* Julliane *
"I am trying to speak to you in a calm manner, Julliane, but you are really testing my patience. Don't make me lose control of myself, or you're going to regret it."
His voice, though low, trembled with restrained fury. There was a threat in his tone, clear and cold. This was the Lance I remembered, the impatient, angry man who seemed to carry hatred like a badge of honor whenever I was around. Not the kind and gentle, carefully poised version he presented moments ago. That side of him was a mask, and it had slipped.
My stomach twisted in knots, but I tried not to show it. I couldn't let him see the way his words still made me feel small.
"Your mother needs you, Jullie. And Penny needs you too. More than ever now that Marriane is still in a state of shock and trauma."
My
