Chapter 46

Levi.

"If I had a wife like her, I wouldn't leave her for a second to the wiles of people like Carmen Strad," Rudolph sneered.

The words felt like a physical blow. The bastard. He dared to touch my wife. And Carmen?

I shot a glance at Kenya, searching her eyes for any sign of distress before refocusing my cold fury on Rudolph.

“You weren't there for her, and she had to fend off that vile woman all by herself. Putting up with her insults and her scorn,” Rudolph continued, his voice dripping with mock sympathy.

I felt a frown deepen on my face. What was he talking about? Carmen? I chided myself inwardly for my lack of sensitivity. I shouldn't have left her alone. I shouldn't have let my internal storm cloud my judgment. I had seen Carmen with Kenya earlier and assumed they were merely socializing, despite knowing Carmen’s caustic nature. I hadn't expected the woman to openly cause Kenya discomfort. I would deal with Carmen later, I decided. For now, I needed to get this interloper away from my wife—starting with the fingers that had been so casually draped over Kenya’s arm moments ago.

Drawing closer to Rudolph, my voice dropping to a low, lethal whisper that only the three of us could hear, I said:

"The next time I see you anywhere near my wife, or even breathing the same air as her, I will make sure your business empire collapses so spectacularly that even your shadow won't have a place to hide."

I heard Kenya gasp beside me. Good. She needed to understand that I was her only shield, and no other man had the right to cross that line.

"I'd like to see you try," Rudolph countered, putting on a brave face. “You don't scare me, Ruthford. My multi-million-dollar sportswear industry doesn't need your approval or your money.”

A dark, humorless grin tugged at my lips.

“You should be scared, Rudolph. Because I won't just stop at your business. I will dismantle everything you value, bit by bit, until the only thing left associated with your name is a cautionary tale of what happens when you touch what belongs to me.”

My words, though delivered with a calm exterior, carried a weight that finally rattled him. I saw the flicker of genuine fear in his eyes. He knew my reputation; he knew that when Levi Ruthford made a threat, it was already a finished reality.

Rudolph shifted anxiously, his gaze darting away from mine. Without giving Kenya another look, he brushed past us and disappeared into the crowd of the ballroom.

"That wasn't necessary, Levi! The man was just being kind!" Kenya cried, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. She looked utterly exhausted.

Ignoring her protest, I reached out and wrapped my fingers firmly around her wrist. I didn't want to cause a public scene, so I moved with a quiet, forceful efficiency. I guided her out of the ballroom, through a gilded corridor lined with Millais oil paintings, and into a secluded area. I pushed open the door to a private restroom, flipped the 'out of order' sign, and clicked the lock shut.

I turned to her, my presence filling the small, opulent space. Kenya stood defiantly, her eyes blazing with anger.

“I don't like it when another man touches you. And you're wrong—he wasn't 'doing nothing.' He was laying a claim,” I growled, closing the distance between us until she was backed against the vanity.

“The next time a man has his hands on you like that..." I emphasized my point by pulling her roughly against me, our bodies pressed tight in a clash of silk and evening wear. “I want you to remember who you belong to.”

I lowered my head, my breath grazing the shell of her ear. She resisted me at first, her hands pushing against my chest, but I could feel the erratic rhythm of her heart matching mine.

The anger that had surged within me earlier—the defensive wall I had built to hide my own dark past—now manifested as a desperate need to reclaim her. I had let my inner demons show their faces tonight, and I was terrified that she was finally starting to see the monster I feared I was.

I sought her lips with a feverish intensity, my kiss demanding and deep. I wanted to drown out the memory of Rudolph’s touch, to replace it with the overwhelming reality of my own. For a moment, the tension shifted, the anger between us turning into a different kind of fire—a volatile mix of resentment and undeniable chemistry.

But then, she broke away, her voice cracking the heavy atmosphere.

“Stay the fuck away from me!” Kenya cried out, her voice echoing off the marble walls. Tears finally spilled over, trailing down her cheeks.

I froze, shock washing over me at the sheer raw pain in her outburst. We both stood there, breathing heavily, the silence between us more deafening than the argument.

“I am tired of your manipulations, Levi. I am tired of how you use me as an excuse for your darkness. I want a life... I can’t live like this, trapped in your shadows!” She burst into heavy sobs, turning her back to me.

The guilt tore through me like a blade. I took a step forward, tentatively wrapping my arms around her from behind. For a brief second, she seemed to collapse into me, her body shaking with the weight of her grief. I felt her ache, and it mirrored the hollowness in my own chest. I had tried so hard to protect her from my truth, only to end up being the source of her tears.

“Don't touch me!” she suddenly yelled, pulling away with a renewed burst of energy. “Just stay away from me... because all you’ve ever done is make me cry.”

“That's not true, Kenya...” I whispered, but as the words left my lips, I stilled, haunted by the realization that she might be right.