"We wait."
While waiting, Chris’s eyes continued to dart between Amie and June.
If what Rauf had heard was true, then they must have been planning to attack either of them tonight, but Amie’s mother appearing must have caused some confusion.
Chris managed to tell Serena his thoughts.
Serena nodded, her gaze on June now. She wished she could go and talk to her, but the doubts were still in the air.
"So, if Amie’s mother hadn’t come today, we might have successfully confused them."
Chris nodded. "I think so, Mother."
"Okay. But I won’t call this party a failure. At least, the seed is rooted deep now. We just need to water it some more."
Chris stared at his mother. The way her mind worked was way out of his league.
After a while, he excused himself to go and join Ellie and June.
"If you’ll excuse me, I’d like to take my date to greet some of the guests. It would be rude if you kept hoarding the host to yourself," he joked with Rauf.
June smiled. "Remember what I told you, Chris. Break her heart, and I’ll have a million ways of dealing with you."
Chris only mumbled his response while Ellie’s laughter echoed through the hall.
Once they were gone, Rauf asked, "Is that what you’re doing to me? Punishing me for breaking your heart?"
June turned towards him, a sly smile on her lips. "I thought we promised not to bring this topic up in public."
Rauf sighed. "I know. I just... Sometimes, it’s just..." He swallowed, calming himself down as he tried to come up with a more comprehensible explanation. "It’s just that I miss you."
June raised a brow.
The little display tonight had already shown her that Rauf didn’t care about Amie anymore. He hadn’t even left her side all night, let alone spared Amie any of his time.
But she was still scared of letting herself go that easily.
What if she suddenly trusted him again and he decided to betray her?
Instead of sharing her thoughts, she stepped back. "Is that why you’ve been hovering over me like some mother hen?"
The comparison made Rauf smile. "Yeah."
But then his face suddenly turned serious.
"Can I tell you something?"
June blinked, her expression becoming a copy of his.
Rauf didn’t want to tell her, but it was best that she was aware of whatever was happening around her. So he told her all about the man he had overheard outside.
June’s expression moved from a frown to confusion before settling on fear. Her eyes darted around in search of the man with chains on his jeans.
Rauf watched her with a smile. "You’ll only make it obvious that you’re searching for him. That’s not how it’s done."
But June didn’t pay attention to him. "How am I supposed to search for him without looking around?"
"Casually," Rauf said. "You pretend as if you’re relaxed and don’t have a care in the world. That’s when your mind will feel most relaxed. Then you can pay more attention to your surroundings without putting pressure on yourself."
June turned to him, eyeing him casually. "You make it sound easy."
He smiled. "It’s what I do every day."
June tried. She tried to do exactly as he said, but it was to no avail.
"I don’t think he’s here anymore. I can’t find the man with chains on his jeans."
"I didn’t tell you that so you could panic. I’m here to protect you. I only told you so you would know what’s happening and could be careful."
At that moment, June’s gaze met Serena’s, and immediately, she looked away.
Something inside her broke, and she suddenly made a resolution.
Ever since they discovered all this, everyone had been trying to protect June. And if she was being honest, she was tired of it.
She turned to the man standing in front of her, her heart beating fast.
"How about you do something for me?"
Rauf noticed the change in her tone, and his attention focused solely on her. "What? You know I will do anything for you."
June swallowed. "I want you to teach me how to protect myself."
For a minute, Rauf was silent. He seemed to be processing what she had just asked him. Out of everything he had imagined, he had never thought of this.
"You want to learn how to protect yourself?"
Without hesitation, June nodded.
Rauf rubbed a hand over his face. "But you’re pregnant. And the doctor already said you need to rest. Going through training isn’t exactly resting."
"I know, but I want to be able to defend myself if nobody is there. Even if it’s just the basics."
Rauf’s eyes moved to her stomach again. "But..."
June shook her head. "No buts. Please do this for me. If this is the life I am going to start living now, there’s no way I won’t be in danger. It’s Mother’s enemy today. It could be yours tomorrow."
Rauf’s hand tightened around hers. "As long as I am with you, nobody will harm you."
June sighed. "That’s the problem. You can’t always be with me. You’ll be busy sometimes."
Then she murmured, "And I don’t want you to always be with me."
Rauf nodded. "Right."
Then they both stared at each other, neither saying a word.
The look on her face made it hard for him to think of any reason to reject her proposal.
"Fine. I’ll teach you only the basics."
Just as he said that, the sound of a gunshot echoed through the room.
Rauf bent over June while most of the guests scurried around, trying to figure out where the gunshot had come from.
But no one knew.
By the time Rauf and June stood back up, with Rauf’s hand already hovering inside his suit jacket, the room was in disarray.
Then, over the noise, they heard someone shout.
"I think she’s missing! I can’t find her! The heir of Vassari is missing!"