The room door closed, isting Isabe’s cries inside. Emanuele stood at the door with a furrowed brow, but his mind was still filled with Isabe’s sobs. She was so sad, like a forsaken puppy.N?velDrama.Org owns ? this.
For some reason, Emanuele’s heart began to ache in sync with Isabe’s pain. However, this kind of sensitive vulnerability was thest thing a mafia boss needed. He lit a cigarette, the smoke filling the room, and the nicotine eased his mood slightly.
He told Lilly, “Take care of her.”
Lilly frowned and replied, “But, Emanuele, what she needs is you.”
“I can’t give her anything. Only rk can make her happy,” Emanuele responded coldly, as icy as ever.
Lilly looked at the man she had known since his childhood, usually kind to those close to him but ruthless towards enemies. Now, she saw him being cruel to Isabe, which was heart-wrenching.
She couldn’t understand how he, as Isabe’s stepbrother, could treat her this way. Emanuele left Lilly to look after Isabe and, sitting in the car, Phillip couldn’t help but ask, “Boss, are you really going to watch Miss Gould marry Mr. Campbell?”
He clearly sensed that his boss had feelings for Miss Gould, but why wouldn’t he admit it?
“It was always my n from the beginning to have her marry rk or a subordinate. Now, this is just following my original n,” Emanuele said.
“But…”
“Don’t say any more. Drive properly. We’ll wait for Isabe to get married, and I don’t have time for this,” Emanuele snapped.
“Alright, I’ll drive properly,” Phillip immediately closed his mouth, fearing that Emanuele might lose his temper if he continued.
He felt sorry for Miss Gould; she clearly didn’t like rk, but the boss was determined. There was nothing he could do.
After Emanuele left, Lilly opened Isabe’s room. She knew Isabe was still sick and incredibly fragile after Emanuele’s recent provocation.
Fortunately, Isabe remained conscious, but her condition looked awful. Isabe sat on the edge of the bed, hugging her knees, curled up into a tiny ball, sobbing quietly. Due to her illness, her voice was weak, as if it could vanish at any moment.
“Isabe, are you okay, my dear?” Lilly approached, trying to console her. Isabe clung to Lilly and burst into tears.
“I don’t understand why he’s doing this to me,” Isabe sobbed while Emanuele had just mentioned that rk would be moving in with her tomorrow, making her feel like her world was falling apart.
Even if rk had excellent conditions, if she didn’t love him, she didn’t want him. Isabe felt like she was in a dark abyss, unable to see anything. She felt like she had to take an estazm, or her heart would shatter, and her breath would stop.
“Everything will get better, my dear. You’re so innocent and kind; God will surely bless you,” Lillyforted Isabe, holding her and stroking her head repeatedly.
Isabe leaned into Lilly’s embrace. It took her a while to calm down; she was already tired from her illness, and the recent scare almost triggered her ustrophobia. As things settled, exhaustion washed over Isabe, and she drifted off to sleep against Lilly.
Seeing Isabe’s pale face and her increasingly frail figure, Lilly felt a deep pang of heartache. Over time, she hade to regard Isabe as her own child. If her own child were to go through such suffering, she’d be devastated. However, Emanuele’s decision was challenging to change.
The next day, when Isabe woke up, she felt her chest tighten, and her head was heavy. As soon as she opened her eyes, she heard a voice, “Isabe, you’re awake.”
Isabe looked up and was surprised to see rk! They hadn’t seen each other for some time, and rk still looked handsome with his blond hair and blue eyes, like a radiant sun in the room. But seeing rk made Isabe even sadder. The thought of marrying him was overwhelming, and her tears were about to overflow.
“rk, are we really getting married?” Isabe spoke, her voice hoarse and speaking felt difficult, as if there were knives in her throat.
“Yes, Isabe, don’t worry. I’ll treat you well,” rk said, sitting next to Isabe and holding her hand.
Isabe pulled her hand away. “But I don’t love you. I can’t ept marrying someone without feelings.”
“It’s okay. After we get married, we can go back to Canada, and we’ll have plenty of time to build our rtionship slowly.”
Do we really have to do this? Isabe swallowed hard; it felt like swallowing razor des. “We’re both very young, and there’s plenty of time to develop feelings. In the beginning, if you don’t like me, that’s okay. We can take it slow. I won’t force you,” rk reassured her, stroking her hair gently, making Isabe feel cared for. He waspletely different from Emanuele; he was so gentle.
“We can just be like any other couple,” rk added.
Isabe asked, “Then why are you marrying me? There are many girls who like you. You don’t need to choose me.”
Although Isabe had a hunch about the reason, she still wanted to resist, hoping that rk might suddenly realize that she wasn’t important.
“Because you’re Emanuele’s stepsister, and you’re beautiful and lively, the kind of girl I like.”
If it were just about beauty, it wouldn’t be enough for rk to marry her. He was too young, and he had the means to y around. But Isabe was also Emanuele’s stepsister, and marrying her would create a powerful alliance. Even though Emanuele was facing a crisis now, he believed Emanuele would resolve it soon. And if he couldn’t, he’d notify them, the clerics, to join forces, and those Sicilian men wouldn’t stand a chance.
Isabe’s despair grew; she looked at rk. “But I just want to live a normal life. The Mafia world isn’t for me. You know, my dream is to be a doctor.”
She wanted to be a doctor, to heal and save lives, but the Mafia worldpletely contradicted her ideals. But, more than that, in her mind, Emanuele’s cold face appeared, and she couldn’t help but close her eyes in agony. It seemed that if she married Emanuele, she wouldn’t mind these things.
“It’s okay, Isabe. Even if you marry me, you can still be a doctor,” rkforted her.
“But I can’t stand by and watch you all kill people!” Isabe shouted in desperation. “I can’t have a killer lying next to me!”