RAPHAEL BATISTA POV"I want her found. I don't care how you do it but you need to do it before she hurts anyone" I said clenching the content that I had gotten out of the brown envelope just a few weeks ago. It had been meant for Scarlet. Thank God I had gone to meet Bianca myself that day. Scarlet was just starting to get better and not be dependent on her pills but I was sure if she found out about this, it would be down that rabbit hole once more. She would worry and live in a state of constant fear and I could not allow her to go through such suffering again, not after everything she'd been through. But the strain was starting to get to me. Margo was still at large despite all efforts to find her and with our wedding plans already underway I couldn't help but be worried. Where was Margo right now and what was she scheming?"We have eyes everywhere, but we haven't seen anyone remotely resembling Margo, we'll intensify our effort, so be rest assured. She won't be able to get past
SCARLET POV.Today was the happiest day of my life and as the light from the chandelier cast a lovely glow on me as I walked down the aisle, I couldn't help but smile, and smile some more.Raphael was waiting for me and the look in his eyes was enough to make me swoon.I couldn't tear my eyes off him and the closer I got, the more brighter he radiated his love for me. I was going to be happy this time. So much happier.My gaze caught my mom's and Antonov and they grinned back at me.I got to Raphael and he took my hand and guided me to my stand with a smile that lit up his eyes."You take my breath away little bird" he whispered and I blushed, holding his gaze even as my face burned."So do you, and I love you so much. Always" I said and the officiator cleared his throat and both of our gazes snapped to his.Gods, I'd almost been close to kissing him since it had been as if we were the only two people in the room.I chuckled as he did, then turned to face the officiator.The wedding c
ASHVILLE CITYEVE SANCHEZ POV"Eve! Eve! You better come out from wherever you are hiding right now!" Margo screamed, the veins on her neck standing out as her eyes darted around the room. "If I find you myself, I'll make you regret it" she yelled, her footsteps stomping around the room. I burrowed deeper into the closet that I'd hid in, sweat dripping down my neck as my pulse raced. I closed my eyes, trying to breathe right as the terror bubbling up my chest threatened to suffocate me. At least this time she wasn't holding any object. If there was one thing I have learned from Margo's countless attacks, it was that; it was better to hide from her and hope she didn't find me whenever she got into her fit of rage, because if I got caught, it always ended in a disaster, for me.The closet door flung open and my eyes widened, almost bursting out of its socket from the shock.Margo's eyes zeroed in on mine and her hands reached for me like a flash, her hand gripping me by the hair and t
EVE SANCHEZ POV "What happened to her head and why does she look so groggy" The lawyer's voice reached my ears, his words sounding a bit fuzzy. He also looked really weird and I felt a giggle bubbling up my throat. My memory was a bit hazy, but the spot where Amore had jammed the syringe into my neck still throbbed. I wondered what she had injected me with but I couldn't keep up with the line of thought, because my brain kept firing off in different directions. Was I dying? Why was the room flashing so many colors? Did Amore change the light bulbs?"Eve came down with the flu and is reacting to the medication that was prescribed by her doctor..." Amore told Oregon, snapping me out of my haze for a bit. "As for the cut on her head, Eve is quite playful and doesn't always watch where she is going even though I have warned her countless times, but you know teenagers, they don't really listen to anyone, and you already know that Eve doesn't like me all that much since she thinks I stole
EVE SANCHEZ POV"Turn around" I whispered, my hand gripping the edge of the door harder. "Look at me, even if it is just once." But it was pointless, and I knew that no matter how hard I wished for just his gaze to land on me, it would never happen. Miguel was a work of art, and just staring at him had the effect of calming me and making me forget about everything that wasn't working quite well in my life. Right now, he was focused on painting and every stroke of the brush he held against the canvas stilled the anxiety that prickled within my chest. But our dynamic was all one-sided. I wasn't brave enough to confess... The fear of being rejected or hurt made me hold back, choosing rather to watch and pine over him from afar. Three months had gone by since the will was read and I became a heiress overnight. And despite Amore's threat to make my life miserable, for some reason, I was still in one piece.Of course, Amore took any chance she got to hurt me, but like a divine interventio
EVE SANCHEZ POV I'd never been surrounded by so many crowds of people and the tight black dress I wore made me feel uncomfortable. Margo had chosen it, saying that it would definitely catch Miguel's attention; it had because he'd stared at me for all of one second when I arrived before he moved on to welcome his friends. It was progress but the whole outfit wasn't me and I felt chills spread all over my skin even though the atmosphere was humid.Margo was also nowhere to be seen, and the longer I stood, watching everyone like a creep the more angsty I got. Time was ticking by and I was sure Amore was bound to get suspicious if I didn't show up in time. Miguel was still laughing animatedly with a group of girls... For someone who took so much to get his attention in school, he looked to be right in his element. He was whispering into one of the girl's ears, and I watched as she blushed bright red, my heart clenching tight beneath my chest. Bodies bumped against me as if I didn't exis
EVE SANCHEZ POV.I gasped awake bolting upright and looking around the room, my heart drumming wildly in my chest. The movement made me gasp in pain as a sharp zap of hurt laced up my body from between my thighs. The memory of the night before crashed into my head and I looked down at myself in shock, my breathing getting heavier as I took in the state of my body. I was naked. I dragged the blanket up my skin, the terror of what had happened seizing my lungs like a vice. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't scream. I couldn't even see clearly. No. No. This was all a bad dream. It had to be.Hot tears bubbled up behind my lids as I clutched the blanket closer. A movement caught my eyes and my breath hitched, my heart almost stopping in my chest.Someone groaned, then stood up and I gasped as I saw Raphael, naked from the waist up. He winced, rubbing his hand over the back of his head, then squinted and froze as he saw me, his eyes flaring in surprise. The door to the bathroom flung open an
MARGO SANCHEZ POVThe door to Miguel's apartment opened and he gasped as his eyes roved over me. He looked over my shoulders, checking to see if anyone was behind me, and when he saw that it was just me, the fear that had shown glaringly in his gaze dissipated slowly, giving way to fury. "What the hell happened to you" he yelled then yanked me into the building, slamming the door shut behind me before turning his angry eyes on me. His gaze raked over me in disbelief, a wild panicked look in his eyes. "I have been calling you all morning after Eve ran off from here but you ignored every one of them... Did she call the cops on us... I told you this whole plan was a fucking bad idea"I gaped at him in disbelief and he made a face, pissing me off than I already was. "Are you fucking blind... Do you not see my appearance right now... is this some kind of sick joke to you" "No, it's not! But what does your appearance have to do with anything huh? Did you take up painting? Is this some so
SCARLET POV.Today was the happiest day of my life and as the light from the chandelier cast a lovely glow on me as I walked down the aisle, I couldn't help but smile, and smile some more.Raphael was waiting for me and the look in his eyes was enough to make me swoon.I couldn't tear my eyes off him and the closer I got, the more brighter he radiated his love for me. I was going to be happy this time. So much happier.My gaze caught my mom's and Antonov and they grinned back at me.I got to Raphael and he took my hand and guided me to my stand with a smile that lit up his eyes."You take my breath away little bird" he whispered and I blushed, holding his gaze even as my face burned."So do you, and I love you so much. Always" I said and the officiator cleared his throat and both of our gazes snapped to his.Gods, I'd almost been close to kissing him since it had been as if we were the only two people in the room.I chuckled as he did, then turned to face the officiator.The wedding c
RAPHAEL BATISTA POV"I want her found. I don't care how you do it but you need to do it before she hurts anyone" I said clenching the content that I had gotten out of the brown envelope just a few weeks ago. It had been meant for Scarlet. Thank God I had gone to meet Bianca myself that day. Scarlet was just starting to get better and not be dependent on her pills but I was sure if she found out about this, it would be down that rabbit hole once more. She would worry and live in a state of constant fear and I could not allow her to go through such suffering again, not after everything she'd been through. But the strain was starting to get to me. Margo was still at large despite all efforts to find her and with our wedding plans already underway I couldn't help but be worried. Where was Margo right now and what was she scheming?"We have eyes everywhere, but we haven't seen anyone remotely resembling Margo, we'll intensify our effort, so be rest assured. She won't be able to get past
SCARLET POV"You've been smiling a lot these days, but you still haven't introduced Raphael to me, why? Do you think he's so good-looking, I'll try to keep him for myself the first chance I get," Elde said and I gaped at her."Mom! Oh my goodness, I can't believe you just said that"She chuckled, stood up from where she was sitting, and came to stand in front of me. "I admit I was a bit skeptical about Raphael at first" she got out. "I still am, but since he's succeeded in making you so happy, I want you to bring him home... You just set a date and I'll fix the wedding... How about that"I grinned, then hugged her. "I must have given you a lot of tough times for you to be planning to marry me off so quickly, huh"She patted my back. "Oh you did, you almost turned me into a murderer at a point too, you little brat" she laughed, then let go of me and helped me tuck my hair behind my ears."I am just so glad that you are finally ok, Scarlet. I want you to be happy like this for a very lo
RAPHAEL BATISTA POVScarlet let out a harsh sob and then pressed her forehead against my chest, so I kissed her on the back of the neck in an effort to soothe her. “Talk to me, baby, tell me what you need me to do” I urged. Scarlet relaxed as if the endearment was a balm to her soul, then she went quiet for several beats before she met my gaze. “I ache,” she said softly. “I burn and I can’t… I can’t make it go away on my own. I've tried...” she trailed off, the color on her cheeks darkening. It took me a few painfully long seconds to understand what she was trying to tell me. She couldn’t make herself come. “Oh God, Scarlet, I’m so sorry,” I said as I lifted her head up and pressed kisses along her temple, then her cheeks, and finally her mouth. “I’ll take care of you,” I said as I began ramping the kisses back up.“Raphael” she called, her voice hitching. "I... I..." “What?” I urged gently when I saw a bit of fear still lurking in her eyes. “I don’t think I can… go all the way
RAPHAEL BATISTA POV"Is she going to be alright?" I asked the doctor as I stared down at Scarlet. She was asleep and her breathing was even but that didn't stop me from worrying."She will be fine. She has been under a lot of stress which was why she collapsed... But please try to monitor her drug prescription. I am afraid she is taking them more than is necessary and if she continues to do that, it would not bode well for her in the long run" the doctor warned, his voice severe and I nodded."I'll do that doctor, I'll make sure she takes only what is prescribed"He nodded and then picked up his bag. "Just let her rest and I'll be here to check on her progress tomorrow morning," he said, gave a curt nod, and walked out of the room.I sat beside Scarlet and just stared at her, pain and elation warring in my heart. I'd always felt that she was Eve but to have it confirmed that I was indeed right, shook me to my core.I took her hand in mine, then placed it on my cheek, my heart breaking
SCARLET POVI liked the weight that was pressing me down into the warm mattress. It was hot and just the right amount of heavy. I groaned, moving closer to it. Was my pillow always this warm, or did Mother get me a new pet? I asked myself as my hand reached to clutch at whatever it was but my hand didn’t come in contact with short fur or a pillow.No, what was beneath my fingers was short but it was also super soft, silky even. And just a few inches down there wasn’t any hair, just hot skin.Raphael has hot skin. I jumped off the bed, my eyes flying open as I struggled to make sense of what the hell was going on.Raphael maintained eye contact as he slowly got up from the bed too, his gaze trained on mine as if I were some wild animal and just a look away from me would send me running off.He looked as if he'd been awake for a while so why was he just lying by my side?I couldn't remember what had happened the night before. I just remembered having a drink and Pierce forcing a kiss on
MARGO POV.Everything hurt, especially my face. It burned so hot that I wished I hadn't woken up at all.I've been drifting in and out of consciousness after the van I'd been in exploded... I didn't even understand how I'd been able to survive, but I guess it was because the force of the explosion had pushed me out of the van as it crashed to the ground.Miguel hadn't made it... I knew it because his face had been the last thing I'd seen before I was flying through the hot air.We'd been in the van and he hadn't even spoken a word to me. He'd stared at me as if I was the vilest person he'd ever met as if I had ruined his life as if I was the one to blame for everything and not Eve.Her name made me groan and all of a sudden, someone was hovering over me, and then a wet cloth touched my head.I tried to open my eyes and only managed to get my left eye slightly open while the other felt as if it was permanently shut.The eye I was seeing with was still blurry though and I had to blink t
SCARLET POVI couldn't hear the words that Santos was saying not when Raphael was just a few feet away from me, talking to some men and smiling when they said something funny. When last had I seen a smile like that? It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that just a touch of his hand had had my walls and resolve crumbling like ashes. It had been so hard to wrench my hand away from him when all I'd wanted to do was to lean in and press my lips against his. He'd stared at me with such fierce passion or was it my wishful thinking... Was I just projecting what I felt onto him?I flinched when I saw Kristine walk toward him, wrapped her arm around his waist, and animatedly joined in on their conversation. I couldn't help but clench the document in my hand harder while murderous thoughts ran through my head. Raphael was mine... He fucking said he was going to protect me. "Miss Scarlet" Santos called and I flinched, then forced myself to focus on him when it turned out that he'd been trying to ge
RAPHAEL BATISTAScarlet Antonio Rivera was standing in the elevator and her eyes were wide open in surprise as she saw me. She was clutching at her hair and sweat dripped down her hairline as if she'd been struggling with something in the enclosed space. I stared at her, totally speechless as I took in the most beautiful pair of green eyes I'd ever seen and when I looked closer, it felt as if I'd always stared into those eyes for as long as I could remember. Scarlet lowered her gaze and dropped her hand from her hair, but I noticed the strands that were clutched in her deathlike grip and it had me wondering why she'd been tugging so hard at her hair. I stepped into the elevator with her and once the door closed, sealing the both of us in, I had to resist the urge to grab and tilt her chin so that she could look at me just as she'd done before. I couldn't believe she was here since no matter how many appointments I had with her assistant, I had never met her in person.I turned to