160 A Desperate, Vile Demand
160 A Desperate, Vile Demand
Hazel’s POV 1
The familiar scent of expensive whiskey hit me before Alistair even spoke. His eyes were bloodshot, his usually pristine appearance disheveled. He’d been drinking- heavily.
“You’re drunk,” I said, keeping my voice steady despite the alarm bells ringing in my head.
Alistair leaned against my doorframe with false casualness. “Not drunk enough to forget how stubborn you are.”
I fumbled with my keys, weighing my options. “It’s late. Go home, Alistair.”
“Not until we talk.” He blocked my path to the door.
I remembered the last time he’d shown up drunk. That night had ended with a broken vase and a cut on my arm from the shattered glass he’d knocked over in his rage. I wasn’t eager for a repeat performance.
“Last time you were drunk around me, I needed four stitches,” I reminded him coldly. “Do you really want to risk that again?”
His face softened immediately. “You still care about what happens to me.”
The delusion was almost laughable. “I care about not having blood on my carpet.”
“You don’t mean that,” he insisted, moving closer. “I know you, Hazel. Better than anyone. Better than Sinclair ever could.”
The mention of Sebastian’s name on his lips made my jaw clench. “Don’t.”
“Why? Because I’m right?” His voice took on a desperate edge. “Whatever you feel for him is temporary. A rebound. Deep down, you still love me.”
I couldn’t help the harsh laugh that escaped me. “Love you? After what you did?”
“I made a mistake!” He pounded his fist against the wall beside my head. “One mistake in six years!”
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“Marrying my stepsister wasn’t a mistake. It was a choice. A series of choices, made day after day.” I kept my voice level, refusing to show fear despite my racing heart.
“Now move aside.”
“You’ve been with him, haven’t you?” Alistair’s voice dropped to a dangerous whisper.
“Sinclair.”
I stayed silent, not willing to drag Sebastian’s name through the mud of this
confrontation.
Alistair took my silence as confirmation, his face twisting with jealousy. “So the ice queen finally melts for someone. Tell me, does he love you back? Or are you just another conquest?”
His words stirred up my own insecurities, but I refused to let him see them. Sebastian’s feelings for me were none of Alistair’s business.
“My relationship with Sebastian is not up for discussion.” I straightened my shoulders. “What is up for discussion is our divorce. I’ve filed the paperwork twice now. First at the civil affairs bureau, which you contested. Now I’m also suing through the courts.”
Alistair’s eyes widened slightly. “Two-pronged approach? Clever.”
“It’s not about being clever. It’s about being thorough.” I met his gaze directly. “One way or another, this marriage is ending, Alistair.”
“You really want to be free of me that badly?” The hurt in his voice might have moved me once. Not anymore.
“Yes.”
The single word hung in the air between us. I watched as his expression shifted from wounded to calculating.
“What if I refuse to sign?” he challenged. “What if I fight this every step of the way?”
“Then you’ll waste both our time and money. The outcome will be the same.”
He moved closer, his breath hot on my face. “Not if I prove you’re still in love with me.”
“I’m not.”
“Prove it.” His hand shot out suddenly, grabbing my wrist.
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I tried to pull away, but his grip tightened painfully. “Let go of me.”
Instead, he backed me against the wall, his other hand coming up to trap me. The
elevator was too far to reach, and my neighbors were either out or asleep. Fear gripped my chest, but I refused to show it.
“Alistair, you’re hurting me.”
“I’m hurting?” His laugh was bitter. “You’re destroying me, Hazel. Everything I had- everything I thought I wanted-it means nothing without you.”
“That’s not my problem.” I kept my voice firm despite the tremor threatening to break through.
His face darkened. “Is that all I am to you now? A problem to solve?”
“You’re an obstacle,” I corrected him. “One I intend to remove from my life permanently.”
Something dangerous flashed in his eyes then. The charming mask he usually wore slipped completely, revealing the ugly truth beneath. His grip on my wrist tightened further as he leaned in close, his body pinning mine against the wall.
“You want a divorce?” His lips brushed against my ear, his voice dropping to a menacing whisper. “Fine… at least let me sleep with you once.”
Horror washed over me at his words, my body going rigid with shock. This wasn’t just about control anymore. This was violation. In his twisted mind, he thought he had a right to my body-one last time.
His free hand moved to my waist, fingers digging into my hip. I could feel the desperation, the entitlement radiating from him. The man I once thought I loved was gone, replaced by this monster who saw me as property to be claimed.
I was trapped between the wall and his body, his alcohol-fueled strength overpowering mine. My apartment door-my safety-was just steps away but might as well have been miles.
As Alistair’s hand began to slide upward, panic surged through me. I had seconds to react before this situation spiraled completely out of my control.
