Page 51 of Forbidden Deception

“You won’t like what you see,” I whisper, knowing everything will be destroyed in the upcoming months. This new side of Rafael is a little dangerous.

“Leave that to me.”

The boat sails farther out to sea, and the mix of reds and pinks painting the sky like an acrylic painting is gorgeous. My eyes never once leave the sky.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” I comment, fascinated by the moon peeking out early.

“Yes,” Rafael replies.

I look at him to find his eyes already on me, making me chuckle. I push his cheek away and towards the sky. “The beauty is there, not here.”

He turns to me again. “I beg to differ.”

Laughter spills out of me, and my heart feels like it’s ascending to the heavens.

I want to enjoy the moment. I want to stay here, on this boat ride with Rafael, ignoring the knowledge that he will change when we go back to Edinburgh. I want to keep this small memory locked away.

“Fancy a dinner?” I ask, breathless and happy once we make it back to the dock.

Rafael looks down at me, the wind sweeping his hair. “With you?”

I nod.

“Then yes.”

Rafael’s change of behaviour has me on edge, because he doesn’t feel the same intensity as me, and yet he does. What is true about him and what isn’t? I don’t know.

It’s like announcing an impending disaster, and now you are just waiting for it to happen.

It’s coming. The moment either me or Rafael takes that step, everything between us will burn into flames. There will benothing remaining, and we will be left feeling hatred towards each other.

I have a lit match in one hand, ready to light Rafael’s life on fire, and he doesn’t know that in my other hand, a knife is ready to drive into his very heart.

A knock on my hotel door makes me sit up in bed. Who could it be at this time? Rafael already went to his room. It’s eleven o’clock, and I need to be up at seven in the morning for my flight with Rafael.

I open the door to find Rafael standing there, his hair unruly and an expectant look on his face. There is something distressed about him. His brows are pulled down, and when he looks to the side, I notice he’s clenching his jaw as if keeping something in.

“Join me?” he asks gruffly.

“Join you where? We just came back from the boat ride, and I—”

“I can’t sleep. Join me, please,” he pleads, his eyes almost troubled.

I falter, my resolve dissolving. I nod and grab my keys and phone. And soon, we are walking along the shore, waves crashing beside us softly while we tread barefoot in the sand.

“Okay, maybe this is not so bad. It’s so calming to be walking at night along the beach in Greece, the lights behind us, and the calm waves lapping at the sand. I just—” I sigh, a stupidly content smile on my face.

“You do that a lot, you know.”

“Do what?” I turn to Rafael.

“Speak what you are feeling.”

I nod with a shrug. “You don’t lie.”

A small smile appears on his face, as if me knowing that about him is something secretive.

“And you don’t speak about your feelings, unless it’s forced out of you,” I point out.

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