Chapter 138: An unexpected clause

June froze.

Then her mouth started moving with Rauf’s.

It had been months since she last kissed him, but the moment his lips touched hers, it felt as if it had only been yesterday.

And she lost herself in the kiss.

Then, suddenly, she came to her senses as if she had just realized what she was doing and pushed Rauf backward.

"What are you doing?" she demanded, her lips still tingling from the sensation of the kiss.

In all truth, June wanted to pull him closer and have another go at his lips, but she decided to restrain herself.

It just wasn’t right.

Not when they had rules guiding their living arrangement.

"I’m letting the woman I truly care for know that I care about her," he said as if it was obvious.

Behind them, Bingo barked and wagged his tail.

June glared at Rauf. "Just because you decided to divorce Amie doesn’t automatically mean I’m yours."

Rauf took a step backward, his eyes moving over her.

"I know."

June blinked, surprised by his response.

Rauf rubbed a hand over his head. "I’m sorry," he said suddenly.

June frowned.

Was he suddenly regretting kissing her already?

As if Rauf could read her mind, he continued, "I’m not sorry I kissed you, because that’s the most amazing thing I’ve done recently."

Her cheeks turned red.

"I’m sorry for not waiting until you were ready," he continued confidently.

June stared at him.

She wanted to tell him she would never be ready, but even she wasn’t confident about that anymore.

So instead of arguing, she lifted Bingo into her arms as if the dog had suddenly teamed up with her and walked away from Rauf.

Rauf smiled, his fingers touching his lips after she was gone.

It was exactly how he remembered it.

Fuck, he had missed her so much.

His smile disappeared when he became painfully aware of his body’s reaction.

Rauf sighed.

"I guess I’m due for another cold bath."

Meanwhile, at the Vassari mansion, the dining table was silent.

Everyone dug into their food without saying a word to each other.

Yet Amie couldn’t help humming along to a song playing in her head.

"Did something happen, dear?" Serena asked.

Her gaze was fixed on Amie, even though Amie had no idea Serena was watching her from behind her dark glasses.

Amie shook her head. "Nothing, Mother."

Her tone was unusually cheerful.

It had been a while since the family had sat together to dine, but after the call Serena had received from Rauf, she decided it was time to check if Amie had even a single drop of loyalty toward them.

So far, every question thrown her way had been brushed aside, and she did nothing but smile as though she had recently won a jackpot.

Chris, who hated the whole situation even more than usual since catching Amie coming out of Arnold’s office, decided to give it a try.

"How about we hang out Friday night?" he asked.

That seemed to get Amie’s attention.

"Really, Chris?"

"Yeah. After all, we’re siblings."

The last word left a bitter taste in his mouth.

"I believe hanging out will help us get to know each other better."

Amie temporarily forgot about her food as she stared at Chris.

She had thought Chris hated her, but here he was, offering to take her out.

Amie nodded eagerly before Chris could change his mind.

Just as she was about to say something, one of the maids entered carrying an envelope.

She lowered her head respectfully. "Miss Vassari has a letter."

Amie collected it with a smile before dismissing the maid.

Recently, Amie’s luck had been top-notch.

And it had been that way since she met the mysterious man.

"What’s in there?" Serena asked.

She feared it might be a letter from the Monterrios.

Now that Amie was associating with their heir, anything was possible.

Looking at their curious faces, Amie decided to open it in their presence.

She carefully tore open the envelope, and her gaze moved over the words on the paper.

The moment their meaning registered in her mind, her face went pale.

The paper slipped from her fingers and landed on the table.

"What’s wrong? You look like you’ve just seen a ghost."

Curious, Chris picked up the paper and read its contents.

A small smirk appeared on his face.

It was only right that Rauf had finally decided to take the right step.

He looked at Amie, who was biting her lower lip as though lost in deep thought.

Immediately, Amie lost her appetite.

How could Rauf think of divorcing her?

He must have lost his mind over that bitch.

She planned to leave the room so she could give her father the latest update, but before she could, Chris stopped her.

"Are you going to accept the divorce?" he asked loudly enough for Serena to hear every word.

"Divorce?" Serena exclaimed, slamming her hand against the table before standing. "Who dares to divorce my daughter?"

Amie paused and turned to look at the people in front of her.

That was when she realized they considered her part of their family.

Of course, if anything happened to her, they would fight for her.

Amie returned to the table.

"Mother, I think I should accept the divorce from Rauf," she began.

Her mind drifted to the things Dante had said and the promises he had made.

More importantly, divorcing Rauf meant she would be free to remarry.

And once that happened, she believed she would still have access to every bit of the inheritance Serena intended to give her.

Serena nodded.

"Is that what you want, darling?"

"Mother, Rauf doesn’t want me anymore. There’s no point in forcing myself on him."

"That’s true, Amie," Serena said. "You don’t have to force yourself on a man. You’re a Vassari, and that’s enough."

Amie sighed.

Maybe the divorce coming at this time wasn’t all that bad.

But then Serena added,

"It’s a pity you’ll have to forfeit all of your inheritance once you get divorced."