Chapter 14 - Confronting the Spectre|
"I almost watched you die on that ballroom floor, Elena," Raphael whispered into the phone, his voice suddenly sounding raw and stripped bare.
Elena squeezed her eyes shut, standing on the rainy sidewalk outside the brownstone.
"I know," she murmured softly.
"I don't sleep," Raphael admitted, the billionaire's invincible armor completely cracking. "I wake up three times a night checking to see if you're breathing. Every time my phone rings, my stomach turns over. I don't know what to do with this..."
"You talk to someone, Raphael," Elena said gently. "A professional."
Raphael let out a cold, humorless laugh. "I’m not sitting on a couch telling a stranger my feelings."
"Then you keep using me as your shield," Elena countered firmly. "And I won't allow it anymore."
"What does that mean?"
"It means if you refuse to deal with your trauma, I am cutting off your access to my daily schedule," Elena stated clearly. "No calendar syncs. No Marco tracking my location. I love you, Raphael. But I am not going to trade my freedom to cure your anxiety."
There was a long pause on the line.
"Appointment is Thursday at four," Raphael texted her two days later. "Don't be smug."
May you like
Elena smiled gently at her phone, typing back: I would never. Proud of you.
Raphael didn't reply for ten minutes before sending: That is infinitely worse.
