Julian’s words, ugly and venomous, hung in the air between us. "Shameless." The word was a slap in the face, but the rage burning inside me was a shield. I was done being his victim.
I lifted my chin, my eyes meeting his feral gaze without flinching. "The only shameless person in this room is you, Julian. Now get out of my apartment before I start screaming."
For a second, he looked genuinely shocked, as if he couldn't comprehend my defiance. Then, his face contorted into a mask of pure fury.
"You don't get to talk to me like that," he snarled. He lunged forward, not to hit me, but to shove me, hard. "You need to be taught a lesson—"
My feet tangled in the corner of a rug as I stumbled backward. Time seemed to slow down, my body tilting, the hard edge of the coffee table rushing up to meet me. I closed my eyes, bracing for the impact.
It never came.
