Raymond stared at Charmaine. His breathing irregular from running the twenty plus blocks over but he made it just in time. He remained still as he inhaled and exhaled slowly to catch his breath, his eyes never leaving hers.

Charmaine stared back at him. Her heart fluttered at the intensity of his stare. She felt a glimmer of hope that everything would be alright between them. She smiled at him and softly said, “I didn’t think you would be coming.”

Raymond felt a fuzzy warmth flow through him hearing the gentleness in her voice. He returned the smile, his feelings for her evident in his glowing eyes. “Sorry for being late.”

“Better late than never,” she murmured and realized that she said it aloud by the widening of his smile. She felt herself blush under his watchful eyes. “I called you out because there is something that I must tell you.”

Raymond’s smile faded as he said somberly, “I know. Steven and Selena told me everything.”

Charmaine felt a lump in hearing those simple and yet meaningful words. Her eyes began to water as relief wash through her. He knows, was all she could think of. He finally knows. She bent her head slightly to conceal the mist in her eyes.

Raymond saw the glaze come over her eyes and his heart tightened. He wanted to pull her into his arms and tell her exactly what she meant to him and how much he loved her. He glanced around them at the busy street then held his hand out to her, “Let’s go somewhere private so that we could talk,” he suggested softly.

Charmaine let out an amused chuckle, realizing that they were still standing on the street in front of the café. Feeling a bit shy, she hesitantly placed her hand in his.

Raymond squeezed her hand firmly, surprising her by the sudden pressure. Without taking his eyes away from hers, he bent his head and said, “We have a lot to talk about.”

Charmaine understood his meaning because she wanted to straighten everything out as well. Without speaking, she nodded her head slowly and let him lead her down the street.

They went to another café two blocks away and picked a table in a far corner, away from the after hours crowd. When they were both seated, Raymond ordered two cups of coffee. They sat in silence while their coffees were brought to them.

Charmaine sipped her coffee and peeped at him over the rim of her cup and found him looking at her with a tender expression. Her heart was beating wildly as she contemplated on how to express herself to him. With building anxiety because she didn’t know how to begin, she reset her cup and asked casually, “How are you?”

Raymond chuckled knowing exactly how she felt and what she was doing. He picked up her hand and lightly caressed it. “Charmaine, I don’t want to drag this out any longer. We’ve been through too much and wasted so much time.”

“I’m sorry,” Charmaine blurted. Her lips quivered as she continued, “I’m sorry for what my father did to us. Sorry for everything.”

Raymond held her hand gently, “I don’t want an apology from you. You did nothing wrong. You were just a victim like me. If anyone should be apologizing then it should be your father.”

“My father..,” Charmaine’s voice croaked, “I can’t believe he would do that to me. All the things that he did…” she trailed off.

The mention of her father hit a nerve in Raymond and he said a bit too sharply, “Let’s not talk about him.” He saw the hurt in her face at his brashness and softened his tone, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make it sound like that. It’s just that, I would prefer to talk about us and what we’re going to do now that we know the truth.”

Charmaine looked at him with a bewitching smile and asked, “What do you suggest?”

Raymond leaned forward on the table as he held both her hands together in his and said seriously, “I should have told you this years ago, I love you.” He stared deeply in her years and said, “I want us to have another chance and this time I know we can make it work.”

Charmaine felt as if she was floating in air. She had waited five years to hear him say that. With her heart bursting with joy, she held his eyes and whispered hoarsely, “Raymond, I love you too. I always have.”

Her admission brought Raymond to his feet as he dropped her hands and went around the table to her side. He pulled her up into his arms and hugged her tightly to him all the while whispering, “I love you. I love you.”

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Mr. Seh removed the framed picture from the wall and placed it against the wall just below. He turned the combination lock on the vault and it made a soft click unlocking the door. With care, he removed the rectangular box from within and carried it to his desk. Lifting the cover he looked into the content with a wild gleam in his eyes. He picked up the revolver from its velvet bedding and ran his finger over the barrel and then the trigger. He laughed crazily as he thought of what to come. He had been thinking of how to lure Raymond out when Frankie called him unexpectedly. To his surprise, Frankie wanted to team up to separate Raymond and Charmaine. He had told Frankie that he had a plan but that would require Raymond coming out and meeting him. Frankie was unaware of his true motive and readily agreed to lure Raymond out under the notion that Mr. Seh only wanted a few words with Raymond. Under Mr. Seh’s assurance that he would tell Raymond that Charmaine will be marrying soon, and Mr. Seh will be showing Raymond a bogus wedding picture, Frankie innocently believed him. Mr. Seh pointed the gun at an unseen object on the wall and muttered, “You’re a dead man Raymond Lam.”