The Love I Begged For Was Never Real novel Chapter 272

Mr. Xavier looked up at her, utterly bewildered.

"Leak the news early that Gideon is personally accompanying Nora back to her maiden home for her birthday. Have the paparazzi take photos of Gideon's car parked outside the Xavier Residence."

"Hype it up as much as possible. Let the entire Metropolis see that Mrs. Hayes's position is unshakable! As soon as those opportunistic partners see the news, they'll instantly retract their termination contracts."

"As long as public opinion is on our side, even if Gideon sobers up later, he'll have to swallow this bitter pill in silence for the sake of the Hayes Group's stock prices and the family's reputation!"

Inside the Maybach.

Nora stared suspiciously at Gideon, baffled by the entire sequence of events—from him snatching the phone, to agreeing to Mrs. Xavier's request, and finally hanging up.

Had Giselle and Julian's social media interaction really provoked him this much?

Did he desperately need a stage, a show of 'doting husband accompanying his wife to her family home,' to prove to Giselle that he had his own life without her?

"Why did you agree to that?"

Nora demanded. "You know exactly what the Xavier family's financial situation is. They invited you to dinner just to beg for investments and projects at the table. You usually despise these purposeful social events, so why agree now?"

Gideon, acting as if nothing were wrong, handed the black phone back to her.

"Since Mom and Dad have spoken, we should naturally celebrate your birthday."

"Besides, I promised I would celebrate it with you."

His tone was perfectly even. "Having dinner at the Xavier house is perfectly reasonable. As for whatever investments they want, as long as it's not completely out of line, the Hayes Group can step in to resolve it for your sake."

Nora reached out and snatched her phone back from his fingers.

She casually tossed it into her coat pocket, shifting closer to the car door to put more distance between them.

The heavy solid wood door closed behind him, the lock clicking shut.

The main lights in the study were off. Gideon didn't reach for the wall switch, stepping directly into the dim space.

He walked behind the massive desk and threw himself heavily into the large black leather chair.

Pulling his private phone from his suit jacket, his fingers trembled slightly with restraint.

He unlocked the screen and tapped into the pinned chat, which still displayed the last message from a few days ago.

His thumb tapped slowly across the virtual keyboard.

"Giselle, when are you coming home?"

Having typed out the words, his finger hovered over the send button.