Hired a Gigolo Got a Billionaire (Zoey and Christian) novel Chapter 539

Chapter 539

Nicholas’ POV

I couldn’t sleep.

I lay there staring at the dark ceiling of my bedroom, listening to the clock on the wall mark every passing second with its steady, irritating tick-tock.

My mind wouldn’t shut off.

It kept spinning in vicious circles, always coming back to the same problems. The winery needed maintenance I couldn’t afford. The inn’s reservations were low for the season. Bills were piling up. And Bella… Bella needed so many things I could barely keep up.

And now, on top of all that, there was Gwen.

A woman I barely knew. A woman who didn’t even really know who she was.

But who believed, with her whole heart, that we were going to get married.

And I couldn’t contradict her.

The doctor had been clear. No stress. No conflict. Let her memory return naturally. And I’d agreed. I’d signed the papers, taking responsibility for her.

But no one had warned me it would be this hard.

No one had warned me about her blue eyes looking at me with absolute trust. About the smile that lit up her whole face when she talked about our “future together.” About the way my body reacted when she got close. When she touched me. When-

I rolled over in bed, punching my pillow in frustration.

I wasn’t going to sleep. No point pretending otherwise.

When the first rays of sunlight started creeping through the window, I gave up completely. I got up, pulled on sweatpants and a T-shirt, and went downstairs to the kitchen.

Martina was already there, as always. My mother liked to say she woke up with the chickens, and there was no changing that even if you tried. Two of the inn’s assistants were there too, slicing fruit and preparing bread for the guests’ breakfast.

The smell of fresh coffee and baking bread usually calmed me.

Today, it didn’t help at all.

“Morning,” I said, my voice rougher than usual.

Martina turned from the counter where she was whisking eggs and looked me up and down. Her expression shifted immediately from neutral to concerned.

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“You look terrible,” she declared bluntly.

“Good morning to you too, Mom,” I replied dryly, without real annoyance.

“Seriously, Nick. Did you sleep?”

“Barely,” I admitted, grabbing a mug and pouring myself some coffee. The dark, strong liquid was exactly what I needed.

Martina exchanged a glance with the assistants, then wiped her hands on her apron.

“Girls, can you finish up here?” she asked.

“Of course, Mrs. Martina,” one of them replied.

My mother nodded toward the back door. I followed her out to the porch, where the cold morning air hit me like a refreshing slap.

The sun was rising, painting the sky in shades of pink and orange. Snow-covered hills shimmered under the new light. It was beautiful. It always was.

But I could barely appreciate it.

Martina crossed her arms and looked at me with that maternal stare that always made me feel like I was

ten again.

“It’s harder than you thought, isn’t it?” she asked gently. “Dealing with Gwen?”

“Apparently,” I replied, taking a long sip of coffee.

“Considering you never leave her side,” my mother went on, her tone lightly teasing now.

I tried to play it off, staring at the horizon instead of at her.

“I have to be careful. Play the role of the concerned fiancé, like the doctor instructed.”

Silence.

Then, because I apparently couldn’t lie to my own mother even when I tried, I added, “And…” I paused, taking a deep breath. “I really am worried. Not just about her suing us when she gets her memory back.

But… about her.”

Martina didn’t say anything. She just waited, giving me space.

“It’s not about me,” I added quickly, before she could ask the question I saw forming in her eyes. “It’s

about Bella.”

“Bella?”

“She got attached to Gwen way too fast,” I explained, running a hand through my hair. “After seeing us kiss, spending the afternoon with her, getting that necklace… Bella thinks Gwen is going to be her new mom. And… well, you know everything that little girl has already been through.”

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Martina’s expression softened even more, that familiar ache surfacing in her eyes. She’d seen Bella suffer when her mother left. She’d helped pick up the broken pieces that remained.

“You need to be honest with Bella,” she said gently.

“I was,” I replied, frustration creeping into my voice. “I explained that Gwen is confused, that I’m just helping her, that she’s not going to be her new mom. But I don’t know if Bella understood. Or if she just doesn’t want to understand, because for the first time she has something she wants so badly…”

I took a deep breath, the weight of it all tightening in my chest.

“And now…” I started, then stopped. Shook my head. “Now there’s also this whole ring situation.”

Martina frowned.

“What situation?”

“Gwen questioned me last night,” I explained, staring into my coffee cup like it might have answers. “She asked why, if we’re engaged, she doesn’t have a ring. And I… I didn’t know what to say at the moment. So I told her I was planning a surprise for this weekend.”

The silence that followed was broken by something I didn’t expect.

I looked up to see my mother laughing, her hand covering her mouth as she tried to muffle it.

“It’s not funny,” I said, though there wasn’t much real irritation behind it.

“Sorry, sorry,” she said, reining herself in, though the smile still lingered. “So what’s your plan now?”

I sighed, long and heavy.

“Honestly? The plan is for Gwen to wake up with her memory back so I don’t have to deal with this anymore.”

“And if she doesn’t wake up with her memory back?”

“Otherwise…” I paused, feeling the weight of the words. “I’ll have to go into town and buy something from a jewelry store. Spend money I don’t have on a ring for a fiancée who isn’t real.”

Martina watched me for a long moment, something flickering in her eyes that I couldn’t quite read. Then

she said:

“I’ll be right back.”

Before I could ask what she meant, she turned and went back inside.

I stood there on the porch, confused, still holding my coffee cup.

A few minutes passed. I finished my coffee. Considered going in after her.

Then the door opened and Martina came back. She was holding something small in her hands. A dark blue velvet box, worn with age.

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My heart tightened. I knew that box.

“Mom…” I started.

She didn’t let me finish. She opened the box and turned it toward me.

Inside, nestled in slightly yellowed white satin, was a ring. White gold, with a modest but unmistakably expensive stone at the center. Not big or flashy, but with that unmistakable quality real jewelry has. Small diamonds surrounded the center stone in a delicate, vintage-style design.

It was beautiful. Elegant. Timeless.

“Mom…” I tried again, but my voice failed.

“It’s a solution,” Martina said simply, placing the box in my hands. “The ring your father gave me when we got engaged. I always thought it would be yours one day. Or your fiancée’s, of course.”

I took the box carefully, like it was something sacred.

And in a way, it was.

It was my parents’ history. Their love. Years of a happy marriage, right up until my father’s death.

I couldn’t help thinking she hadn’t offered it to me before, when I actually got married. Maybe she’d known things then that I hadn’t.

“But Mom, the thing is…” I took a deep breath. “Gwen isn’t my fiancée. Not really. I can’t accept this.”

Martina smiled, that soft, knowing smile only mothers have.

“That’s fine. It’s only temporary, then. Give it to her, and when she gets her memory back… you take it

back.”

It made sense. Perfect logic. It would solve the immediate problem without spending money I didn’t

have.

And yet, it still felt wrong. Wrong to use something so meaningful in a lie.

“Unless…” Martina paused, her smile widening just a little.

“Unless what?” I asked, confused.

“Unless fate has other plans for the two of you.”

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