Chapter 266: I Will Fulfill Your Choice

Chapter 266: Chapter 266: I Will Fulfill Your Choice

Bella Thorne’s eyes filled with envy. "I’m so jealous of their relationship."

When President Hawthorne looked at Vesper, his gaze was tender and affectionate, as if she were the only person in his world.

’This is exactly the kind of love I’ve always wanted!’

"It’s no use being envious. Vesper is the Heavenly Daughter—she’s beautiful, kind-hearted, comes from a good family, and has President Hawthorne completely devoted to her." Shiloh Sloan reached out and patted her shoulder. "We’ll find our own happiness one day, too."

"Yeah."

"How have things been between you and your husband lately?"

"The same as always," Bella Thorne said, her voice dropping.

Tristan Forrester was always running hot and cold with her, leaving her constantly feeling insecure and anxious.

"You need to keep a close eye on that Justine Hughes. I get the feeling the way she looks at your husband isn’t so innocent."

They hadn’t been close before, so there were some things Shiloh felt she couldn’t say. But now that they were friends, she couldn’t help but give her a warning.

"She was my husband’s first love. They were deeply in love back then, the campus’s golden couple that everyone envied!"

"So what? He’s your husband now. You can’t just keep giving in and bottling everything up. Fight for what’s yours and speak your mind. Don’t just swallow your grievances, or people will think you’re a pushover," Shiloh Sloan advised from a place of experience.

You can’t choose where you come from, but you can’t live a life full of frustration, letting people walk all over you.

Bella Thorne had been cheerful by nature growing up, but after her parents passed away, she was left all alone. Her personality gradually became docile and timid, and whenever she was wronged, she would only dare to suffer in silence.

Even though Patriarch Forrester treated her warmly, she never dared to be willful or presumptuous. Living under someone else’s roof had eroded her confidence; an elder’s favor was never a permanent guarantee.

Looking at Shiloh Sloan, who lived so openly and passionately, something clicked for Bella Thorne.

’So you can live like this,’ she thought. ’Without always swallowing your anger, without tearing yourself apart from the inside.’

She already had nothing, so what was there to lose? The worst that could happen was that everything would just go back to square one.

Seeing her lost in silent thought, Shiloh Sloan smiled and gently ruffled her hair.

"You hear me? If things get too tough in Portclyde, just come find me at Whispering Breeze Lodge."

Bella Thorne felt a prickle in her nose as her eyes instantly reddened. She lowered her gaze and nodded lightly.

"I know."

This was the first time she had ever truly experienced a sincere friendship. In the past, people had avoided her after her family’s fall from grace. Later, when they learned she was living with the Forrester family, they tried to cozy up to her with ulterior motives. Only Shiloh Sloan and Vesper treated her with genuine openness.

Shiloh Sloan arranged for Magnus to escort Bella Thorne back to White Horse Manor.

After they left, she picked up the first-aid kit and walked into the bedroom.

"Time to change your dressing."

Nolan Forrester reached up, unbuttoned his shirt, and shrugged it off, revealing a well-defined upper body. His tanned skin was sleek over firm, balanced chest and abdominal muscles. He held out his injured arm.

"Go ahead."

Shiloh Sloan’s cheeks grew slightly warm. "The wound is just on your arm. Why are you taking off your shirt?"

"To make it easier for you." Nolan Forrester suddenly grabbed her hand and pressed it against his chest, a teasing glint in his eyes. "Isn’t this something a certain someone enjoys in her sleep?"

"I do not!"

"I have video proof."

Shiloh Sloan was speechless. "..."

"They say what you think about by day, you dream of by night. Seems you’ve been thinking about me quite a bit."

The feeling under her palm was incredible. Shiloh Sloan couldn’t resist and subconsciously gave his chest a couple of squeezes before speaking with bold justification.

"Appetite and desire are only natural. I’m taking such good care of you, is it too much to ask for a little perk?"

"Not at all. Just admit it openly next time."

Shiloh Sloan pulled her hand back and shot him a playful glare.

"You’re not even healed yet and you’re already acting up."

Though she chided him, her hands were exceptionally gentle as she unwrapped the gauze. The wound was quite deep and had required six stitches. The fine suture line was stark against his arm, making her heart clench.

"Nolan Forrester, don’t get hurt like this again."

"I’ll try my best." A small smile touched Nolan Forrester’s lips as he chuckled softly. "A few scars on a man are nothing. I can’t let my woman get hurt."

"Who’s your woman!" she muttered under her breath.

Nolan Forrester suddenly cupped the back of her neck, gently pulling her toward him until his forehead rested against her smooth temple.

"Who do you think? You’re the one who promised to take responsibility for me to the very end."

Their warm breaths mingled, and the atmosphere slowly grew intimate and ambiguous. Shiloh Sloan stared at him, dazed.

"You like me that much?"

"What do you think?" Nolan Forrester was both exasperated and amused. He lowered his head and captured her lips. "Aren’t my feelings for you obvious enough?"

After a moment of silence, Shiloh Sloan asked softly, "If one day, I was on the opposite side of your family, who would you choose to help?"

"You."

The answer was crisp and decisive, without a hint of hesitation.

Shiloh Sloan froze.

"That was a fast answer."

"Oh? Was that not the answer you wanted to hear?"

"No, it’s not that. I just..." Her thoughts were in a whirl. She had never imagined she was so important to him.

"Don’t overthink it. Close your eyes." Nolan Forrester’s voice was husky, his eyes dark and intense. He leaned in again and kissed her deeply.

...

Inside the Hawthorne Estate, the atmosphere was exceptionally tense.

Vesper Grayson and Jared Hawthorne walked into the living room to find the patriarch sitting upright in the main seat on the sofa, his hand gripping a dragon-head cane, his eyes slightly closed. Kevin Hawthorne sat alone on one side, while Nancy Linton and Liam Hawthorne sat opposite him. The air between them was deadlocked.

"Grandpa." Jared Hawthorne’s voice broke the silence.

The patriarch slowly opened his eyes and gestured for the two of them to sit.

Liam Hawthorne’s head snapped up, his gaze locking onto Vesper Grayson.

He hadn’t seen her in a month. Her features had grown even more gentle and soft, and she was enveloped in the unique, tender aura of pregnancy, so dazzling it was impossible to look away.

He had long since accepted the fact that she had married another man and was carrying his child, but whenever the night grew quiet, memories of their time together would still flood his mind.

But things had changed, and the person by her side was no longer him.

Liam Hawthorne’s stare was too direct, too scorching. Jared Hawthorne’s brow furrowed, and he shot him a cold glance, his eyes carrying a clear warning.

Liam Hawthorne quickly averted his gaze, picked up his teacup, and took a sip, a bitter taste spreading from the corner of his lips.

The person he once spent every day with... now, even looking at her for an extra moment felt like an extravagant, forbidden desire.

"Grandpa, did you call us back for something important?" Jared Hawthorne asked.

"Your second uncle and aunt are planning to divorce. I want to hear your thoughts on the matter."

Jared Hawthorne gave a faint smile. "That’s a private matter between them. As a junior, it’s not my place to interfere."

"You’re the head of the Hawthorne family now. You should be managing the affairs of our clansmen."

"It’s a marital dispute. As their nephew, it’s not appropriate for me to get involved."

He had no intention of getting mixed up in the mess of the second branch of the family. He knew the patriarch was only pushing this problem onto him because he was powerless to mediate it himself.

Kevin Hawthorne looked mortified and stated in a low voice, "Dad, I don’t agree to the divorce."

He was the one who had insisted on a divorce before, but now that Nancy Linton wanted one, he was against it!

"I am getting this divorce, and that’s final." Nancy Linton’s attitude was resolute. Her gaze toward Kevin Hawthorne was distant and detached, devoid of any warmth or affection.

Kevin Hawthorne’s face turned ashen. "I will never sign the divorce papers."

"Then I’ll see you in court," Nancy Linton said, not backing down an inch. She had evidence of Kevin Hawthorne’s infidelity, his abandonment of their child, and his raising of another’s. Even if it went to litigation, the court would surely grant the divorce. It would just take more time, and right now, patience was something she had in spades.

"Nancy Linton, do you have to be so ruthless?" Kevin Hawthorne’s voice trembled.

Nancy Linton’s expression was calm and unwavering. "My mind is made up. I don’t want to torture each other anymore. From now on, I just want to live for myself for once."

Before, she had worried about their son, Liam Hawthorne. But now Liam had already established himself at the company and won everyone’s approval. She had nothing left tying her down.

She saw through him completely. Kevin Hawthorne’s current remorse wasn’t genuine repentance; he was only remembering her good qualities now because he’d discovered he had been deceived.

But all her unconditional affection had long since been worn away by countless arguments and disappointments.

Looking back on half her life, she had given her heart to the wrong person and wasted her best years.

Perhaps he was too used to the love-filled way she used to look at him. Now, faced with her gaze as still and cold as water, Kevin Hawthorne actually didn’t dare to meet her eyes.

He turned his head, pinning his hopes on his son.

"Liam, what do you think?"

Liam Hawthorne shot him a cold look. "I respect Mother’s decision. You should just let her go."

Those words struck him like a heavy blow. Kevin Hawthorne instantly deflated, looking as if he had aged several years in a moment.

"We’ve been married for over twenty years, Nancy. Do you really not have a single shred of affection left for me?"

"No." Nancy Linton’s tone was placid. "Let’s part on good terms."

Her words, "Let’s part on good terms," finally made the insistent Kevin Hawthorne give in.

"Since this is your choice, I’ll grant it."

He picked up the divorce agreement from the table and signed his name.

Her wish granted, Nancy Linton let out a long sigh of relief. Settling this privately was far more dignified than dragging it through the courts.

She didn’t linger. She said her goodbyes to the patriarch, Jared Hawthorne, and Vesper Grayson in turn, then left the estate with Liam Hawthorne.

Kevin Hawthorne followed them out soon after, his back slightly hunched. He looked utterly dejected.

"Come on, let’s eat!" the patriarch said, rising to his feet in a surprisingly good mood.

The recent episode didn’t seem to have affected his mood at all.

Vesper Grayson supported him as they walked to the dining room. "Grandpa, you actually supported their divorce, didn’t you?"

"Of course. They should have divorced long ago!" the patriarch snorted. "It’s a good thing Nancy has such a good temper. Any other woman would have fought him to the bitter end."

He had been the one to act so heartlessly, leaving no room for compromise. He couldn’t blame anyone.

Vesper Grayson’s lips curved. ’The patriarch is quite principled.’

’He doesn’t hold back at all, even when criticizing his own son.’

"Ah, Vesper, the Hawthorne family has excellent genes. Your second uncle is an exception."

"Mm-hmm."

The patriarch smiled and asked, "What day are you two planning to leave for Veridia?"