The Love I Begged For Was Never Real novel Chapter 134

He could only become cold and ruthless, raising his guard against everyone and armoring himself in the hardest shell. Yet, he reserved his softest, most vulnerable side exclusively for her.

He poured all his patience, all his tenderness, and all his indulgence into Giselle without a single reservation.

In his eyes, Giselle had illuminated the darkest, most excruciating years of his life, so he had to do everything in his power to treat her well. He protected her, spoiled her, and naturally chalked it all up to his duty as her protector.

He was used to being needed by her; he relished that absolute sense of dependence. He thought their bond of mutual survival would last forever.

He watched her grow up day by day, transforming from an orphan who was too terrified to speak into the most pampered, dazzling socialite of the Hayes family.

Gideon picked the photo album off the floor and brushed the faint dust off its cover.

He wasn't sure when it started, but everything had begun to change.

Giselle had grown up.

She grew taller, losing her baby fat, blossoming into a beautiful young woman.

She started forming her own social circles, discussing designer bags and clothes with girls her age, and noticing the attention of other boys.

Her world expanded, and her gaze no longer rested solely on him.

She went on trips far away with her friends and locked herself in her room to gossip on the phone all night. She no longer ran to him crying over trivial matters. She had her own secrets now, her own private space that she didn't care to share with him.

And then, he got married.

His grandfather's dying wish, combined with the strategic balancing of family interests, forced him to marry Nora.

He couldn't refuse the plea of a dying old man, especially since the Xavier family had once done the Hayes family a massive favor.

He genuinely believed that providing Nora with a life of luxury and the title of Mrs. Hayes was enough to fulfill his duties as a husband.

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