My Stepbrother Wants Me-Chapter 197: I Love You

Julian’s POV

All I wanted was the warmth of Catherine’s body against mine.

My tongue moved into hers, prying her lips to open further and take all my kisses. My hands were tangled in her hair, pulling her closer as if I could physically absorb her presence. I was pouring everything into that contact; my rage, my fear, my protectiveness. Catherine let out a small, muffled sound against my lips, her hands coming up to my chest. For a second, I felt her pull back, her head turning slightly to break the connection. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Julian, wait," she whispered, her voice trembling. "What happened in Lucy’s room? You have to tell me—"

I didn’t let her finish. I ignored the question, my mind refusing to break this moment. I just wanted to be hers. I reached down, my arms hooking under her legs, and lifted her off the floor.

"Julian!" she gasped, her hands grabbing my shoulders for balance.

I didn’t stop. I carried her a few steps to the bed, my eyes locked on hers. My eyes rested on her face, taking in the confusion and the raw concern etched into her features. All I felt was a strong surge of possessiveness.

"Stop talking," my voice thick and low. "All I want is to fuck you right now."

I laid her back against the pillows, the mattress dipping under our combined weight. I didn’t give her another moment to protest. I crashed my lips onto hers again, my body pinning hers down. My hands were moving over her, frantic and demanding, seeking out the comfort only she could provide.

For a moment, she met my intensity, her fingers digging into my back. But suddenly, her resistance grew and her hands moved from my neck to my shoulders, pushing against me with a firm strength.

"Julian, stop," she said, her voice louder this time, cutting through the haze in my head.

I pulled back, hovering inches above her. My chest was heaving, my pulse still racing from the adrenaline of the confrontation in the other wing. Catherine was breathless, her lips swollen from the kiss, but her eyes were sharp and focused. She sat up, pushing her hair back from her face, and looked at me with a gaze that stripped away every lie I was trying to tell myself.

"Hey, look at me," she commanded.

I did. I looked at her, and she reached out, her fingers catching my chin and turning my face toward the light. She studied me for a long time, her eyes scanning me.

"I know you well enough," she said softly, her voice filled with certainty. "I believe I know you better than anyone in this house. I know you didn’t just go into Lucy’s room without doing anything. I could see it the moment you walked down that corridor."

I looked away, staring at the window. I didn’t want to admit it but she wasn’t going to let it go. She moved closer, her hand resting on my arm.

"What did you do to her?" she asked again. "Tell me the truth."

I let out a long breath, the tension finally snapping. The words came out before I could stop them, raw and ugly.

"I wanted to kill her," I admitted, my voice a dull monotone. "Catherine, I laid hands on her. I pinned her against the wall. I wanted her to feel exactly how it felt for Tessa. I wanted her to know that she isn’t untouchable."

Catherine flinched as if I had struck her. She pulled her hand back, her eyes widening in genuine horror. She wasn’t horrified for Lucy; we both knew what that woman deserved. She was horrified for me. She was horrified at the thought of what I had been capable of in that moment of blind fury.

"Julian, how could you?" she whispered. "We had a plan. We all agreed to take things slow. Why the hell did you go there to attack her? Do you have any idea how much danger you could have put yourself in if you ended up killing her?"

"I couldn’t just sit here," I snapped, standing up and pacing the small space between the bed and the window. "I couldn’t listen to her laughing or acting like she won. She almost killed a girl, Catherine. She almost killed Ethan’s baby. I am tired of letting her have control over us! Over me!"

"It doesn’t matter!" Catherine stood up too, her voice rising in frustration. "You can’t just assault people and expect no consequences. Lucy could tell this to Richard. She could have you arrested. She could use this to destroy the little opportunity we want to use to get her. What if she goes to tell Richard? Did you not stop think of any of this?"

"You don’t need to worry, especially about Richard," I said, a bitter laugh escaping my throat. I stopped pacing and looked at her. "I think he already knows. He walked into the room while she was still on the floor."

Catherine’s face went pale. Her eyes widened and she looked like she was about to faint. "He what? He— he saw you? Richard saw you touch her?"

"No," I corrected, shaking my head. "He walked in just after I let go. She was on the floor, gasping for air, clutching her throat. The marks were right there, plain as day. Anyone with half a brain could tell what had happened."

"Why the hell are you speaking of this with so much confidence?"

She didn’t let me answer, she walked closer to me. "And what did Richard do?" She demanded, her voice shaking. "Did he say anything?"

"That’s the thing," I said, stepping closer to her. "He didn’t. He had this... weird reaction. He looked frightened, Catherine. Not for Lucy, but for himself. He looked guilty, like he had been caught doing something he shouldn’t have been doing. He was coming to her room at that hour to ask for ’documents’ she had received on his behalf. He over-explained it before I even asked."

Catherine frowned, her analytical mind already shifting gears. "Documents? Probably the one Lucy said she received for him. Have any idea what’s in the documents?"

"No, they didn’t say," I replied. "That’s not the point though. Richard acted weird... he was terrified that I had seen him. He didn’t even care that Lucy was half-dead on the floor. He just told her to get up and bring the papers to his study within the hour."

Catherine sat back down on the edge of the bed, her brow furrowed in deep thought. "That doesn’t make sense. Unless... Julian, do you think Lucy is holding something over his head? Maybe she isn’t just a political asset. Maybe she’s the one with the leverage. That would explain why he’s so defensive of her, even when she’s clearly a liability."

"It’s possible," I said. "If she’s blackmailing him, then my father is even more compromised than we thought."

"This is getting out of control," Catherine whispered. "If they are both hiding secrets that big, we’re all going to get caught in the crossfire when it eventually blows up."

She was still trying to wrap her head around the scale of the mess we were in. I could see the wheels turning, the fear and the exhaustion competing for space in her eyes. I couldn’t stand to see her like that, so small and worried because of the world she was dragged into.

I moved toward her and took her face in my hands, my thumbs stroking her cheekbones. I forced her to raise her head and look at me.

"Catherine, listen to me," I said with a firm voice. "Lucy won’t touch you again. She won’t speak your name, and she won’t go near your mother or your friends. I made the price too high for her. I warned her exactly what would happen if she dared to cross that line again. She’s terrified of me now, and that’s exactly where I want her."

Catherine blinked, probably taken aback by the intensity in my voice. Her gaze searched mine, and I noticed how she kept on swallowing hard.

"You don’t need to do this for me, Jules. I don’t want you to become a monster just to keep me safe," she said softly and my heart leaped with joy because of her words which showed she cared for me.

"I’d become anything for you," I replied. I felt the weight of the confession sitting in my throat. I didn’t want to hide it anymore. Catherine was the most important person to me. "I love you, Catherine Brown."

The words hung in the air, heavy and undeniable. It was the first time I had said them out loud, and the silence that followed felt like it lasted an eternity. Catherine didn’t move or speak. She just looked at me with unreadable eyes.

A cold knot of sadness began to form in my stomach. I had expected... something. A smile, a reciprocal confession, or even a rejection. But all I got was silence.