Chapter Fourteen: Count Carefully.

Avery's POV.

The steam rising from the bath curled through the room, warm and heavy against my skin. I stood exactly where he had placed me, hands stiff at my sides, eyes fixed forward like he commanded.

Lucian moved.

The faint shift of his weight was the only warning before he stepped into the bath. Water lapped quietly against the sides of the tub as he lowered himself into it.

I forced my gaze to remain steady. Every instinct screamed at me to turn away. To look anywhere else.

But I didn’t move.

Seconds stretched, then his head tilted slightly.

“You smell like smoke.”

The words struck like a slap.

“I was in the kitchens,” I murmured. “They had me tending the ovens.”

“I did not ask for an explanation.”

My lips pressed together. My fingers clenched at my sides, nails biting into my palms.

The water shifted as he leaned back slightly. Then suddenly, his hand shot out of the water and closed around my wrist.

Before I could even react, he pulled. Hard.

The world lurched. Water swallowed me with a violent splash.

I stumbled forward into the bath, my soaked dress clinging instantly to my skin as water surged over the edges of the tub and spilled onto the floor.

My hands slammed against the edge to steady myself, breath coming fast. Lucian didn’t release my wrist. He barely seemed affected by the chaos at all.

“You will not stand in my room smelling like the stables.”

Water dripped from my hair into my eyes.

My heart pounded as I tried to push myself upright.

“Did I tell you to leave?”

The question stopped me instantly. His grip tightened just enough to make the warning clear.

I froze where I was, half kneeling in the water beside him. My soaked skirts floated around me.

Lucian slowly released my wrist. “Take those clothes off.”

My head snapped up. “What?”

His expression didn’t change. It rarely did. Even blind, the calm on his face felt more dangerous than anger ever could.

“I’ll leave instead.”

“Did I ask what you wanted?”

“I’m already in the bath,” I said, forcing steadiness into my voice. “The dress is soaked anyway.”

“You hesitate as though your refusal matters.”

Heat crawled up my neck. My pulse raced, my breath hitching with every movement of water around us.

“I am blind, Avery. I cannot see you even if you stand naked in front of me.”

“Why do you enjoy humiliating me? Why are you so heartless?” I cried, tears streaming down my cheeks

“If I wanted to humiliate you, you would already know it. You forget where you are. This is my room. My house.”

“Your room? Your house? I never wanted to be here. Let me go.”

He let out a low chuckle. “You had no choice?” he repeated quietly.

My chest rose and fell rapidly. “Yes,” I said hoarsely. “I was dragged here. None of this was my decision.”

“Just let me go.”

“You think leaving is that simple?” he asked.

“As if the world outside these walls is kinder.”

“I would rather face the world than stay here and be treated like this.”

Lucian said nothing for a long moment.

The water settled around us. Steam curled through the silence.

Then he leaned back slowly, completely unbothered, like my words had passed through him without leaving a mark.

"You speak of treatment," he said finally. "As though you have experienced the worst of me."

"You have not.”

My fingers curled into the soaked fabric of my dress.

“You keep saying that, like you expect me to believe you’re capable of worse.”

“You had water dumped on me like I was an animal. Then, ordered someone to slap me. Had me thrown into the kitchen to serve you.”

“And now you want me standing naked in front of you.”

“I’m not taking my clothes off.”

“You continue to speak as if this is a negotiation.”

“It should be. It's my body”

“It isn’t.”

My jaw clenched. A shiver ran down my spine despite the heat. “I hate you, Lucian.”

The name left my mouth before I could stop it. The air in the room changed instantly.

Lucian went completely still. The bathwater stopped moving around him.

Then he let out a low, dark laugh.

“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” His voice was quiet, but it carried through the steam like a blade through silk.

“I… I—” I stammered, wishing the floor would swallow me whole.

“No one dares call me by my name,” he said slowly, savoring each word. “And yet you just did.”

I froze, the words settling over me like a heavy stone.

“I should be angry,” he continued, voice dropping lower, teasingly calm. “I should punish you for it. But…” He let the pause stretch, drawing it out. “…I like it.”

My chest tightened. His calm, his control, the sheer weight of him in the room. It was suffocating.

“You like it?” I whispered, barely audible, heart hammering.

“Yes,” he replied. “I like it when you forget your place, Avery. I like it when you forget the rules, even for a heartbeat. So I would be able to remind you where you are.”

I shivered involuntarily, the water splashing slightly against my knees.

“Do not make me repeat myself. Remove the dress.”

I shook my head. “No. You cannot force me.”

“You will obey me eventually. The water shifted slightly as he leaned forward, coming closer to me.

“The only question is…” A beat of silence followed. “How painful you want the lesson to be.”

The room fell silent again. And Lucian’s voice came once more, quiet and final.

“I will give you five seconds. Count carefully, Avery.”

“Remove the dress… or I will do it for you.”