Chapter 255:
Robert's POV
She stood up from the sofa with broken steps, and every movement she made stabbed at my pride. I could see the lines of pain clearly etched on her pale face. In that moment, I felt a cold sting of regret gnawing at my chest for what I had done to her. I didn't know how I had lost control to the point of treating her with such primal cruelty.
I caught her gently, trying to compensate for the night's roughness with sudden tenderness. "Are you in pain?" I asked in a low voice.
"No," she replied, trying to avoid my gaze.
I tightened my grip on her waist slightly. "Julie... don't lie."
She let out a stifled groan of pain and said weakly, "Just a little."
A heavy weight pressed against my chest. How had I let myself hurt her like this? How did I allow the mafia beast within me to ravage her innocence without mercy? I swallowed hard and uttered the one word Robert Cross had never spoken in his entire life: "I'm sorry."
