Mistakenly Yours: Contract Marriage With The Billionaire-Chapter 124: Hidden truth about his life

Chapter 124: Hidden truth about his life
"A prison term?" Sara questioned, the news momentarily overshadowing her immediate distress.
"Yes. She was supposedly married right after leaving your father, but then the man died," Luca explained, summarizing the document. "His ex-wife accused your mother of transferring assets into her name wrongfully. That’s why she served time."
Sara walked closer to Luca and carefully read the shared document on his phone, absorbing the details of the financial crimes.
"Turns out she’s going to be penniless soon," Sara replied, the cold realization settling in. "That’s why she’s suddenly come finding me."
"That can certainly be a possibility," Luca agreed, watching her closely.
"That’s the only truth," Sara stated, her voice hardening with renewed resentment. She finished reading the charges for which Paulina was imprisoned. Returning the phone to Luca, Sara continued, "Let’s not even talk about her anymore. She is not worth our time."
"I don’t think she will stop here," Luca said, his mind already churning with strategy. "Currently, she’s holding a small company in her name thanks to her late husband. The business card she provided was of that company only. Not a big one, but not a small one either."
"She served a prison term. The company she holds might want to replace her," Sara theorized. "Maybe that’s why she has returned. I don’t know what I am even thinking." Sara brought her hand to her head, running her fingers through her hair in stress.
Luca walked to the cupboard, took out his wallet, and quickly put on a dark leather jacket.
"Where are you going at this moment?" Sara inquired, surprised by his sudden preparedness.
"You’re also going with me," he replied, picking another leather jacket out for Sara and holding it out for her.
"Earlier in the day you said I couldn’t step out," Sara reminded him, her brow furrowed with confusion.
"Yeah, I was worried for your safety then. But if I’ll be with you, I don’t have to worry," Luca replied. He draped the leather jacket over her shoulders. "Wear it."
He then quickly took out a pair of black jeans for himself and put them on.
Sara looked away as she zipped the jacket, giving him privacy. She quickly checked herself in the mirror and efficiently tied her hair into a neat bun before putting on her shoes.
"Wait, are you going to drive?" She turned to him, and her heart skipped a beat seeing his transformed appearance. He was looking exceptionally hot and commanding in the all-black outfit. She involuntarily bit her lower lip.
"Yes," Luca answered, meeting her gaze. "Meet me at the front of the house." With that, he left the room first, not giving Sara a chance to speak further.
"But his arm is still not healed," she murmured under her breath, still worried about his injury. Shaking her head, Sara walked outside. But before leaving the house, she quickly informed Vinni that they would be going out to take some fresh air.
"Don’t go too far," Vinni told her with a slightly concerned look.
Sara nodded and hurried outside. She descended the few marble stairs and then halted. Luca was already sitting on a powerful motorbike, wearing a helmet. He moved its shield up and extended the second helmet toward her.
"Luca, you can’t ride a bike. Your arm—" she couldn’t finish her protest as he cut her off sharply.
"Just get on and hold me tight," Luca stated, his eyes commanding.
Sara put the helmet over her head, but couldn’t manage to fix the clasp underneath her chin. He patiently fixed it for her with his good hand and waited for her to get on the bike behind him.
Once she was firmly seated behind him, Luca started the bike with a low rumble. "Hold me tight, wife," he said, tilting his head back slightly so she could hear him, before lowering the shield over his face.
Sara immediately hugged him tightly from behind, securing herself. Luca started the bike, maneuvering it smoothly out of the driveway, then straight outside the main gates of the estate.
For a while, they rode through a long stretch of quiet, dense forests before the brighter lights of the city finally began to appear on the horizon. Her nerves, which had been frayed by the encounter with Paulina, started getting steady as she felt a rush of adrenaline mixed with a much-needed sense of peace and freedom now.
Finally, after approximately thirty minutes of riding, Luca applied the brakes on the bike. Sara got down first and removed her helmet, wandering her eyes around the quiet, slightly isolated location.
"Where are we?" She curiously looked at Luca, who had just removed his helmet. The casual way he ran his hand through his hair, settling the black strands, again swayed her.
"It’s not a regular visiting spot," Luca answered, his voice low. "There’s a tower over there. It’s currently not in official use, but people who know about this place can still get inside to watch a certain part of the city." He tucked the bike keys into the pocket of his jeans and held out his hand for hers.
"What if it’s unsafe?" Sara asked, a tremor of apprehension in her voice, though she took his hand.
"It’s not," Luca replied, his gaze reassuring. "I would not have brought you here if it wasn’t safe. Trust me."
They both went toward the tower and finally reached its top. Sara’s eyes widened to see the breathtaking part of the city spread out beneath them, a glittering carpet of lights. The strong wind whipping around the top of the tower made her hairbun lose, and her hair instantly cascaded down her back.
"Wow! It looks so beautiful from here!" Sara remarked, her voice filled with awe and excitement.
Luca felt a deep sense of happiness seeing her smile. She had been so upset since the morning, or perhaps since the moment he got injured. Now, seeing her so free and joyous made him feel genuinely better.
"I feel so light-headed!" Sara exclaimed, her hands gripping the aluminum balustrade as she tilted her head to look at Luca. "Thank you for bringing me here." She instantly looked back out at the view before shouting loudly over the wind, "I do not care about anything! I will choose my happiness!"
Luca stared at her, an amused smirk playing on his lips at the dramatic and encouraging words she was shouting into the night air for herself.
Sara finally lowered her hands from the balustrade and took a deep, steadying breath. Her eyes kept sweeping across the glittering cityscape, left to right, then right to left.
"Luca, since we are finally here, I want to ask you something." Sara’s tone suddenly turned serious, the lightness of her mood vanishing instantly.
"Hmm?" Luca prompted, still leaning against the rail.
"Your grandfather didn’t die because of an illness. Someone killed him, and you are finding that person. And it could even be someone from your own family."
Luca stopped blinking. The breath seemed to stick in his throat. He wondered, with a sickening jolt, how she had found out such a hidden truth about his life. He had never shared it with anyone, not even Remo or Marco.
He tried to instantly refute her, to brush it off as a nightmare, but Sara’s next statement stopped him dead.
"You were sweating so much in your sleep. You were murmuring phrases like, ’I will find them out, Grandpa.’ I didn’t bring it up that time because I felt it wasn’t the right moment." She stepped closer to him.
"Luca, you don’t have to lie to me. I will support you in whatever you want to do. And I know you wouldn’t ever do anything illegal." Sara spoke with fierce sincerity.
"I’m sorry for being so doubtful of you all this time, when I should have been your pillar of support. Just don’t get hurt. You may have gotten that deep wound, but it pained me too. It still hurts me that you took the attack for me."
She slowly held his hands, closing the remaining tiny gap between them, standing chest-to-chest.
"Sara," he whispered, completely disarmed by her sudden, profound understanding.
"I will wait for you to open up with me," Sara stated, her gaze unwavering. "I know you never told me anything about your life, except for a few things. But I know I am the one with whom you want to share everything. I’ll be your wife, your companion, and the person on whom you can rely." She then rested her head against his chest, her hands moving to his waist and locking behind his back in a tight, protective embrace.
"I’m sorry for not being there when you needed me the most. But it won’t happen anymore. I promise you, Luca De Augustino," Sara said, shutting her eyes.
Luca placed his hands on her shoulders when she pulled away on her own.
"I’m not lying about this. I swear," she said.
"I know." Luca leaned down and captured her lips.