Tempted By my Evil Lycan Stepbrother novel Chapter 93

Chapter 1: Beautiful In White

Ezra’s POV

I stopped walking and turned back to her slowly.

Viola was still standing where I had left her, one hand wrapped around the wrist I’d grabbed earlier. Her expression looked at ease, but I could still see the tension underneath it. She was nervous.

I looked at her and said, “What exactly are you implying?

She smiled in that polished, harmless way of hers. “I’m simply pointing out things I’ve noticed. The first time I saw you and Riley together, I knew something was off.”

I said nothing.

That only encouraged her.

“The way she looks at you,” Viola went on, “the way you look at her… it’s not brotherly. Not even close.”

A faint breeze moved through the ivy behind her, carrying the scent of tea roses and fresh-cut grass. Somewhere farther back in the garden, I could hear Riley’s mother laughing too loudly at something under the canopy. The whole scene felt soft and elegant and civilized.

Viola’s words were none of those things.

She tilted her head and lowered her voice just slightly. “It’s forbidden, Ezra. You know that. If King Soren ever found out, he’d lose his mind. What he’d do to you? Or worse-what he’d do to Riley? So if you want your little secret to stay buried, you should probably keep me here.”

I looked at her. Then I almost laughed.

Very few people were stupid enough to threaten me to my face. Even fewer did it while pretending they were being clever.

I started toward her.

She immediately stepped back. But I didn’t stop. I cornered her till her smile faltered completely.

“You’re making a mistake,” I said.

Viola tried to hold her ground. “Am I?”

“Yes.”

r

I stopped in front of her and put my hand around her throat. With just enough force to let her feel exactly how easily I could take

her life.

Her breath caught in her throat. Her fingers flew to my wrist, and all that polished confidence vanished from her face at once. That’s great because I was getting very tired of people thinking silk manners and pretty smiles could protect them from

consequences.

I leaned closer and kept my voice low.

“I don’t respond well to threats,” I said. “And if you think knowing one dangerous thing about me gives you leverage, then you’re not nearly as smart as you think you are.”

Her pulse was racing under my hand.

She swallowed hard, trying to breathe carefully now. “Ezra…”

“I could kill you right here,” I lifted the corner of my mouth and watched her eyes widen, “and the only thing anyone would ask is what you did to deserve it.”

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That Tina!! gui through to fier

Panic flickered across herface, she understood now that this wasn’t a game, and that I wasn’t bluffing.

Then, because fear makes people-desperate, she tried another angle.

“Or,” she said quickly, “I could help you.”

I loosened my grip slightly for her to breathe properly, but I didn’t take my hand away. “How?”

She rushed on. “I could work with you. Be your real girlfriend in public. A proper cover. If people see us together often enough, no one will question anything between you and Riley.”

I stared at her.

Well, I could see what she was trying to do. She had realized the secret was dangerous enough to get her killed, and now she was scrambling to make herself useful. She’s smarter than most women I saw in court, I would give her at least that.

“I can protect you both,” she said. “If everyone believes you’re serious about me, no one will look too closely at Piley. And with her engagement happening at the same time, it would be even easier.”

That’s true. A public relationship did help.

And my father would be much less likely to question me if I kept a suitable girl on my arm and played the part properly.

But none of that changed the problem in front of me.

Viola had gone after Riley. That alone made her dangerous.

I let go of her throat and stepped back.

She took in a shaky breath, one hand still pressed to her neck, her eyes fixed on me like she was trying to figure out whether she’d managed to save herself.

I didn’t bother answering the offer directly. Let her sit on edge a bit longer.

Instead I said, “Leave Riley alone.”

Then I left her standing there and strode away.

I had chosen her because I knew she was the type of girls that Riley absolutely despised.

But now, somewhere along the way, the little game of pissing Riley off had stopped being fun.

She got herself hurt. Leon’s family was getting bolder. And most importantly, I realized she was actually stubborn enough to keep marching toward that wedding out of rage and pride and sheer refusal to back down.

I was done watching it happen.

She couldn’t marry him.

I went straight back to my room.

I poured myself a drink, knocked it back in one swallow, and rang for one of my men.

He arrived within minutes.

Dorian didn’t wear the palace crest, which was exactly why I trusted him.

I had been building my own circle of soldiers and informants for years, ever since my mother died and I understood that I would never be safe relying entirely on my father’s power. King Soren liked to call everything in this kingdom his. His money. His palace. His people. His son.

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Thanno interest in inheriting power from him.

I wanted my own.

So while everyone thought I was wasting ray youth drinking, fighting, and sleeping around, I had been gathering men who answered to me first.

Dorian was one of the best.

He stopped a few feet in front of my desk and bowed his head once. “Your Highness.”

I sat back in the chair and said, “I want you to do a research on Leon and his family.”

“What kind of information do you want?” he asked.

“Anything that can destroy them.” I leaned forward and set the empty glass down. “Financial weakness. Hidden debt. Illegitimate business. Family scandals. Affairs. Abuse. Dig deep.”

Dorian shrugged. “That should be easy enough. That’s not a very influential family.”

Yet Riley and her mother still saw that bastard as some golden bachelors. “Start digging today.”

“Of course.”

Then he was gone.

I leaned back again and stared at the closed door for a long moment.

For the first time in days, I felt relieved.

Because I was finally doing what I should have done from the beginning-I was going to destroy that son of a bitch.

I had spent too much time pretending I didn’t care who Riley stood beside.

That ends now.

The truth was simple.

Riley was mine. The bond said so.

And anyone who tried to take what was mine would learn exactly how ugly I could be.

Leon had chosen the wrong woman.

And his family was going to pay for it.

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Riley’s POV

From that day on, my life turned into a parade of tedious little humiliations.

Leon’s mother took over my days. Breakfast was followed by endless lessons. She had opinions about everything-how I sat, how I spoke, how long I should hold eye contact with noblemen, how slowly to descend a staircase.

It was boring in the most vicious way.

None of it bruised the body the way that glass training had, but by the end of each session I still felt flayed. I had never realized how exhausting it could be to have every breath treated like a flaw.

At least Viola stopped coming. Maybe she lost interest in torturing me.

Still, it was impossible to forget what was waiting at the end of all this.

Mendap

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papery day the plan – bent til aftand that wold Vabrics arrived Guest lists were revised Flower samples came and went. The maids whispered deed Table settings and invitations and jewels while helping me dress.

Then came the first gown filing

The dress was waiting for me in one of the palace fitting rooms when I arrived.

1 geopend when I stepped into the room and saw it

It was so goddamn beautiful

Layers of white silk spilled from the mannequin in soft light catching folds. Tiny beads shimmered across the bodice like frost. The train was long enough to trail across the polished floor in a pale river. Whoever had designed it understood exactly how to make a woman look like she belonged in a dream.

“Do you like it, Lady Riley?” the designer asked with proud smile.

“Well yeah It’s gorgeous,”

I stepped closer before I could stop myself and let my fingers brush over the fabric.

It was cool and smooth.

A strange wave of emotion rose in me so suddenly it almost made my throat ache.

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