Loving Lucian ✅

Chapter Twenty Three

Peyton James

I still smiled like an idiot over what he had said. That I was the one for him. I didn't expect something like that to come from him, and the fact that he told me about his heartbreak shocked me even more. And it also made me feel closer to him. Lucian did believe in love, he was just scared to actually fall in love because he got burned.

We only had stayed out for an hour before we had to go back inside. It was nearly ten o'clock and it was almost time for people to start leaving. We went back because his father was looking for him. Lucian said that he should talk to him alone so I went to the bar. And Nina was still there. She noticed me and turned her head.

"So you're the girl from the magazine who's all over Lucian?" She was still quite bitter, and I rubbed my forefinger around the rim of my glass of wine.

"I wouldn't put it that way but yes, I am. I know who you are. You burned my boyfriend."

"You don't know what the hell you're talking about--"

"Actually, I do." I looked at her. She was very curvy, and she was beautiful. "He told me everything, because he trusts me enough not to hurt him."

"Hey, at least I really do love him!" She scoffed at me.

"If you did, you wouldn't have done that to him. I love him more, and I'll love him better." I scowled at her, not having any thought over what I was saying. Then my brain caught up with my mouth.

Woah.

I blinked. What the hell? I took a large last sip of wine before going to find him. He wasn't where I left him. I gripped the front of my dress and held it up a little as I sped my pace so I wouldn't trip. Then I ran into Lucas, whose hands grasped my waist before I could fall into him.

"Woah, roadrunner. What's the problem, why're you running?" He chuckled, getting me steady on my feet.

"I'll tell you later, where's Lucian?" I asked.

"Uh, near the front door waiting for you. He sent me to get you." I looked at the door and panicked when I saw Nina heading toward him.

"Okay, great, thanks." I kissed his cheek and continued toward him before Nina could get to him.

He looked at me with alarm at my wild state as I approached him. "What's wrong, why are you running?"

"I'm just ready to go, my feet hurt."

"Well my feet would hurt too if I were running around like that." He chuckled at my weirdness and grabbed my hand. "Let's go."

We headed out, and the paparazzi went up in clamor again. They somehow saw when Lucian was with Nina and when he ran after me earlier and were asking nonstop questions about her, him, and me. He just said it was a misunderstanding and left it at that. Johannes sat in the car in wait and when we got in the car, he drove off. He asked me numerously about my okay-ness but I was still shaken up in thought.

"Are you sure you're okay? You're acting awfully strange. Like you've seen a ghost." He asked for the third time. I was silent and hadn't spoke at all since we left. "It isn't like you to not talk to me."

"I'm fine." I said for the third time in the same dazed and pondering tone.

"Peyton, tell me what's bothering you, seriously. I don't want to ask you again." He tugged at my hand to make me look at him.