Page 71 of Viral Affair

“Girl, that man is obsessed with you,” I said, unsure whether to tell her anything about Rupert.

Things were going so well, but the situation with Vincent was unsettled. He’d tried to contact me a few times since I’d come back but I’d been dodging his calls. He left me one pretty nasty voicemail the other day, dishing more threats if I didn’t see him soon enough. I’d managed to get James’s number from Matthews. Rowan knew him well, and once I’d said I wanted to arrange a surprise for Rupert, he hadn’t asked any more questions.

“He’s not. I’m a little wary. Things are going well, and he wants to tell the world about us, but I think we should wait,” Laura admitted.

She was spooked a little. Spencer had claimed he’d never wanted a relationship until he’d started having one with Laura. That man was completely obsessed with her, from what she’d told me.

“Anyway, enough about me. Tell me, how is it going with Rupert? Did you hear from him when you were away in Europe with Jess?”

I chewed on my bottom lip, wondering how much, exactly, I should tell her. I was in love with him, there was no doubt about it. He was my rock, but I didn’t think he’d talked to Spencer about me, either.

Then my phone started ringing and I saw that it was Rupert's mother again. Wait—did she know I was already back in London?

"Hello," I said, glad I didn't have to answer more of Laura’s questions.

"Veronica, I'm in the coffee shop around the corner. Can we meet?" she asked, getting straight to the point. I thought God, this woman didn't beat around the bush, even though I had to admit, the timing couldn't have been more perfect.

"Sure, I will be there in a moment," I said, then hung up. Laura was staring at me with her eyebrows raised. "Sorry, but I have to go, I'm meeting Rupert downstairs."

Laura had no idea what had happened with Vincent, and I truly couldn’t get her involved in this.

“Wow, so there is something going on between you two?” she asked. “Something serious?”

I grinned as I looked out of the window.

“There’s a lot I have to tell you, and yes, things are going well, but I really do have to rush. I promise to explain everything later. Please don’t be mad. I didn’t plan this,” I said, picking up my stuff and rushing to the door.

“You’d better, otherwise I will hunt you down because I want to know all the juicy details,” she shouted after me. But I rushed downstairs and got straight into the car.

Soon, I arrived at the coffee shop, wondering how I’d recognise her. Just as I was about to dial her number, a short, elegant silver-haired woman called me over. I nervously walked up to her and sat on the opposite chair. Rupert had her eyes, and some of her features, too.

"It's good to finally meet you, Mrs. Banks, Rupert has told me so much about you," I started, thinking that this would be a good thing to break the ice. Things between Rupert and me had progressed fast, and he hadn’t had a chance to introduce me to his mother like I’d done with mine.

" I wish we would have met under better circumstances, dear," she said when the waitress came to take our order. “Please help yourself to whatever you want.”

She went with a coffee, and I ordered a chai latte, one of my favourites.

"Thank you."

She stared at me with an unreadable expression that made me shift in my seat. What was this all about?

"Veronica, I have to be honest with you. I hired a private detective to look into your background and he tapped your phone, so tI found out about Vincent's blackmail. As you can guess, I'm very concerned about that," she admitted.

My jaw dropped. Yes, this woman didn’t beat about the bush but oh my God… I hadn’t expected this.

I swallowed and decided to be honest. "Then you know what I need to do in order to protect him. I love Rupert and the idea of him getting in trouble because of me scares me so much. As you know, Vincent threatened me with hurting Rupert, and even Maja… since I returned to London, he has been calling me," I explained. There was no point in trying to hide the truth and if his mother knew about Vincent, then she must have already realised that my feelings for this man were real.

She reached out and grabbed my hand, and my heart kicked me in the chest.

"We don't know each other, and I understand that we never had a chance to be properly introduced, but I'm worried about my son's safety, all of my family's safety, and of course yours, too," she said, sounding heartbroken.

Then I knew exactly what she was going to say next, so I spoke first.

"I'm going to end things with him to protect him and your whole family.” Even though this would not solve my problem with Vincent and his threats, I could always tell him Rupert broke up with me and I had no way of getting the information now… “I should have done it much sooner," I said. This woman loved her family very much and she was right. Rupert have build an extraordinary life for himself and I couldn't let any harm come to him because of my past mistakes.

"I know I would have loved you, Veronica, and I have wanted for my son to be in love with a woman like you, and I say this honestly. But I'm sacred of what might happen," she stated and I had to shut my eyes for a moment. I felt so helpless and distraught but this was a right thing to do. Rupert was the one but I had to let him go, even if this would completely break me apart. “Please protect yourself from that man, too. If you need protection, you can reach out to James. I’ll personally tell him to—”

"Don't worry, Mrs. Banks. I will never let anything happen to Rupert," I assured her, tears spilling down my cheeks. I had been trying to convince myself that I could handle that scum. He needed to be locked up, but even then, would he be dirty enough to make good on his threats from prison? Even if I left Rupert, would this truly protect him? I had to believe it would. Vincent wouldn’t do things unless he was sure he’d get a positive result.

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