CHAPTER 137: THE LUCKY ONES

I closed my bedroom door before pressing my back against it as if it could help me shut out the entire world from my life, even if for just a moment. My chest ached with every breath that I took. All I wanted to do was sink into my bed and hide beneath the blankets.

I wished I could have pretended that none of this ever existed. Pretend Bennett wasn’t who he was. Pretend that Raphael wasn’t both the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with and the person I should run away from.

The knock on my bedroom door came too soon. It wasn’t a polite and soft tap on the door, but the kind of knock that demanded the door be opened immediately. My stomach dropped because I realized that it must be Raphael on the other side of the door.

"Abigail, open the door," Raphael said in a low, commanding voice.

I wondered what he needed to talk to me about after telling me to return to my bedroom and get some sleep for the night. Raphael entered my bedroom and locked the door behind him immediately after I opened the door for him.

"I didn’t mean to eavesdrop," I told him before he could bring up the topic.

I couldn’t think of another reason why Raphael would turn up to my room with that look on his face except for our unpleasant encounter earlier. My blood almost froze in my veins when it fully occurred to me that perhaps Bennett had caught on as well-that I had been listening to their conversation.

What would he do if he knew that his cover had been blown?

"It’s fine. If that is what you’re worried about, then it’s fine," Raphael said before walking past me.

I watched as he leisurely sat down on the sofa and waved me over to join him with his hand. He looked so relaxed, to the point that no one would have been able to tell that we had just gone through a slightly messy situation earlier. I decided to join him by taking the seat next to him.

"What do you mean?" I asked in a small voice.

"I’m not here to get a long string of apologies from you. I’m here to let you know that you don’t have to worry. I managed to cover up for you," Raphael explained.

"You mean that Bennett doesn’t know that I overheard?" I asked without hiding my pleasant surprise.

"That’s right. Let’s count ourselves as lucky," he replied with a wink.

"That’s great..." I mumbled.

It seemed that I wasn’t the only one who knew that things may indeed get messy if Bennett found out that I overheard their confidential conversation. It troubled me more than I could ever explain-the possibility that one wrong move could expose my mother and me to so much danger.

Countless scenarios unfolded in my head, and all of them seemed to lead to the same wretched ending for my mother and me. I had not stopped to consider what could happen if Bennett found out that I had discovered his family’s secret. Not just the rumors, but the real truth.

If my mother was still ignorant of his secret, perhaps that would keep her safe. However, if one day he stopped loving her, then what would happen?

The thought of Bennett casting my mother aside left me trembling with a mix of both fear and anger. As unfortunate as it sounded, I told myself that it wasn’t at all impossible. Although we all wish and dream that love would last forever, I knew that the reality wasn’t always as smooth or as simple.

"What are you thinking about?" Raphael asked.

I turned to see that Raphael was looking at me intensely, as if he was studying my face.

"I was just thinking that nothing is supposed to last forever," I replied without alluding to more details.

"Does that include us as well?" Raphael asked with a slightly worried look on his face.

"I’m not sure," I replied to him honestly.

Raphael seemed deep in thought for a short moment before he smiled at me.

"I want you to believe in us. But I guess words are empty, so will you allow me to show you something more?" he asked.

"And how do you plan to do that?" I asked with a hint of challenge in my tone.

"I’m just going to take you away. Somewhere far from here where there’s just us. Away from my father and your mother, away from all of this. Somewhere we can be alone in the world, even if it’s just for a while," Raphael suggested before showing me a sweet smile.

"Are you being serious right now? A trip?" I asked as I stared at him, feeling certain that I must have misheard.

"Yes. No guards, no family, nothing about the mafia. Just you and me, and I’ll show you who I really am, and you show me you," Raphael said encouragingly.

"Is this just another way for you to control me, to try to keep me close to you and to stop me from leaving?" I asked in a whisper.

His hand reached for mine as his fingers softly brushed against the back of my hand. It was a tentative and careful gesture, as if he was giving me the opportunity to pull away if I wanted.

"You can see it that way. I won’t deny that I want you to stay and that I’ll do whatever it takes to make you stay," Raphael said as he stared deeply into my eyes.

His words sank into me, heavy with his intentions, but that only made me realize that he meant every word that he said.

"Fine," I replied shortly as I tried to stop my voice from shaking. My heart was beating so fast from a mix of anticipation and anxiety.

The corners of his mouth curved into the faintest of smiles, and I hated just how much I found him attractive.