Page 14 of Rafael

Chapter Nine - Amelia

When Rafael tells me that Angelo called I want to cry for joy and sob out of fear. This cost him something. It had to. Nothing in our family comes for free.

"What did he say?" I ask again as I throw a bag together before we get in the car. On the second day here Rafael went to the local Walmart and found enough clothes to last us a week.

Well, theoretically.Â

Most of them still have the tags on them. I haven't worn a lot of clothing this week. Neither has Rafael. It's actually kind of weird to see him wearing pants. I like him better naked.

"I'm not sure," Rafael confesses. His face is stormy. He's just as worried for Angelo as I am. "He said it's taken care of."

We both trust my brother. I'm his baby sister and I know he will protect me for all his worth. I wish he wouldn't. The cost for my safety isn't worth the price he'll have to pay. But there's no way to stop whatever's set in motion, not anymore.

I should feel even worse about this. I let my brother sacrifice for me while I stayed and played happy houses with the man of my dreams.Â

Rafael and I get in the car and head back to the city. We hold hands for the entire drive, but we don't speak.

When we get to my apartment building it's hard to believe that I just left this place four days ago. I feel like I've been gone for years. And when we get up the stairs to my apartment I see that the door has been kicked in. Once we step inside it's clear that the place has been trashed.

I want to cry. The sob sticks in the back of my throat and tears threaten to fall. Rafael wraps me up in his arms and tips my chin up for a quick kiss. It's exactly the comfort I need. Nothing is okay, but at least I'm in Rafael's arms.

Footsteps pound down the hall. "You bastard!" I hear the words and see a whirl of motion as Angelo comes out of my bedroom and tears Rafael away from me. A punch going wide as Rafael dodges at the last moment and if he weren't shielding me Angelo might have accidentally struck me. "You were supposed to protect her!" He's full of rage as he yells, dark eyes wild and hair a mess. "She ran to you for help. And you're defiling her?"

I can't believe Angelo is saying this. I'm so shocked that words are caught in my throat. I want to scream back at my brother that my relationship with Rafael is none of his business, but I'm too mad to even think it. I may be his baby sister, but I'm an adult.

Unlike me, Rafael knows what to say. "Stay back," he warns, putting himself bodily between me and Angelo, as if I'm the one in danger.

Angelo gets close and I'm sure they're about to brawl. I don't want this to end in bloodshed.

"Angelo, back off!" I yell. That gets his attention for a second but he doesn't turn around and he doesn't step back from Rafael. But I'm not done talking. "Don't hit my boyfriend."

The B word sends a shockwave through the room. It's the first time I've had an excuse to say it. But given everything that Rafael and I have been doing for the last few days, that word definitely applies. I'm not going to call him my lover in front of my older brother.

Ew, gross.

"Boyfriend?" Angelo challenges, it shouldn't be possible but he looks even more likely to explode.

Rafael steps back and wraps an arm around me, but he doesn't stop looking at my brother. "I love her," he says defiantly.

Now it's my turn for shock. "You do?"Â

Everything is moving so fast. This isn't the most important thing to focus on, not right now. We should be demanding to know what Angelo sacrificed to make things safe for me to come home. We should be demanding to know what's going on with the murder investigation.Â

But Rafael just said he loved me.

He turns to me and smiles and suddenly Angelo isn't any threat. He might as well not exist.

Rafael is smiling. "I love you," he says it to me this time.

My heart is threatening to pound out of my chest and those tears I shoved down earlier might start falling. But this time it's happiness and not sadness that makes them want to fall. "I love you too."Â

I don't know if there was a time when I didn't love him. Certainly not for a moment in my adult life. And now I have him. Now he's mine. And nothing could make me give him up. I lean in and give him a kiss.

Angelo makes a noise of disgust and suddenly everything is right in the world. He's no longer threatening to punch my boyfriend. That is the tried and true sound of a grossed out older brother and I can deal with that.

I grip Rafael's hand tight. Now that that's out of the way, it's time to get down to business. "What's going on, Angelo? What did you do?"Â

I hate that my apartment is such a mess. I'm tempted to start tidying up, but I fear that once I start I'll never stop. The idea that somebody came in and touched all my stuff and defiled this place makes me want to hit somebody. Instead I squeeze Rafael's hand even tighter.