Page 61 of Lucas

“Ben, this is my wife, Ava. Darling, meet Benjamin Aster, CEO of Aster Group,” I bite out through a forced smile.

Ava extends a graceful hand, but instead of shaking it, the bastard brings it to his lips, holding her fingers to his mouth a beat too long.

I clench my teeth.

“Yes, I heard you got married.” His gaze lingers on Ava, hot and assessing. “I must say, you’ve done well for yourself.”

My blood pressure spikes. The thought of his hands on her makes me want to commit violence.

“Can I steal you for a moment? I’ve been meaning to pickyour brain about the Sunset deal.” Though he addresses me, his focus remains on my wife.

Asshole.

I paste on a sharp smile. “Of course. Forgive me, darling.” I press a quick, hard kiss to Ava’s cheek before allowing Benjamin to lead me toward the bar.

While he continues to talk about making money and how much of the market they control, I keep an eye on Ava, observing as she drinks her champagne and mingles with others. It takes less than a minute for a flock of eager men to descend, all clamoring for her attention.

She laughs at something one of them says, tipping her head back to expose the elegant column of her throat. The gesture looks flirtatious.

Something dark and possessive unfurls in my chest.

She doesn’t laugh like that with me. Uninhibited. Real.

A man moves into her space, resting a palm on the small of her back as he bends to murmur in her ear. Ava stiffens but doesn’t shrug him off.

“Excuse me a moment, Ben.” I don’t wait for a reply before abandoning my drink and crossing the ballroom in a few quick strides.

“Hello.” My voice could cut glass as I shoulder my way between Ava and her admirer, dislodging his hand from her body and replacing it with my own. “I don’t believe we’ve been introduced. I’m Lucas, Ava’s husband. And you are?”

The man takes an uneasy step back, looking flustered. “Jeffrey. Jeffrey Hanover. I was just saying how lovely your wife looks this evening.”

“Yes, she does, doesn’t she? I’m a very lucky man.” I curve my fingers into Ava’s hip, pulling her flush againstmy side in a blatant show of ownership. Her body remains stiff and unyielding against mine. “Now, if you’ll excuse us.”

Without waiting for a response, I steer Ava away, every muscle coiled tight with barely restrained aggression.

The instant we’re alone, she wrenches out of my hold and whirls to face me, green eyes spitting emerald fireworks.

“What the hell was that?” she whispers, her tone harsh and fists clenched at her sides. A rosy flush stains her cheeks, though from anger or champagne, I can’t be sure.

“That was me stopping that old bastard from drooling on your tits.”

“Oh, please. We were having a nice conversation. Not that it’s any of your business.”

“I’m your husband. That makes it my business.” The words taste bitter and false, even to my ears. We both know this marriage isn’t real. Still, that doesn’t stop the clawing, irrational thing inside me from wanting to grab her and snarl “mine” for all the world to hear. “He’s a man. I promise you, he only had one thing on his mind.”

“You think that way because you’re like that, only interested in women for one thing. Not everyone is like that.” Her eyes blaze.

“Yeah, right. Keep believing in fairies and pixie dust,” I say before leaving to return to my conversation with Ben.

I try to listen to his explanations about the project and why Valeur should submit a bid, but I can’t concentrate. Not when it seems every man in the room has decided to try his luck with my wife.

She may not really be my wife, but they don’t know that, and yet, they have no problem making a move while I’m inthe room. I make a mental note of the names of the people who seem a little too friendly.

Eventually, they’ll want something from Valeur, and they’ll find out my memory is long-lasting.

“Email me all the details, okay, man? I’ll look it over at the office.” I clap Ben on the shoulder and abandon the conversation.

Ava leans against a side wall, holding a glass of champagne, and a man stands in front of her. Close. Too close. Just like I stood when I pressed her against the mirror in the gym.