Beauty for the Beast Chapter 06

Beauty for the Beast Chapter 06

Vivian leaned over to look at the ID. “Damn. She used to be pretty. What the hell happened to her?”

her?

I clenched my jaw.

Julian’s thumb traced the laminated surface. The girl in the photo smiled back at him

skin, perfect face, not a trace of damage.

–

smooth

He looked up at me, and I couldn’t read a single thing on his face. Except this – he looked like a hunter who’d just cornered something he’d been tracking for years.

“Oh, look who it is.” Vivian’s voice dripped sugar. “Elena. Now why does that name ring a bell, Julian? Isn’t she your-”

“Leave us.” Julian’s voice went flat and cold.

Vivian’s smile vanished. “Julian, I was just trying to protect—”

“Leave us!”

The bodyguards scrambled out. Vivian shot me one last venomous look before she walked away.

Her heels clicked sharply against the marble as she went.

Then it was only us.

I held my breath. I didn’t dare move.

He slid my ID into the inner pocket of his jacket. “I’m keeping this.” His voice was quiet, final.

“You and I have a lot to settle.”

“Give it back!” I lunged for him, but he wheeled backward, and I caught nothing but air.

* “Your license says Elena. My missing fiancée’s name was Elena Rossi. Unless you can prove

otherwise, I’m holding this as collateral.”

“Julian, this is insane! You can’t just-”

“Can’t I?” He cut me off, his voice terrifyingly calm. “I can’t track down the woman who left me at the altar? I can’t hold the ID of someone who’s supposed to be a ghost?”

I had nothing. Because he was right. About all of it.

“Let’s go.” He wheeled toward the tarmac. “We’re leaving.”

“My ID…”

“You’ll get it back when the trip is over. As long as you behave.”

I watched him go, a cold knot tightening in my stomach.

I sank into the leather seat on the jet and tried to breathe.

A flight attendant approached, all smiles.

“Miss Rossi? Mr. Thorne wanted me to let you know-you’ll be acting as his personal assistant for the duration of the trip. His instructions are to be followed exactly.”

She hesitated, then added, “He also said that if you try to run, his men will hunt you down before you make it off the tarmac. He has your photo.”

Of course he would.

I stared out the window. My reflection floated over the tarmac like a ghost.

I left Julian because I loved him.

Because I believed he deserved a whole, undamaged woman. A real match. A future that didn’t come with someone like me attached to it.

I never imagined he’d become this. Cold. Calculating. A stranger wearing Julian’s face.

Something in my chest cracked, quiet and deep.