He Gave Me Hearing, Then Taught Me What Silence Really Means novel Chapter 219

Nelson found her naivety almost comical. He tilted his head, pinning her with a mocking gaze. "And? Do you honestly believe your little bond with my grandmother is worth half a million dollars? Juniper, you know exactly how brutal the real world is. Eleanor isn't going to bail you out for the rest of your life, and she certainly isn't going to support your bloodsucking family. You're taking her kindness far too much for granted."

A sharp sting of humiliation rushed to Juniper's cheeks. It had taken everything in her to overcome her pride and ask Eleanor for help, but Nelson had effortlessly shredded her dignity, exposing the ugly truth.

Nelson's expression remained perfectly detached. Seeing her face pale, he casually looked away. "Do you know the golden rule we were taught growing up in our circle?"

When Juniper didn't answer, he leaned in, closing the distance until his lips were hovering just inches from her ear. "Never date poor girls. The time I spent with you carved that lesson into my bones. I should have listened to my mother from the start. You're far too uptight, Juniper. Always obsessing over fairness, constantly terrified of owing me a single cent. Being with you was exhausting. So, it's better if we revert to a purely transactional arrangement. Don't you agree?"

His breath brushed against her skin, yet every word he whispered was designed to trample her self-worth into the dust.

She glanced up and noticed Reggie subtly watching them from afar. As soon as he caught her eye, the older man quickly looked away.

In that moment, Juniper realized just how pathetic she had been—a naive girl who believed love was enough.

She had walked on eggshells, desperate to prove she wasn't after his money, only for him to label her 'exhausting'.

Her fingers slowly curled into tight fists. Whether during their past relationship or after their recent reunion, she had never once asked Nelson why he had abandoned her so abruptly.

Now she had her answer. He had tasted what it was like to date a girl from the wrong side of the tracks, found her stubborn pride tedious, grown bored, and retreated to his glittering, privileged world.

She should have slapped him. The casual, breezy way Nelson delivered his cruelties made them cut all the deeper.

But that was simply who Nelson was—he always knew exactly which blade would draw the most blood.

"Dating you was suffocating, Juniper. I couldn't even buy you a simple gift without you acting terrified. It made me uncomfortable. You were miserable, and I was miserable. Those years were genuinely the most insufferable years of my life."

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