CHAPTER 31: ALONE WITH HIM

My mother looked evidently excited and I could tell that she was looking forward to her honeymoon with Bennett. The maids definitely made sure to pack too many things for the two of them to go on their week-long honeymoon.

Just thinking about the way that Raphael acted at dinner last night, I had the feeling that the upcoming week was going to be one of the longest weeks of my life. I tried to smile naturally while desperately keeping those twisted thoughts away from my mind. When I glanced over at Raphael’s face, he turned to smile at me and once again and I hated just how perfect he looked. Although I was the one who begged him to agree to this game of playing ‘house’ along with me for the sake of our parents’ happiness, I had to say that Raphael was probably the superior actor out of the two of us.

"Are you going to be okay when I’m not here?" my mother asked, planting her hands on her hips while her brows drew into a slight frown.

For a moment, I wondered if she would stay with me if I told her that I wouldn’t be fine being stuck under the same roof as my brand new troublesome stepbrother. I held my tongue because I honestly thought that there was a huge possibility that my mother would cancel her entire honeymoon trip if those words escaped my lips.

"Of course. I’m going to be just fine. Just enjoy your trip and take loads of great photos," I said before beaming my mother a supportive smile.

"I’m looking forward to taking photos of the sunset. I looked it up online and the views look amazing. I’ll definitely show you when I get back," my mother replied enthusiastically.

"Don’t forget to take some photos of you two together," I added with a nod.

"Make sure to take good care of Abigail. Don’t forget that she’s new here so you should help her to settle in properly," Bennett instructed Raphael quite sternly.

"There’s nothing for you to worry about, father. I’ll make sure to take good care of Abigail, and she should feel very much part of our family by the time you two are back," Raphael said like a promise before smiling quite confidently.

I felt a stirring sensation in the pit of my stomach at his words, and I didn’t dare look his way in case our eyes would end up meeting.

"Call me immediately if anything happens or if you need my help," my mother said as she took my hands into hers.

The way she looked at me made me feel like I was a young girl once again; however, I was no longer the young girl who is wholly dependent on my mother.

"Seriously, Mom, you need to stop worrying about me. Just go out there and have fun. This is your honeymoon, so you have to enjoy it!" I said as I gave my mother’s hands a firm squeeze.

"Please help take care of my Abby," my mother said to Raphael, almost pleadingly. I wanted so desperately to tell her that she was pleading to the wrong man and that Raphael was nothing but a bully.

"Don’t worry. It’s just as Abigail just said, you should focus on enjoying yourself. Don’t worry about us; I’ll take care of her, and we’ll take care of each other," Raphael said, sounding like the perfect brother that I never had. His words surely got to my mother because the way she smiled so radiantly felt like she was suddenly carefree after he had made the promise to take care of me in her absence.

Raphael and I stood side by side as we waved goodbye to our parents as their car drove off into the distance. Despite the agreement that I made with my mother, I had absolutely no intention of staying in the mansion or anywhere close to Raphael where he could ’take care’ of me.

I knew that I needed to get away from him as soon as possible and as far as possible. When the car was out of sight and I was sure that no one else could see us anymore, I quickly marched into the mansion with one thought in mind, and that was to pack my stuff and get away from the mansion.

"Where are you going?" he asked when I turned to walk away from him.

"My room," I replied in short without revealing anything related to my plan.

The honeymoon trip was one week long, and during that duration, I had no intention of staying in the mansion. Since my mother wasn’t living there with me, there was no other reason for me to spend my nights there.

I was certain that if I reached out to Anna, she could find a room in her large house for me to stay with her for a week. If that didn’t work out, I could rent out a place somewhere with the savings that I had or I could simply go back to my old house. My mother being away gave me the perfect opportunity to sort out my life, and that included officially quitting from my job and clearing out my desk at the office.

It didn’t take me long to pack up all the things that I felt like I would need for the coming week. Of course, I slightly regretted the fact that I didn’t pack last night so that I could leave the mansion earlier, but I couldn’t quite concentrate after Raphael’s disturbing behavior at dinner. I didn’t know anything about Raphael’s schedule, but I figured that he would probably head out to work for the day. All I had to do was wait for him to leave the mansion before sneaking out and making my secret escape.

Leaving the mansion didn’t mean that I was doing something wrong, but I still found myself feeling anxious as I sneaked around like a thief with my luggage as I made my way out from my bedroom towards the front entrance of the mansion. Surprisingly, I didn’t run into anyone on my way there, and the mansion felt strangely quiet. I let out a sigh of relief when I reached the front door.

"Are you going out?"

–To be continued...