Chapter 141: "How does one greet the enemy like a friend?"

[Juliette’s POV]

The lobby was a sea of marble surrounded by white walls and nothing.

We arrived at the elevator when Ralph sighed. “We'll have a receptionist.”

Is that embarrassment? He’s embarrassed by the state of his lobby? That’s… adorable. I didn’t think he’d be embarrassed by such things. “And some couches,” I added with a smile.

“And some couches,” he repeated with another sigh through his nose, his hand tucked into his pocket. “Jesus Christ…,” he cursed under his breath, embarrassment in his voice.

Which broadened my smile.

He is embarrassed. Is this why he’s never talked about his family or gets upset whenever I chanced upon some things about them?

Then, it dawned on me: he wants to show me only the best sides of himself. So is he ashamed of the rest? I feel flattered. Yet at the same time, my heart clenched with a sour feeling. Doesn’t he trust me with the parts of him he thinks aren’t good? Trust that I would still love him for that?

The light ping of the arriving e