Chapter 63: Put you in danger
Sara averted her gaze, refusing to meet his eyes. She didn’t want to answer him. A weary sigh escaped Luca’s lips, heavy with frustration. His fingers gently but firmly caught her chin, tilting her face upward until her eyes met his.
"Sara, I’m talking to you," he said with impatience.
"I don’t want to answer you," she murmured, her voice trembling slightly. "I’m not ready for... any kind of intimacy with you." She took a shallow breath before adding, "You tell me to move on, but it’s not that simple. You should understand that You should understand what is currently happening with my life."
Luca’s expression softened, though a shadow of hurt lingered in his eyes. "Alright," he said. "But don’t shut me out like this. I know we still have so much to learn about each other, but when you go silent when you act like I’m not even there, it hurts, Sara."
"Then, learn that," Sara said sharply, the words cutting through the lingering warmth of the moment. She pushed him off her, then sat up. Running her fingers through her tangled hair, she offered him a slight glare. "You destroyed my hair."
Luca immediately sat up beside her with apology and earnestness. "I can comb them for you," he stated, reaching out a hand, though he stopped short of touching her.
"Not needed," Sara answered, already swinging her legs over the side of the bed. "Let’s go to have breakfast." She gathered her composure, the flirtatious moment dismissed. "Your parents must be waiting for us."
She rose to her feet and stood tall, looking down at Luca with a challenging expression before turning toward the door. As she took a single step, Luca was right behind her. He caught up easily, his fingers closing gently but securely around her hand.
Sara stopped, but didn’t pull away immediately. She looked down at their joined hands, muttering, "You are suddenly showing affection to me. It’s making me even more doubtful about you, Luca."
Luca stepped closer, refusing to release her hand. "My actions were definitely wrong in the past, Sara, I won’t deny that," he explained softly. "But my life was too complicated back then. It wasn’t about you; it was about the impossible choices I was facing."
"And what were those?" Sara asked.
"Family feud," Luca replied simply.
"You mean the feud over the inheritance," Sara pressed with old resentment.
"Yes." He exhaled slowly. "I told you before I have a large extended family. When Grandpa passed away, everything fell apart. There were arguments, threats... and a lot of chaos. It was a time I’d rather not remember. And back then, holding your hand, being close to you, it could’ve put you in danger. Do you really think I would’ve let that happen to you?"
He tilted his head slightly, studying her profile as she looked away.
"And you chose to reject me in the cruelest way possible," Sara whispered, bitterness seeping through her calm. "You told me I wasn’t your type that I was too quiet, too much of a bookworm and too serious about everything. You even joked about me in front of your friends."
She then stopped at the dining room and turned her head to look at him. "I hate you for that. You were my first love, but you crushed those feelings." Sara pulled her hand away and walked inside first.
~~~~
Asher looked at his injured arm and furrowed his brows together. He finally switched on his phone and saw many missed calls from Frida, which he ignored and did the same to her messages.
Then, his eyes stopped at the message from Sara.
[Call me when you see this message.]
"Why did she text me such a message? What does she want from me?" Asher murmured. His thumb hovered over the number for a long moment before he finally pressed call.
The call connected, but it wasn’t answered. Asher, lying injured, felt a surge of frustration and tried again. The second call was cut, abruptly and deliberately. The message was clear: someone was actively trying to isolate him.
"Luca asked me to stay away from you," Asher mumbled, staring at the ceiling, his mind racing. "But what if I tell her what kind of man he truly is. Sara never entertained violence as far as I know." He searched for a way to break through Luca’s control. He jolted as the phone suddenly rang and he saw Sara’s name flash on the screen.
"Hello," Asher spoke with a strained voice.
"Meet me at Augustino Group Head Office," Sara replied, allowing no emotion to bleed through.
"I can’t walk," Asher quickly countered. "My leg is broken. Your husband did it."
"Then I will come to see you in the evening," Sara answered. She hung up without another word.
Sara then tilted her head to watch Luca with her sharp gaze, who was scrolling on a tablet as he descended the staircase outside the mansion. He seemed utterly unconcerned.
"Did you ask your goon friends to break Asher’s leg?" Sara asked as he reached the bottom step.
"What?" Luca lifted his head, genuinely surprised, and lowered the tablet to his side.
"I will see Asher in the evening. And you won’t stop me, Luca De Augustino!" Sara warned him, using his full name as a defiant challenge. She turned and climbed into the backseat of the waiting car.
Luca reacted with instant fury. He ran after her, quickly getting into the car just before the driver could close the door. "You can’t see Asher."
"Why?" Sara demanded, meeting his intense gaze across the seat. "I will see him to rectify the mistake you made."
"Your ex deserved that," Luca argued, his face hardening with cold conviction.
Sara shook her head, the disappointment palpable. "You are the mafia, not me. I will not support your wrongdoings," she proclaimed, clearly drawing a line between their moral worlds. "Maybe all of this is entertaining to you, but it is wrong in my eyes, Luca. I won’t intervene in your business and you should do the same."