I was hoping that a moment in the garden would be enough for me to clear my mind and calm me down enough to get some sleep. I couldn't imagine Raphael tending the garden, and yet the flowers, shrubs and trees looked well cared for. I assume that the hand of an experienced gardener is working on the property. I sat on the white bench and stared into space just trying to relax.

"Why are you awake?" Raphael asked in a cold voice. I jumped up on my seat, being brutally pulled out of my meditative state. What was he doing here? He appeared like a ghost, I didn't even hear the sound of his footsteps.

"I had a nap after we got here, so I'm not sleepy. Hope you don't mind being out in the garden? "I replied as I calmed down a bit.

"Not at all but it's a bit cold in here," he said, and then he covered my naked arms with his heavy jacket, it was still warm from the heat of his body. I looked at Rafael and smiled slightly, touched by this gesture. When I saw his expression, I remembered I wasn't wearing makeup.

I tried to quickly turn my head away, but his hand held my chin in place, stopping me from hiding my pitiful-looking face. I was forced to watch Raphael's cold eyes darken. I didn't understand this expression. Was he angry? I didn't like to see any signs of violence but so far Rafael never seem to be bothered by them, why was this case different?

"Who did this to you?"

"My cousin," I replied. I had no reason to lie especially that I wanted Rafael to understand why I had taken such a desperate step as asking some stranger to be my husband. Rafael raised his eyebrows slightly,

"Your cousin hit you?"

"More than once. His father gave him an order"

"You said Harvey wanted to kill you. Not that he tried"

"He didn't try. It was to scare me, which he sort of succeeded in doing. I wanted me to give up my property out of fear, instead I offered you a deal"

"Because you care about inheritance?"

"I want to go to college one day. Pay for Casey's college. I want to be able to afford the apartment on the nice side of the city. I don't even need all the money my parents left me, but if Harvey was willing to talk, I believe we would be able to settle it. But he just wants to take it all"

"I admit I don't understand your uncle and cousin's motives. Family should always come first"

"Replace family with money, and you have an answer. Harvey is greedy, cold. On the surface, he seems like a very nice person, caring, someone you can trust. I think he fooled a lot of people with this mask of his"

"And you?"

"I was stupid enough to think of him as my kind and loving uncle. I believed that after my parents die, he will take care of me. He got permission to run my parents business, so he should feel responsible for me as well, right? But he didn't call, he didn't write, he didn't want to have anything to do with me"

We just sat next to each other for a while and was silent. I appreciated the silence. It did not arouse tension, on the contrary, it gave some such peace and a sense of security. Rafael broke it, which I did not expect.

"Come with me," Rafael stood up and pulled my hand. When we got to the hall, I thought I should go straight to my room, but felt a pull in the opposite direction. As I followed him, all I could see was his back.

I don't know why my gaze lingered on him for a long time. Rafael led me to the kitchen. I put my hand over my mouth and looked at him in shock as he lifted me effortlessly and set me down on the counter top. He turned towards the cupboard above the stove. From there he pulled out some cream, unscrewed the tube and put a little of it on his finger.

"Works great on bruises," he explained when he saw me looking at him questioningly and then got dangerously close and began to apply the cream to my cheek with gentleness I would never accuse him off.

"Thank you" He nodded his head, focused on what he was doing. I was silent for a moment, and then I decided to choke it out. "Not only for the ointment, but also for agreeing to help me."

"I'm not helping you. Our agreement is mutually beneficial, that's all. What is between us is the exchange of something for something. Neither of us does it selflessly "

"So I have to somehow pay back for this ointment?"

"Don't be ridiculous. I have to look after my reputation. What would people think if they saw my fiancée with that face? "

"Don't worry about it, I am good at covering everything with makeup"

"You shouldn't have anything to cover," he said, shaking his head. Our faces were incredibly close and there was some kind of tension around us that I couldn't understand. It was he who pulled back at one point and said.

"Go to sleep," he gave the command in a cold voice. I did not dare to argue with him. I do not know why I suddenly felt as if some invisible wall appeared in front of us.