ACCIDENTALLY MARRIED TO THE BILLIONAIRE SINGLE DAD (Gabrielle and Damon) novel Chapter 179

GABRIELLE’S POV

I didn’t say anything after Rhys spoke.

I just stared at Damon, waiting for him to deny it.

He didn’t..

My conversation with Barrister Keane suddenly made sense.

A tight feeling settled in my chest, and it spread slowly, pressing against my ribs until it became hard to breathe.

“Is he telling the truth?” I finally asked, as I put things together in my head. “Is that why you signed your wealth to my name?”

His jaw tightened, but he didn’t look at me. “Yes.”

“Yes?” I repeated, my voice rising slightly. “You’re intentionally putting yourself in a position where you could lose everything?”

He finally held my gaze. “I know what I’m doing.”

“And I know you,” I shot back. “You don’t stop once you decide something. You go all the way, no matter what it costs.”

Silence fell between us again.

I swallowed, trying to calm down, but the more I thought about it, the worse it felt.

We had just talked about the future.

About staying together.

About choosing each other.

And he was already planning something that could take him away from me.

“You said you wanted forever with me,” I said, softer now. “Was that before or after you decided to risk going to jail?”

His expression shifted then, something conflicted breaking through.

“That’s not what this is,” he said.

“Then what is it?” I asked.

He didn’t answer immediately, and that hesitation said more than anything else.

I looked away from him, my chest tightening again because a part of me understood.

Damon had always wanted out of this world, and he also wanted to destroy it.

He had wanted that long before me.

And now I was standing in the middle of it, asking him to choose.

My throat burned.

“I get it,” I said, more to myself than to him. “I do.”

He stepped closer. “Gabrielle–”

“But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt,” I cut in, shaking my head.

CHAPTER 179

I took a step back, needing space.

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“I chose you,” I continued. “I meant that. But I didn’t think choosing you meant waiting for the day you decide to throw yourself into something that could take you away from me. Again!”

His face hardened slightly. “This isn’t about me leaving you.”

“It is,” I said, unable to stop the tears from falling. “Because if you do this, you might not have a choice anymore.”

He went quiet.

I didn’t wait for him to respond. I just turned around and started walking away.

needed air.

eded distance before I said something I couldn’t take back, or embarrassed myself by breaking down in front of strangers.

abrielle,” he called after me.

didn’t stop.

He caught up to me before I made it far.

His hand wrapped around my wrist and pulled me back.

“Stop walking away from me.”

I turned to face him, my chest rising and falling too fast.

“I’m not walking away,” I said. “I just don’t want to stand there and pretend I’m fine with this.”

His grip on me tightened slightly, but not enough to hurt. “I never said you had to pretend to be fine with it.”

“But you were still going to do it,” I replied.

That shut him up for a second.

His gaze dropped to my face, searching, like he was trying to figure out the right thing to say.

“I’ve wanted this for a long time,” he said finally. “Before you. Before all of this.”

“I know,” I said quickly. “That’s the problem.”

His brows pulled together.

“You’re not choosing between something small and me,” I continued. “You’re choosing between something that has always mattered to you… and the life you said you wanted with me.‘

”

His jaw tightened again.

“I said it before and I’ll say it again,” he said. “If it was you or the world, the world would loose every time. I’m only doing this to protect you.

I let out a quiet, humorless breath. “I don’t care about that. You will go to jail, Damon.”

Something in my tone made his expression shift.

“This isn’t one of those things you can control halfway,” I went on. “If you expose them, everything comes out. Their secrets, your secrets, everything.”

Mis time.

are that you were a victim.”

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