Xavier was ready to take Raine home.
After the doctors took final MRI and CAT scans, clearing Raine for a discharge, Xavier had already began preparations to bring Raine back home. His home.
"Jordon, call back home at tell Maria to get the master suite prepared for Raine's arrival." Xavier notified. "And tell her to move some of my belongings to the guest room right next to my room."
"Yes of course Mr. Thorn." Jordon agreed. "Your bedroom is the safest room in the house. It will be perfect for Raine."
"Exactly." Xavier nodded. "I'm taking no risks when it comes to Raine security. Make sure you alert the rest of the team to keep their heads up for any suspicious activities."
"I'm already on it." Jordon assured.
"Ok great, I'm gunna go get Raine. Why don't you complete the rest of the discharge procedures." He suggested before heading back to Raine's room.
"Are you ready?" Xavier asked softly as he watched Raine taking small steps out of the bathroom. The nurse had helped Raine change back into a new pair of clothes since she was still having troubles walking.
Xavier was quick to rush to her side, wrapping his arm around her waist as he led her back towards to bed, assuring the nurse away.
"Thanks." Raine said shyly, watching Xavier help her sit on the bed.
"Jordon's just finishing up the discharge forms. As soon as he's done, we can get out of here?" He asked gently.
Raine's felt a shiver run down her spine at the mention of returning back home. She couldn't go back to that place. Not when she knew that he was out there. He'd come back for her. He'd steal her away from Xavier and she couldn't bare that.
"Raine." Xavier said softly, cupping her face with his hands, noticing the discomfort in her eyes. "Raine, it's ok." He whispered, his warm breath fanning her face. "We're going home. My home, not the apartment."
"Butâ" Raine started, only to be silenced by Xavier.
"No. You're staying with me from now on. I'm not letting you out of my sight."
"I can't, Xavier..." Raine whispered, turning her eyes away from him.
"You can." He refuted. "And you will. End of discussion." Xavier stated, leaving absolutely no room for argument.
Raine silenced herself, knowing well that if Xavier had made up his mind, she wouldn't be able to change it. And a part of her agreed with him. She had nowhere else to go and her apartment was a place she didn't want to see, let alone live at.
"Mr. Thorn, we're good to go!" Jordon announced, stepping into the room with paperwork in his hands.
"That's great." Xavier said standing up. "Go get the car ready. We'll be out in a bit."
* * *
"Allow me." Xavier whispered, his breath fanning Raine's ears as she felt herself leaning into Xavier's touch.
They had arrived to Xavier's mansion a couple minutes ago without facing any troubles, but the grand staircase that stood proudly before Raine was most likely going to be an obstacle with her dizzy and unbalanced state.
The faintest nod from Raine was enough for him to know that she had given him permission.
Without waiting a second longer, one of his muscular arms inched down behind her knees, while the other secured her back, lifting her off the ground effortlessly.
Raine leaned her head into Xavier's chest, listening to his heart thumping against his his chest as he carried Raine up the marble staircase and into his bedroom.
Xavier's grand suite was just as Raine had remembered it to be. The masculine colors transfused with the elegant decor was simply exquisite, just like everything else in Xavier's life.
He took small steps towards the bed, gently placing her on the silky sheets. Adjusting her pillow, he pulled the blankets over her body, comforting her to the maximum level.
"Thank you." Raine whispered softly.
"Anything for you." Xavier whispered, leaning down to press a warm kiss on her forehead.
Her cheeks quickly tinted pint due to the proximity between them, and Xavier's couldn't help but admire that. He loved knowing he had such an effect on her.
"Get some rest, ok?" Xavier said softly. "I'll be right outside."
"Ok." Raine replied breathing heavily. Her eyelids were begging to close due to the effects of the medication and it didn't take long for her to surrender to sleep.
* * *
Xavier left Raine's room quickly after she'd fallen asleep to finish off some work. He hadn't been to his company, let alone his house for the past three weeks and the workload was piled high on his desk. But at the moment, even that wasn't his top concern.
His top concern was finding the man who had caused his life to go haywire. The man that had dared to mess with Raine. His Raine.
Heading to the security room in his house, Xavier made sure that the entire team was up on their toes, making sure the house was completely secure. Along with that, Xavier was talking with the police officers and the private investigators that he had hired, to find out ways he could track the suspect down.
After finishing up his work, Xavier returned to his room tired and exhausted. He couldn't be happier to see Raine lying safely in his bed, covered in his sheets. He didn't understand why, but it made him feel good.
Smiling subtly, he stepped closer to the bed, sitting down besides Raine as pushing the strands of hair behind her ears.
There were so many questions that he wanted to ask but he didn't know how he'd be able to ask them. She was so fragile. Just an innocent flower in a world full of weeds. She was as gentle as rain. As soft as the first snow. But he also knew that she was strong. Strong enough to fight for her life in the past three weeks and come back. Come back to him.
So engrossed in his thoughts, Xavier didn't even realize that the beauty sleeping in front of him, was finally awake.
"How are you feeling Sleepy Head?" Xavier asked lightheartedly, causing a small smile to grow on Raine's face.
"Better." She said, yawning cutely causing Xavier's lips to curl up in a smile.
He missed this. He missed her. The adorable expressions, the big brown eyes, the innocent smile. He missed it all.
"That's good to hear." He said, watching her carefully.
Her eyes were just the same, pools of milk with drops of dark coffee swirling amidst them. They spoke to him, messages that words could never convey. How had he survived for three weeks without meeting them? How had he lived for three weeks without seeing them?
"I was so scared." Xavier breathed out, unable to contain himself. "Scared that I lost you." He confessed.
"Xavier...." Raine whispered, reaching her hand up to his cheeks and softly brushing them over his smooth skin. Her fingers trailed down to his hand, taking a hold of it and giving it a weak squeeze of reassurance. "I'm alright now."
"And I promise I'm never letting anything harm you again." Xavier said immediately, turning his body towards her. "I hope you trust me Raine..." He whispered,
"I do trust you." Raine said, confidence in her eyes.
"Then tell me..." He pleaded softly.
"What?"
"Who did this Raine?" He asked. "Who did this to you?"
The question caught Raine off guard. Of course Raine knew who did this to her. But she never thought she'd make it out alive to tell the story. The true story about the real Raine. "I..."
"Raine, I know that all of this is hard for you, but I need to understand what happened." Xavier pleaded gently.
"I can't." Raine said, turning her head away from Xavier in avoidance.
"I know it's difficult, but I need you to help me. The only way I can find that man is if you tell me what happened. The police insisted on taking your statement but I want you to tell me Raine. I need you to tell me what's going on." He begged helplessly. "Why were you attacked? Why was someone following you?"
"I lied." Raine breathed out, her eyes shut tight, afraid to meet Xavier's. "It was all a lie."
"What are you saying Raine?" Xavier questioned, confusion swirling in the blue of his eyes.
He sat down on the bed, placing his warm hand on her cheek, caressing it softly as he assured her to open her eyes and unravel the fists that she had made with her hands. "Let me in Raine, tell me." He pleaded slightly.
Raine's eyes opened slowly, landing on Xavier who's closeness was driving her insane. Here he was, the one man that had actually managed to take the reins of her heart. A man that she had lied to. How would he react? That question often swirled in her mind. Would he accept her once he knew the truth?
But it was too late now. They had come so far and now it was time. Time for Xavier to know who Raine really was. The world she came from. And how she had landed herself here.
"When you asked me about my past..." Raine said, whispering weakly. "Why I really came to New York. I didn't just come to New York to get away from the memories of my parents. I... I came to New York to escape him."
"Him?" Xavier asked. "Who Raine?"
Her hands trembled as she tried to bring his name onto her lips. The name she swore to forget. The name she had hidden away so far at the bottom of her heart.
"Malin."
"Malin?"
The tears began to flow from her eyes as soon as his name slipped off of her tongue. It was a name she despised. A name she trembled in fear from. But most importantly, it was the name that had caused her to leave everything behind and come to New York. The name that had driven her from her home and possibly the last memories of her parents.
"Remember when I told you that my Aunt sold all of my parents' belongings to pay for the costs of the funeral?"
"Yeah, what about that?"
"That wasn't the truth Xavier." Raine said, looking into Xavier's eyes with guilt.
"What do you mean, Raine?" Xavier asked softly, unable to see the pain that was engulfing the brightness of her eyes.
"After my parents died, I used to live with my Aunt. She was the only family I had alive, but she never treated me like family. I was a burden to her perfect life." She began, clutching onto Xavier's hands. "A child comes with a lot of costs. Costs that she didn't want to pay. She used to go on and on about the prices of the funeral, even though she sold most of their stuff to pay for it. But it never ended there. She was stuck with me. A lonely girl that needed clothes for school, books to study, food to eat... She didn't want to be the one paying for all that, and I understand that."
"I was unwanted." Raine said, wiping a tear from her eyes. "She never failed to let me know."
Xavier shrugging his shoes off, crawling further up on the bed so that he was right next to Raine, the both of them leaning against the bed frame, with Xavier's arms around her shoulders.
"I spent nine years of my life in absolute hell. Her taunts, the horrible words she said about my parents, the way she treated me... It was just hell." She whispered. "She made me believe that I was the reason for everything. That I was the reason my parents died." Raine sobbed. "And I believed her."
"Shhhh..." Xavier whispered, cupping her face as he kissed her forehead in reassurance. "You didn't have anything to do with your parents' death. Don't ever say that again."
"I was nineteen years old at the time." She began once more, clearing her throat. "My aunt told me to clean the entire house for a party that she was hosting and left me alone for the entire day. I was cleaning her cabinet when I came across papers. Papers with my parents' names on them."
"What did the papers say?" Xavier asked curiously.
"My parents had a trust fund of about eight hundred thousand dollars in my name. The money for my care in case anything ever happened to them, so that I wouldn't end up on the streets."
"What?!" He said in shock and disbelief. "And she still treated you like shit?"
"Yeah. She still treated me like I was a burden, like I ruined her entire life when I never did any such thing." Raine answered.
"Why didn't you say anything to her, Raine?" Xavier said getting worked up himself. "How could she treat her own niece in such a horrible way, when you were never a burden to her?!"
"I wanted to ask her the same thing." Raine agreed, rubbing her hand over Xavier's in an attempt to calm him down. "But I needed more evidence before I could confront her... So I went to the bank that afternoon to investigate on my own."
"And what did you find out?" Xavier asked impatiently.
"All eight hundred thousand dollars had been withdrawn from the account years ago." She informed. "Since she was my legal guardian, she had rights to access my money for my upbringing and to pay costs that were associated with me."
"That's complete bullshit!" Xavier stormed. "She made you feel like you were a burden when you never were one! She had all that money that belonged to you! You weren't ever a hassle for her!"
"I know..." Raine whispered. "I always thought she hated me because I was an extra cost. But it turns out, I never was one."
"Please tell me you confronted her." Xavier begged.
"I did. I questioned her. I demanded for answers but I got nothing." Raine smiled sadly. "She kept giving me stupid excuses like that funeral was too expensive, my tuition was high, the hospital bills were costly, and even that my parents left behind a lot of debt."
"That is absolutely ridiculous." Xavier muttered, raking his fingers through his hair which had been a habit of his whenever he got frustrated.
"That's nothing, Xavier." Raine managed to let out quickly, before a sob escaped her lips. "She... s-she f-force me..."
"Forced you to what?!" Xavier said, clenching his fists in anger.
"Malin was the son of a powerful lawyer in Sacramento." Raine said after a couple of quiet seconds. "He had a beach house where I lived and one day, I guess we ran into each other."
"He... He was nice, sweet, the charming type of guys that every girl looks for." Raine said, not noticing the way Xavier's eyes grew cold. "I started to talk to him and we became friends. The more I talked to him, the most I realized that I actually had a shot. A shot to get back everything that was rightfully mine." She stated. "I wasn't going to let the hard earned money, my parents worked so hard for, go to waste."
"So he helped you out?" Xavier asked. "But then why would he try to..."
"He did help." Raine said. "But he helped himself instead of helping me."
"What do you mean?"
"I told Malin everything about the papers and the way my Aunt used to treat me. I thought of him as a friend but I guess he wanted to be more then that."
Raine pausing looking around towards the table to find a glass of water which Xavier handed to her, thankfully helping her drink it.
"You must be tired." Xavier stated. "You don't have to tell me everything right now Raine. I just want what's best for you."
"You deserve to know Xavier." Raine said, looking up at him with guilt. "After everything you've done for me, you deserve to know the truth."
Xavier nodded, wrapping his arms around her once more and resting her head on his chest as they snuggled together. "Go on." He assured, letting her know that no matter how ugly things looked right now, he'd be with her the entire time.
"Malin told me that he would help me. He filed at case against my Aunt and with the help of his father, he promised that he'd win it one way or another." Raine continued. "Instead of legally dealing with everything, Malin told me that an out of court settlement was the best route to go and I was alright with that. I didn't want a big count case anyways..."
"But what I didn't know was that Malin was just making a deal with my Aunt." Raine revealed.
"He told my Aunt that if she returned all of my money back to me, he would give her a check for two million dollars, in addition, she would have to ensure that I..." Raine stopped.
"That you what?" Xavier asked through clenched teeth.
"That I marry him."
"WHAT?!" Xavier roared. "That bastard!"
"He wanted to marry me. I don't even know why." Raine said, shaking her head. "I always thought we were friends but he didn't . He wanted me as his wife and I didn't even have a say in it."
"I didn't even know about any of this. He came back to me that night and told me that my Aunt agreed to pay the money back to me." She explained. "I thought I had won. I was happy but I didn't know that the money would cost me my life... As soon as my Aunt handed my the eight hundred thousand dollars, she also handed me a bag."
"A bag?"
"...Filled with my wedding dress. She said that I was to marry Malin in a month." Raine recalled. "No exceptions."
"What the hell is wrong with her? How could she even think about doing that to you? You were her niece! And that bastard?! How dare he make a deal out of your life." Xavier bellowed.
"I went to Malin, asking him what all of this was about. And you know what he did?" Raine asked. "He got down on one knee, asking me to marry him."
"What did you say?" Xavier asked cautiously.
"No, obviously! I wasn't going to marry him Xavier!" Raine said with distaste. "Yeah, I admit he was that charming guy that every girl dreamt of, but princes weren't for everyone. I never saw him in a romantic way and I was certainly not going to marry him."
"I'm sure he didn't take rejection too well." He gritted out.
"He didn't... Things got violent. He was crazy. He wouldn't understand a simple thing. He wanted me, not just as a wife but as a trophy. He was obsessed with me, Xavier." Raine explained. "And he was calling his obsession love."
"And your bitch of an Aunt didn't do a damn think about it, didn't she?" Xavier stated, now raging with anger.
"No. She didn't. She told me that I had to marry Malin no matter what happened and Malin was absolutely hysterical."
"In a matter of days I wasn't allowed to work anymore. I wasn't allowed to wear shorts. I wasn't allowed to talk to other guys. I wasn't allowed to leave to house without his bodyguards..But that wasn't anything compared to what he did that night..."
"Don't tell me what I'm thinking about Raine." Xavier said, his voice so strained.
Raine began to crying loudly, unable to keep her sobs silent. "He forced me to have dinner with him and then.... He started to force himself on me. I was crying, sobbing, thrashing to be freed but he wouldn't listen. It was as if he wasn't even himself anymore. His eyes were distant and i was nothing but a pleasure tool for him." She cried. "I was so scared..."
"What did he..."
"No. I managed to push him away and convinced him that whatever he wanted to do, he'd have to wait till after the wedding to do. And that was the night I decided I would run. I didn't care about my Aunt, I didn't care about the money. The only thing I cared about was the fact that I would not destroy the life my parent gave me, with a guy like Malin."
"And so I ran."
"I took all of my saving and left the house. I never got the money from the trust fund. I took a bus to Nevada, staying low and under the radar. I worked in Nevada for a year at a restaurant, managing to gather up some more money before I took a flight to New York, as far as I could be from that monster."
There was a cold silence in the room, periodically disturbed by Raine's sobs. Xavier was shocked. The girl that was currently laying in his arms. She had fought so hard, so painfully to get to where she was. She had taken on the world to save herself.
She was just as tough, as she was fragile. She was just was scarred, as she was beautiful.
"B-but now he's back X-Xavier." Raine whispered. "He's back and he's going to take me away. Xavier, I don't want to be with him. Xavier I can't be with him. Xavier Iâ"
"Shhhh." Xavier interrupted. "I'm not letting anyone take you away, Raine. You are mine."
"Promise?"
"I promise Raine. As long as I'm here, no one will ever hurt you." He stated, his voice full of sincerity.
"You saved me Xavier." Raine said softly. "You saved me again."
"I saved myself." Xavier whispered back, touching her rosy cheeks with his fingers and wiping away any traces of tears that dared to stain her face. He looked deeply into her eyes, frowning when he saw an emotion he didn't expect.
"Guilt." Xavier uttered. "Why do I see guilt in your eyes Raine? You have nothing to be guilty for."
"But I lied to you Xavier." Raine said. "I lied to you when all you've done is given me the truth. When you've always helped me."
"You had your reasons Raine." Xavier insisted. "I'm not mad at you. I can't possibly be."
"You're unreal." She whispered, in a voice so low that it could barely be heard. "Why do you have to be so nice? Why do you have to care?"
"Because you're you." Xavier announced. "And to me, you're everything."
"I don't deserve you."
"No, you deserve the world." Xavier said, looking down at her pink lips.
Every cell in his body pushed him like the force of gravity to meet the lips that he had craved for so long. To touch her lips, to savor them and feel them against his. The sweetness he had always seen in her smiles, in her eyes, in her voice. He wanted to taste it. The way she was, simply perfect in his eyes. The eyes that were looking back at him with so much truthfulness that he couldn't help but resist. She had touched his soul with her words, her eyes, the magic of her smile. But that wasn't enough. He wanted her heart. He wanted to take the leap, not knowing if he'd fall.
And so he did.
He kissed her. With passion, with love, with longing, with every drop of energy that he had in his body. It was gentle yet passionate. It was as sweet as it was fierce. It was as soft as it was strong. Xavier sucked on her bottom lip, savoring her sweetness, letting her fragrance absorb within himself. She had already ruled his mind at first glance, but now she also ruled his heart. A position that he'd never allowed anyone to take. But with Raine it wasn't an option. He'd happily give away his heart if he had to. For her, he'd do anything. Be anything.
They pulled apart after a couple of seconds, resting their foreheads against each other as they panted for air.
"Xavier..." Raine whisper, shocked, speechless, in a daze. "Why'd youâ"
"I've been waiting an eternity to do that."
______________________
A/N: Hey Guys! So finals week has finally come to an end and so has my third year in college! Boy does time fly! Anyways, the first kiss that everyone was waiting on for so long!! What did you guys think?! Also, Raine's past finally revealed! I hope you guys enjoyed this part and please vote to support!
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