
Bella's gaze snapped back to Cassie.
Cassie's eyes were shining, angelic.
But the shine didn't reach her gaze.
Cassie leaned closer, lips near Bella's ear, voice lowered so only Bella would hear.
"You're embarrassing yourself," Cassie whispered. "Fix your face."
Bella's stomach dropped.
The words weren't soft.
They were a command.
Bella stared at Cassie, stunned.
Cassie pulled back instantly, smile returning for the room as if she hadn't said anything at all.
Alan's hand squeezed Cassie's waist, and Cassie leaned into him like it was natural.
Bella's mind spun.
Fix your face.
Embarrassing yourself.
Cassie had never spoken to her like that. Not directly.
Not where Bella could feel the edge.
Unless…
Unless she had, and Bella had just never wanted to hear it.
Bella's breath came shallow.
Lucian's hand at her back tightened again, and this time it wasn't a warning.
It was steadying.
"Bella," Lucian murmured, barely audible, "we're leaving."
Bella blinked. "What?"
Lucian's gaze stayed on Cassie, then Alan, then back to Bella. "Now."
Cassie's smile faltered. "Leaving? Already?"
Alan's mouth curved. "Running away with your wife, Lucian?"
Cassie laughed lightly, but her eyes sharpened at Bella. "Bells, don't. Not when you just got here."
Bella's chest tightened.
She didn't want to leave. She wanted to talk. She wanted to fix this. She wanted Cassie to go back to being soft.
But Cassie's whisper still burned like a slap.
Lucian's voice dropped. "Bella. Move."
Bella hesitated one second too long.
Cassie's hand shot out and caught Bella's wrist.
Not gently this time.
Firm.
Possessive.
For a heartbeat, Cassie's smile disappeared completely, and Bella saw something raw in her face—anger, fear, something ugly.
Then Cassie smiled again, bright as ever.
"Bells," Cassie said sweetly, still holding her wrist, "you're not going anywhere without saying goodbye properly."
Bella's pulse slammed.
Because Cassie's grip didn't feel like friendship.
It felt like ownership.