Substitute Wife for the Mafia King R18-Chapter 423: Making His Move

I truly meant it when I told him that Anthony had not made any move on me while we were spending time together at the hospital.

"Are you sure?" Bradon asked with his brows raised as if he was surprised.

"I’m sure. We just talk about random things. He tells me about what happened in his life while I was away and all that. It just feels like we’re just keeping each other company," I explained honestly.

"I see..." Bradon replied without saying anymore.

... 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

**The day after**

"I was supposed to come here with Bradon today but it seems like his work is holding him up, so he told me to head here first. He’ll be joining us later for sure," I told Anthony apologetically.

"Don’t worry about it. I’m more than to blame for that, I think. After all, he’s also doing my work and then he’s also got his businesses to deal with.

Honestly, I don’t know how he can manage all that," Anthony said.

I could sense the admiration that Anthony had for his brother. Even I thought that it was frankly amazing that Bradon could juggle everything for so long and so well.

"I’m sure that he’ll be here soon," I said with a smile while feeling quite proud inside.

"I guess I should work hard on getting discharged from the hospital. That way Bradon wouldn’t need to cover for me anymore. Plus, it’s way past time that I started going back to work if you ask me," Anthony said before letting out a slightly nervous laugh.

I found myself laughing along with him effortlessly. Of course, I knew that Anthony was already working hard with the doctors and the other medical staff members to speed up his recovery. He spent a lot of time in rehabilitation sessions and was also very strict in following the schedule and diet prescribed by his doctors.

"It’s going to be a little sad though when I leave the hospital," Anthony said softly.

"Why would you be sad? Life is more fun outside of the hospital for sure. You’ve been here more than long enough," I replied with a small laugh.

"If I get discharged, we’ll probably have less time to spend together..." Anthony said after a moment of pause.

I knew that he was probably right about that, but the way that he said it made him sound so lonely and disappointed. At first, I didn’t want to read too much into it, but the way that he looked at me made me feel that there was definitely more to his words. His eyes were almost pleading for me to stay with him as if I was someone extremely special and dear. His words of confession came back to me, and I suddenly felt uncomfortable.

"Perhaps, but I’m sure that we can find time to meet up..." I replied vaguely.

"I truly enjoy spending time with you, and I hope that we can see each other more in the future when I leave the hospital. There are many places that we can go together," Anthony said with a wistful look on his face.

"I’m not sure..." I murmured as I wondered how I was supposed to turn him down.

I didn’t know how to even look at Anthony at that moment so I began looking elsewhere in the room as I thought of an excuse to take my leave.

"Dahlia..." Anthony called my name to get my attention.

"Y-Yes?" I replied before forcing myself to look at him.

When his eyes met mine, I knew that I would dread the words that were about to come out of his mouth. The time had come and the two of us could no longer play pretend and stay simply as friends as if his confession of love did not take place.

"You haven’t forgotten what I told you, right?" he asked with a hopeful look on his face.

I knew immediately what he was talking about, but I wasn’t sure how to respond.

"Yes..." I replied simply.

"I know that it was sudden, and I don’t mean to rush you but...do you think you could give me an answer?" Anthony asked as he reached for my hand and held it.

As if he was preventing me from escaping from him or dodging his question, his hold on my hand tightened slightly as he kept his eyes glued to my face.

My heart beat rapidly in my chest, and my mouth suddenly felt dry.

"Listen, Anthony..." I began before licking my lower lip as I hesitated to go on.

The look of anticipation in his eyes made me feel guilty for no good reason. I didn’t want to hurt him while he was still recovering. On top of that, I wasn’t sure how to tell him that I have feelings for his brother.

"Don’t you like me too? You’ve always been so nice to me and it looks like you enjoy spending time with me. I think we get along very well," Anthony began convincing me.

"Well..." I mumbled as my eyes darted towards the closed door of Anthony’s room.

"If you’re worried that there is something between your sister and me, there’s nothing for you to worry about anymore. My parents told me that they have broken things off with your family for good. That means that my arranged marriage to your sister is off for good too," Anthony explained, talking quite fast as his eyes widened as if in excitement.

"That’s not the point..." I said.

"There’s nothing standing in our way anymore. I am finally free to be with you, and I am so thankful that I never gave up on my love for you, Dahlia. You’re finally back here, and we are ready to finally be together," Anthony said before smiling sweetly at me.

My heart raced in my chest as discomfort grew inside of me. Anthony continued rambling on as if he was on the verge of losing it. I wanted to step in and tell him that he had gotten it all wrong and that I didn’t share his feelings at all, but he didn’t give me the opportunity. There were no pauses in his speech enough for me to jump in.