...
In the dark stairwell.
"Let go of me! You're hurting me!"
Vivian Linton violently shook off Philip Payne's hand, hissing in a low, furious voice.
"Vivian, why have you been avoiding me?!" Philip's face was dark, his words an immediate accusation.
Vivian instinctively denied it. "Who's avoiding you? I told you, I've been busy lately—"
"You're still lying to me!"
Philip shouted, cutting her off. A vicious glint flashed in his eyes.
"What are you yelling for!" Vivian kept her voice down, utterly incensed. She glanced around nervously, terrified of being seen.
"Vivian, I've done so much for you. Are you going to burn the bridge now that you've crossed it?" Philip stared at Vivian, his expression a mixture of love and hate, bitterness and regret.
To help her, he had been cornered by Tristan Sterling, left with no way out.
