Page 164 of When She Falls (The Fallen)
But I can’t do that anymore, can I?
I can’t keep putting myself last and pretending like my sacrifices are fulfilling enough for me.
Not if I ever want to have a chance at real happiness.
Taking a deep breath, I make up my mind.
“Okay. Let’s do it.”
Cleo smiles and pulls me into her arms. “It’ll all work out. I promise.”
I hope she’s right. With Rafaele no longer a problem, all I have to worry about is Papà preventing me from going to Ras.
But can he? I’ll beg Rafaele and Vince for help if I have to. I’ll fight tooth and nail to get to wherever Ras is. I won’t let my parents stop me, because for once, I know exactly what I want and need, and I’m not letting anyone stop me from getting it.
CHAPTER35
GEMMA
We havea dinner planned with Rafaele’s family the next day.
It’s Vince, Cleo, Mamma, Papà, and I in the car, and I hold Cleo’s hand the entire drive there.
Cleo and I spent hours this morning going over our plan, and now that we’re about to go through with it, my mind is strangely empty.
I’m nervous, but beneath the nervousness is a breathless kind of hope. What if this works? I wrap my palm around the pendant hanging around my neck, the cool stone a visceral reminder of the man I love.
The dinner is on Rafaele’s turf—an Italian restaurant he owns in Chelsea. We arrive around seven and get taken to the main dining area where a ten-person table has been set. We’re the first ones here.
“Cute,” Cleo comments, looking around the interior.
She’s right. This place is cozy and intimate, with only about ten other smaller tables in the dining room. The décor is traditional Italian—checkered tablecloths, ornate mirrors on the walls, dark wood furniture.
Cleo walks over to study a picture frame hanging on the wall. From where I’m standing, it looks like a photo of Rafaele and his parents.
I can’t help but wonder what’s going through Cleo’s head right about now. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve asked her if she’s sure about going through with this, and every time, she’s reassured me that she is.
I know my sister well enough to know no one’s going to change her mind once it’s made up. Not even me.
Her sacrifice isn’t something I’ll ever forget.
Rafaele arrives with Nero by his side, both of them looking put together. Nero’s grin is as fear inducing as always. Behind them are Rafaele’s mother, his grandmother, and one of his uncles.
An anxious shiver runs down my spine as we all take our seats.
How will Rafaele react when I ask him to swap his bride a few days before the wedding? It should seem like a ridiculous proposition, if it weren’t for the small things I’ve noticed about Rafaele over the last few weeks. I haven’t said this to Cleo, because she’d tell me I’m imagining it, but there’s something strange in how Rafaele behaves around my sister.
He looks at her the way he’s never looked at me.
I first noticed it in Ibiza. When he dragged her out of his car, he couldn’t stop glancing at her. The day of Vale’s wedding, I’m convinced he chuckled at something she said. That’s a big deal for a man who hardly cracks a smile.
There have been more things like that since we came back from Ibiza.
That dinner when Rafaele and Papà announced the succession plan, he was bothered that she was drinking so much. I think he was worried about her. And then the whole thing with Ludovico…
I don’t know Rafaele very well, but I’m convinced of one thing. If he accepts my offer, he won’t let Cleo come to any harm.
And maybe, just maybe, their match will fare better than mine and Rafaele’s ever could.
