Chapter 37
Evangeline
I feel ill. Physically sick to my stomach.
I knew that my parents would be upset about Raph and me. I knew that they would take it hard. But not this hard.
My dad attacked Raph. My mother called me every name under the sun. And now, I’m sitting here on the bed with my mind in shambles.
My eyes ache. My bones ache. My heart aches.
I’m devastated. I found true love and instead of being happy for me, my parents have gone completely psycho-pants.
My gaze follows Raph as he limps across the room holding a damp towel to his cheek. Blood stains the terrycloth fabric.
“You okay?” He asks as he sits on the bed next to me.
Am I okay? He’s the one with a huge black eye and a purple bruise on his shoulder.
"I just can't believe my parents reacted like that, I can't believe they treated you like that." I reach up and slide my hand over his, holding the towel in place and applying gently pressure to hopefully stop the bleeding. "Does that hurt?" I ask when he cringes slightly.
He gives me a weak grin. “I’m a tough guy,” he says playfully. “This is nothing.”
I hate seeing him hurt like this. It makes my chest burn. "My father is an animal."
His tongue slides over his lips and he looks nervous. “Are you having second thoughts, Evangeline? If all this is too much for you, I understand.”
Scrunching my brows, I shake my head vigorously. “Not at all. No second thoughts. I’m all in, baby.” My heart thunders as my gaze narrows in on his features. “Are you having second thoughts?”
His answer takes a heartbeat too long to come, but then he smiles at me and whispers. “Not a chance. I’m yours, 100 percent, Kitten.”
“Good,” I whisper.
“Good.” But I still have that niggling feeling in my stomach, telling me that he isn’t sure. He basically confirms my doubts when he says, “I just don’t want to drive a wedge between you and your parents.”
My relationship with my parents is the least of my concerns right now. “Fuck them if they can’t accept that we’re together,” I bark sharply.
"You have your whole life ahead of you."
"Not without you."
"You can go to college. Find a guy your age. Build a life with him. Me? I'm holding you back."
"No no no no..." I drop my hand to his lap, commanding him to look me in the eyes. "No, Raphael. No..."
He pulls in a long, heavy breath. “Okay…As long as you’re sure.”
“I’m sure,” I assure him. “I don’t care what my parents think. I don’t care what anybody thinks.”
I pick up the towel and cradle it to his cheek again. He flinches and for a second, I’m not sure if it’s because I’ve hurt his wound or if it’s my touch that causes him to want to shirk away. Then, he gives me a little smile and I push down my insecurities, deciding to accept the first option as my answer.
I survey his injuries again. He’s got to be in pain. These gashes are pretty bad. “We need to get you cleaned up.” I wander into the bathroom in search of a first-aid kit.
Raph hobbles in after me. “Eva, I’m fine, really.”
“I just need a few bandages and some peroxide to clean your cuts. And some ice for that goose egg on your forehead.”
He chuckles a little as he leans on the doorframe. “You’re making it seem like I got my ass handed to me. It really wasn’t that bad, Kitten.”
I angle a hip to the side and plant my fist on it. “Would you just let me take care of my man?!” I’m a woman – my nurturing instincts are firing all over the place right now.
Laughing again, he staggers closer and puts a kiss on my lips. My eyes flutter. “Okay,” he says.
Victorious, I drop a hand to his chest and drag my fingers down to his waistband. “I’m gonna run downstairs and get a first-aid kit. Then, I’ll come back and clean you up. And then, I have some really creative ways for how to make you feel much better.”
His eyes twinkle as I make my way to the door. “I’ll be here waiting,” he promises as I slide out the door. He calls after me. “Eva?”
“Yes?”
“I love you.”
My heart trembles with happiness. I don’t care how much my parents disapprove. This is the real deal. He’s the one.
“Love you, too.”
I finally let the last of my insecurities go as I hurry down to the reception desk. We’re okay, we’re okay. Everything’s going to be fine.
There’s no clerk at the desk and after waiting a few minutes for one to show up, I decide to just head out to the pharmacy. It’s a five-minute walk and I know that Raph might start to worry about me because he’s over-cautious like that but this is Reyfield. Nothing’s going to happen to me out here.
And I’m right. I make an uneventful trip to the drug store and fifteen minutes later, I’m back with all the supplies I’ll need to take care of his wounds. But when I knock at the door, there’s no answer.
What the fuck?
I hear a bumpy jangle coming from down the hall and I peer over my shoulder in the direction of the noise. “Looking for Mr. Silver, dear?” The hotel owner approaches me, pushing his cleaning cart ahead of him.
“Yes,” I say. “I left him here just a minute ago and now he won’t answer the door.” As I say the words, I begin to panic on the inside. What if something happened to him? What if he got a concussion from the fight with my dad? He could be laying on the floor in there, unconscious right now.
“He just left,” the man informs me.
I narrow my eyes on him, not sure that I heard right. “What?”
The hotel owner nods. “Yes, he just left with a few guys in suits. Nice suits. And they got into some fancy shmancy town car. They left in a hurry.”
“What are you talking about?”
The man shrugs a shoulder. “Just telling you what I saw, dear.” Turning his back to me, he pushes open a door and disappears into a supply closet, dragging his cleaning trolley behind him.
Leaving me alone with all my questions and nowhere to find answers.