Bet You're Mine: A Lesbian Billionaire Fake Girlfriend Romance(10)

“To be completely honest, I am struggling right now. But I am not using Rafaela at all.” Sure, I asked her for money, but we made an agreement together.

Stefano leans back, propping his feet up on the coffee table. “That’s funny. I didn’t expect you to be so indifferent to the fact that Rafaela is using you.”

Rafaela goes pale, and I feel my heart skip a beat. “Excuse me?”

“Stop it now, Stefano.” Rafaela nearly growls the words and her cousins go rigid.

Her brother waves her off, continuing despite her warning. “The bet. I assume you knew this whole time, and went along with it because of our family’s wealthy status.”

“Shut up!” Rafaela yells, but Stefano doesn’t pay attention.

“No wait, what bet? What is he talking about?” I glance from person to person, the room beginning to spin from my sudden panic.

Rafaela stands to glower down at her brother and the tension is high. “Don’t you say another word.”

He stands, challenging her with his eyes. “I can’t stop now, it would be the right thing to do. Let this poor girl see what you’ve really been doing Rafaela.”

“I don’t understand.” It’s all I can manage, but I try my best to remain serene.

“We all made a bet, Heather. Play girl Rafaela had to stay with a girl of Daniella’s choosing for a month in order to get Apollo’s motocycle.”

I can’t believe the words that are coming out of his mouth. I turn to Rafaela, who now looks defeated instead of angry. I don’t have to ask her if it’s true or not.

“I thought you knew this whole time. Why else would you go along with the plan?” Stefano turns away from his sister and looks to me for answers.

Apollo looks uncharacteristically worried. “I think you’re taking it too far Stefano.”

“Leave him alone. Let Rafaela deal with her own mess.” Daniella shakes her head, but glances up at Rafaela with concern out of the corner of her eye.

“I wasn’t aware.” I speak up, keeping my head high. “Thanks for letting me know, I deeply appreciate it.”

I’m screaming inside, not knowing why I didn’t see through this plan in the first place. We made our own deal, but I had no idea there was a second deal going on behind my back at my expense.

Rafaela tries to speak, but no words come out. Her forehead is lined with anguish, and her mouth keeps opening and closing as if the right words just won’t come. “I’m sorry,” she eventually whispers.

At that moment, Salvatore waltzes back into the room. He stops short once he sees the scene before him, and senses the high tension in the air. “What happened here?”

“I was just leaving.” I cut in, standing and giving him a smile though I want to yell at the entire family. “Thank you for the amazing dinner, and again, it was a pleasure meeting you all.”

“Wait!” Rafaela finally finds her voice, but it’s too late.

“Don’t worry about it. You did what you set out to do. I wish you well, okay?”

After shaking her hand, as I’m sure she’s used to with all the deals she’s been making, I turn and leave without looking back.





Sixteen





Rafaela





I feel bile rise in my throat. I open my mouth and close it again, before looking around at my family standing around me. Apollo puts his hand on my shoulder but I shrug him off and turn to face my dear little brother.

His triumphant smirk tears through me. He doesn’t even realize what he’s done. I glare him straight in the eye, channeling all of my anger and hatred.

Then, I pull back and punch him hard.

Stefano howls in pain and takes a step back, clutching his cheek. He looks shocked and confused. He opens his mouth to speak and I jump on him, slapping and hitting him. He tries to squirm away but I’ve always been stronger.

“Fuck you!” I screech at him, clawing at his stupid expensive jacket. “Bastardo!”

“Rafaela, stop!” His pathetic little voice just spurs me on.

“Bastardo! Asshole! Despicable, no good, son of a bitch, I hate you, I-”

I’m so angry I barely notice two of my father’s goons dragging me off my brother. Father is yelling something now but I don’t hear him. I make to lunge back towards Stefano but when Apollo holds me back I turn on him instead.

“How could you?” I cry, sounding more hysterical than I want to. “Apollo I know you don’t want to lose the bet but how could you be so cruel?”

He’s confused by how devastated I am, and I’m confused too. This was all just a game, wasn’t it? I didn’t need to win the motorcycle and the limoncello recipe that much, did I?

“You will calm yourself,” my father takes the moment of relative calm to interject. “Rafaela you will apologize this instant. I am most disappointed in you.”

I shake my head and meet his eyes.

“Rafaela this behavior is despicable. It is most unbecoming of my daughter and it is certainly not acceptable from anyone who considers themselves to be my heir to the family business.”

There it is. He’s dangling the carrot right in front of my face. Just a few weeks ago I would have jumped immediately, but now the whole affair seems meaningless to me.

“I don’t care,” I answer, trying to calm down. “I don’t care how unbecoming I am, or how disappointed you are. That slimy little asshole ripped apart a good, kind, honest, decent woman just to get at me and he deserves everything that’s coming to him.”

I move towards him again and he cowers. Apollo and Daniella take my shoulders and drag me back, away from the knuckleheads who now flank Stefano. They’re still loyal even if they did get carried away with Heather.

“I don’t want it anyway.”

“What do you mean?” Father says as I turn on my heel.

“The family business. If inheriting it means I have to ditch everything and everyone I love then it isn’t worth it. Give it to the brat so he can run it into the ground.”

I stalk out, not looking back even when my father shouts after me. I dial Heather’s number but she doesn’t answer.

Of course she doesn’t answer.

I keep dialing again and again as I get into my car and turn the keys in the ignition. The door opens and Apollo pulls me out. I reach up to hit him but he catches my fist.

“Don’t be a dick,” he says as he pushes me around the car. Daniella manhandles me into the passenger side and gets into the back. “I’ll drive if you’re on the phone.”

I alternate between giving him directions in my coldest voice and trying to get through to Heather. My heart clenches unpleasantly in my chest every time it goes to voicemail.

“We’re sorry,” Daniella says quietly from the back. “In our defense, it’s just a game. Why are you so upset?”

I can’t answer. We reach Heather’s apartment block but the lights are out and she doesn’t answer the door. Her car isn’t out front either.

I get back into the car shaking.

“I guess that’s that then,” Daniella ventures, sharing a look with Apollo. “Shall we go to a bar and find you a nice waitress?”

I crumple in my seat and start sobbing. It surprises me as much as it does my cousins.

“Um.” Apollo puts his hand on my back in what I suspect was meant to be a comforting gesture. He clearly doesn’t spend too much time around crying women.

“I love her. I love Heather.”

The realization hits me like a ton of bricks. I love Heather. God if only I’d figured this out sooner then I never would have taken her into the lion’s den like that.

Apollo and Daniella exchange looks, wondering whether I’m telling the truth or just completely deranged. I can’t bring myself to care about their opinions anymore.

I think about Heather and Emma, about the fun we’ve had since we met and how much they make me laugh. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so much in my whole life as I have these past couple of weeks.

I sniff and try unsuccessfully to stop crying. I can’t believe how badly I’ve screwed this up. Now I’ve gone and ruined everything, and lost Heather for good.

Daniella passes me some tissue and then hugs me from behind, awkwardly crushing me against the headrest in the process. I’m still angry with them though. I know they were just getting into the spirit of the bet and none of us realized then that it was no longer a game for me, but they didn’t have to get so carried away.

We sit quietly for a while until Apollo suddenly turns on the engine and starts driving. “I’m taking you home.”

I’m too tired to argue, to tell him that I want to stay outside Heather’s house forever.

“Rafaela, listen to me. The three of us, we’re as good as brothers, yes? Far more than that pig Stefano anyway.”

I sniff and nod, not bothering to argue that two of the three “brothers” are actually women. I’ve always been so much closer to Apollo and Daniella than I am to Stefano. When people ask about my family, these two are the first people I think of.

“You remember when we were little, when I always fixed everything, always took care of the messes you two girls made?”

Daniella punches his arm at this comment, but he’s right. He’s always been our protector, my right hand guy, the most loyal brother I could’ve asked for.