Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 505

Chapter 505

Madeline’s POV

‘Madeline Sullivan, do you, of your own free will, accept Dominic Blackwood as your lawful husband?’

The question echoed inside my head. ‘Of your own free will.’ What a cruel joke.

But this time, there was no choice. This time, there was no escape. No motorcycle waiting around the corner with a stranger in a leather jacket ready to take me away. No Marcus to save me. No one but me.

This time, there was only one answer I could give.

But before that… before that, I needed to know. I needed to be sure.

“My daughter,” I said, my voice coming out steadier than I expected. “I want to see my daughter first.”

Dominic frowned, his expression shifting from expectation to irritation.

“We’re in the middle of a ceremony, darling,” he said, warning threaded through his tone.

“My daughter first,” I repeated, harder now. I looked straight into his eyes and didn’t back down. “I need to know she’s alive. That she’s okay. Or this doesn’t happen.”

I saw anger flash across Dominic’s face. But then he took a breath and simply nodded toward Vivian.

She didn’t say a word. Just turned and went back into the house, disappearing through the back door.

I stood there, frozen, every second stretching into eternity. My heart was pounding so loudly I could hear it. My hands were shaking. My whole body was shaking.

‘Please. Please let her be okay. Please.’

With Marcus gone, Aurora was everything. Everything I had left. Everything that mattered. If she wasn’t okay, if Dominic had done something to her-

Then none of this mattered anymore. Not even me. Maybe it would be better to stop fighting and let Vivian do the dirty work. One quick bullet. End everything.

And then I heard a soft, high-pitched cry.

It was Aurora.

My body moved before my mind could catch up. I ran toward the door, stumbling over the ridiculous dress, nearly tripping on the steps.

Vivian was coming out, a pink bundle in her arms. And from that bundle came the most beautiful sound

in the world.

I almost ripped Aurora from Vivian’s arms-but gently, carefully-pulling her against my chest like she was the most precious thing in the universe.

Chapter 565

Because she was.

“I found you,” I whispered into her dark hair, tears finally spilling freely down my face. “Mommy found you, my love. Mommy’s here now. I won’t let anyone hurt you ever again. I promise. I promise.”

Aurora whimpered, her tiny fists clenching and unclenching, searching. Pure instinct took over. I rocked her gently, murmuring nonsense words, just wanting her to know she was safe. That I was there.

“Shh, shh, it’s okay now,” I whispered, kissing her forehead, her nose, her cheeks. “Mommy’s here. Mommy’s not going anywhere. Never again.”

Then she made a sound-not a cry. Something softer. And her eyes-those unmistakable Kensington blue eyes-looked up at me.

My heart shattered and rebuilt itself at the same time.

I looked down at my daughter, and despite everything-despite the horror, the pain, the loss-I felt something ignite inside me.

Hope. Resolve. Love so intense it hurt.

“She must be hungry,” I said, turning toward Dominic, who was watching us with an unreadable expression. “I… I need to-”

Dominic rolled his eyes and dropped heavily into one of the empty chairs.

“Fine,” he said, boredom barely concealed. “We wouldn’t want our daughter to starve. Just don’t take too long.”

Our daughter.

The words made my skin crawl with revulsion. She wasn’t his. She would never be his.

Vivian approached silently and helped me with the dress, adjusting the fabric so I could breastfeed Aurora with at least some privacy. Her movements were mechanical, efficient-but I noticed her hands trembling slightly.

I sat in one of the chairs, as far from Dominic as I could get, and positioned Aurora. She latched on immediately, her little eyes fluttering closed as she nursed, completely unaware of the chaos surrounding us.

And for a moment-just one brief, precious moment-it was only us.

Mother and daughter.

Nothing else mattered. Not the dress. Not Dominic. Not the forced “wedding.” Just Aurora in my arms.

Safe. Alive. Perfect.

I stroked her soft hair, traced a finger along her chubby cheek, memorizing every detail of her face. A face that was part Marcus, part me. A child we had made together. The last piece of him I had left.

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“You have your father’s eyes,” I whispered so softly no one else could hear. “That beautiful blue. He would have loved you so much, Aurora. He would’ve been the best father in the world.”

My voice broke at the end, but I swallowed the sobs back down. Not in front of Dominic. Not now.

Aurora nursed until she was full, her eyes heavy with sleep. I adjusted my dress again and lifted her to my shoulder, patting her back gently until I heard a tiny burp.

Perfect. She was absolutely perfect.

“Enough.”

Dominic’s voice sliced through the moment. I looked up to see him standing again, his patience clearly

gone.

“You’ve seen that she’s fine,” he said, walking toward us. “You did what you needed to do. Now we’re going to finish this wedding.”

“No,” I started, clutching Aurora tighter. “No, I won’t-”

But Vivian was already there. Her hands reached for Aurora, and no matter how badly I wanted to fight, how every fiber of my being screamed not to let go, I knew I didn’t have a choice.

If I resisted-if I refused-Dominic would do something worse. Something that would hurt Aurora.

So I let Vivian take my daughter from my arms, every inch of distance between us a physical agony.

Vivian placed Aurora gently into a white basket decorated with pink bows and set it on one of the chairs,

where I could still see her.

Aurora was asleep now, completely unaware, her tiny belly rising and falling with soft, steady breaths.

Safe. For now.

Dominic grabbed my arm and pulled me back into position at the altar. Vivian returned to her spot in

front of us.

She looked at me. There was something in her eyes. Pity? Guilt? I couldn’t tell.

Then she took a deep breath and repeated the question I knew was coming.

“Madeline Sullivan,” she said, her voice tired now, stripped of all emotion, “do you, of your own free will, accept Dominic Blackwood as your lawful husband?”

I looked at Aurora in the basket. Sleeping peacefully. Trusting me to protect her. Trusting that her mother would do whatever it took to keep her safe.

Marcus had died for us. He had given his life trying to protect us. Trying to give me a chance to save our daughter.

And now it was my turn to finish what he started.

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To do whatever was necessary.

Even if it destroyed me in the process.

I took a deep breath.

And I said the word I could no longer avoid.

“Yes.”

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