"It wasn’t all a lie, Abigail. Nothing between us was a lie," Raphael said as he tried to convince .
I searched his face and the depth of his eyes as if looking for confirmation that I could trust him. However, I realized that trust wasn’t the only issue. I thought that I knew him, but I truly did not know this side of him, and I wasn’t sure that I was ready to. Before I could speak, Raphael’s expression darkened as he stared at with narrowed eyes.
"Stay away from Josh. Please don’t make repeat myself," Raphael warned.
"What?" I asked, taken by surprise by his sudden warning.
"I’m certain that I told you before that he is dangerous and for you to stay away from him," Raphael pointed out, quite rightfully so.
I knew that he was right and that Josh had lured in with the promise of the truth before he boldly tried to take advantage of . He taunted and toyed with , using as bait just to get under Raphael’s skin. I hated the fact that I had sohow beco Raphael’s weakness and that he had to rescue .
"I was wrong. I’m so sorry, I should have listened to you," I apologized regretfully.
My sincere apology seed to have gotten to Raphael, as I saw the look in his eyes soften sowhat.
"You should have," he said, his lips curving up into a slightly teasing smile.
I knew that he took so pity on , but that did not completely excuse of my wrongdoings. Once again, I made a silent promise to obey Raphael’s orders in the future.
"Co here. Let hold you tight," Raphael said as he wrapped his arms around and drew into his embrace.
There was nothing demanding in the way that he held . I felt safe and secure in his arms, but the rapid beating of my heart made feel unsure. Although I hated to admit it, I realized that just as Raphael had warned that Josh was dangerous, he could be just as dangerous, if not more so. The truth was that they were part of the sa family-a mafia family. Both Bennett and Raphael were part of the mafia. That fact alone should have made run for my life while taking my mother with to a faraway place.
However, I found myself wrapping my arms around Raphael as if I didn’t want to let him go. At that mont, I realized that it was already too late for to make my escape. No matter how much he promised to protect , the truth was now out, and that ant that my mother and I could never truly be safe, and our lives could never truly be normal. Despite that, I couldn’t find it in to let him go. Just as much as my instincts were telling to run for my life and save my mother, another part of was terrified at the thought of leaving Raphael and never seeing him again. I had fallen for him so helplessly.
Just as my mind was engaged in an endless war with my heart, a firm knock echoed on the door. It was Bennett, and my mother was with him. They both had a very worried look on their faces, and I could only imagine why.
"Oh...Abby..." my mother cried out as she ran towards and pulled into her embrace.
Raphael quickly stood to the side to give us so space. My mother kissed tenderly on each cheek as her eyes inspected my face for any signs of injury.
"I’m fine, Mom," I said reassuringly as I tried my best to smile.
"We’re so worried about you. I can’t believe that Josh would do sothing like that. Be sure that I will deal with him, and no such thing will happen ever again," Bennett quickly promised.
I wanted to trust him, but now that I knew the truth behind the kind mask that he always wore-of who he really was-I didn’t know what to believe anymore. My mother was still worrying over , and that made realize that I should be the one worrying about her safety.
"Raphael told everything about what happened last night. I want to assure you that it will not happen again and that it was my fault for not putting Josh in his place," Bennett continued to bla himself while reassuring at the sa ti.
"I’m glad that Raphael was there to save ," I replied with the only truth that I could manage.
Bennett continued on with his apology, but all I could focus on was the fact that this man was the mafia boss. The man that my mother had married-the man who was now her husband-was the mafia boss. If I hadn’t heard it from Raphael himself, I would never have believed it. Bennett had always been kind, respectful, and ever so doting towards my mother. He didn’t look like a dangerous man. If anything, he just looked like any other wealthy businessman-well-spoken and completely in control.
I wondered what I should do. Should I confront Bennett and tell him that I knew the truth and that he needed to tell my mother the truth? Would he kill ? Would he hurt my mother if the secret ca out?
All my thoughts led to various dead ends because I just didn’t know what to do.
"Thank you for checking up on , but I feel fine now. Maybe I just need so more rest," I replied, trying my best to smile.
"I still can’t believe that Josh would do sothing like that. I didn’t view him as the violent type. I guess so people can be dangerous," my mother said with a regretful shake of her head.
"Don’t overthink things. I’m truly fine," I repeated once again.
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