Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 475

Chapter 475

Marcus’ POV

“Calm down,” I said immediately, placing my hand over hers. “I asked them to stop it.”

Madeline turned to me, surprise written all over her face.

“You… asked?”

I pointed down, toward the city spread beneath us like a glowing map.

“Everything looks so small from up here, doesn’t it?”

She followed my gaze, and a small smile slowly curved her lips. She let out a soft laugh and nodded.

“The Ferris wheel was one of my favorite rides when I was a kid because it always made me feel like a giant.”

We laughed together, and I took the moment to continue with what I had planned.

“That’s exactly it,” I said. “Sometimes we just need a change in perspective. To look at our problems like they’re ants-and remember that we’re the giants.”

Madeline frowned slightly, curious.

“What do you mean?”

I pulled the envelope from my jacket pocket-the one she’d found the day before and hadn’t been able to open. I held it between us, watching recognition flash instantly in her eyes.

“Whatever’s written in here can be left behind, right here, in this moment,” I explained carefully. “Or it can go home with you, inside your heart. You get to decide whether what’s in here is just… an ant. But what’s undeniable is this-you’re a giant.”

I watched her process my words, her eyes moving between the envelope and my face. There was fear there, but also something else. Something that looked a lot like courage, slowly rising to the surface.

She thought for a few long seconds that felt like an eternity. Then she gave a tiny nod. When she spoke, her voice was barely a whisper.

“Read it to me.”

I nodded, taking a deep breath before carefully tearing open the envelope. I unfolded the paper slowly, facing handwriting that clearly belonged to someone fighting pain while trying to say everything he needed to say.

I began reading out loud, projecting my voice just enough for Madeline to hear over the distant hum of the city below.

“My dearest Madeline, I never knew how to ask for forgiveness. I was raised to believe that men never bowed their heads and never admitted their mistakes. But standing so close to death, all I can think about is how meaningless that belief really is.”

I paused and looked at her. She was completely still, eyes fixed on me, yet clearly seeing something far beyond

this moment.

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“I’m sorry, my daughter. Sorry for taking a lifetime to realize that I wasn’t the father you deserved, that I wasn’t the husband your mother deserved.”

I kept reading, feeling the weight of every word.

“I had a father who demanded too much of me as well. Carrying the Sullivan name forward was more than a mission-it was my duty, the only way I knew to prove that I was a man of worth. I ran every park, every business, every success under the constant pressure of being worthy of the name I carried.”

The letter went on, peeling back layers of a man Madeline had probably never fully known.

“When everything started to fall apart, when I realized I no longer knew how to stay in control, the drinking came. The addictions. And then Dominic appeared, collecting debts I could no longer pay with money. But he knew very well how to collect in other ways.

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I felt Madeline tense beside me the moment I mentioned Dominic.

“I never wanted to drag you into that mess. I don’t even know when I realized I was already so deep that there was no way out. For a time, I truly believed you would be safer at Dominic’s side than standing against him. Now I know how wrong I was.”

The regret in his words was heavy, unmistakable, even through the page.

“All I ever wanted was to bring the Sullivan Parks back to their golden age. But the world changed. Families changed. And I didn’t adapt fast enough. The debts came. The bad choices followed. And when I finally understood what was happening, I was trapped in a web I helped weave myself. I won’t live to see the parks restored. But at the end, I have more important things to think about. You.”

I turned the page, reaching the part that was clearly more practical:

“I’ve left all my shares of Sullivan Parks to you, making you the majority partner. You can do whatever you want with them. Sell everything and use the money to run far away and start over. Or do something completely different. Just be happy. That alone will be enough to make me happy too.”

There were a few more lines, and I kept reading:

“Forgive your mother. She was pulled into all of this because of me. She deserved a better man. A better life. Just as you deserved a better father.”

The letter was coming to an end.

“I hope that one day you’ll be able to look back and remember the good moments we had, before everything fell apart. The afternoons fishing. The math lessons. The Ferris wheel-when you were scared, but trusted that I would keep you safe.”

I read the final lines more softly.

“I’m sorry for everything.

With love,

Dad.”

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When I finished, the Ferris wheel cabin was wrapped in absolute silence. I folded the letter carefully and looked at Madeline.

She was crying. Silent tears streamed down her face as she absorbed the last words her father had left her. They weren’t perfect. They didn’t erase years of pain and control. But they were honest. They were real.

I pulled her close, wrapping my arms around her as she cried against my chest. There was nothing I could say to make it better, so I didn’t try. I just held her and let her feel everything she needed to feel.

Through her tears, her voice came out muffled but steady.

“I’m not going to sell everything and run.”

I leaned back slightly so I could see her face, gently brushing the tears from her cheeks.

“I’m going to rebuild my family’s legacy,” she said, her voice growing firmer with every word. “I want our daughter to have happy memories in that place.”

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