Chapter 171
Yvette woke up drenched in sweat. Her body was trembling.
In the dim light, she saw that Xavier had already rushed over from the adjacent room. His tension eased slightly when he saw that she was unharmed.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
Yvette’s eyes were red. “I dreamt that I died.” It had felt so real.
The mention of death touched a nerve in Xavier. He stepped forward and wrapped her in his arms, gently patting her back.
He tried to keep his voice as soft as possible as he said, “You didn’t die. I’m here.” He reassured her, pausing before adding, “Don’t be afraid.”
It took Yvette a while to fully return to reality after the nightmare. She looked up at Xavier, but the light was too dim for her to see his face clearly.
“Thank you,” she whispered, then gently pulled away from his embrace and lay back down in bed.
Her polite and distant demeanor made Xavier feel uncomfortable. This time, instead of returning to the other room, he pulled back the covers and lay down beside her, holding her in his arms.
As Yvette stiffened, she heard him say in his deep voice, “If there’s anything bothering you, you can tell
me.”
Yvette felt a lump in her throat. Outside, the wind howled, and the rain poured down. The sudden storm
cooled the once–hot air.
Yvette had been petrified at first. Now that she was being held by Xavier, she felt much more at ease.
She remembered that Xavier had a slight germaphobia In their three years of marriage, he had never held her like this. But now, everything was different.
“Xavier, do you still hate me?” she asked. Xavier’s hold on her tightened momentarily. Without waiting for his reply, Yvette murmured again, “I don’t understand…”
Xavier’s throat tightened. He couldn’t say a word.
Were human beings not allowed to change?
He, too, didn’t know what was wrong with him. He didn’t think he had feelings for Yvette; it was just that it would be troublesome to start anew with someone else.
He was afraid of Yvette dying.
After a long silence, Xavier asked her, “If we got divorced, would you marry Claude?”
Yvette shook her head. “I don’t know.”
But in her heart, she knew she just wanted to live freely. She didn’t want to be trapped by her identity as the woman who married into the Lane family.
She now had a job she loved and two children. She was no longer the woman who was solely devoted to Xavier and love.
1/2
+15 BONUS
“Should I just let you go now?” Xavier suddenly asked.
A glimmer of hope flickered in Yvette’s eyes. “If you did, I would thank you.”
Then, Xavier let go of her hand. His eyes were filled with cold mockery.
“You’re even thinking about it!” he growled.
That one sentence shattered all of Yvette’s hopes. She realized that Xavier was just messing with her.
“What do you take me for?”
“I’ll take you for whatever you take me for!”
Faking death, sudden disappearances, and now a child…
Just thinking about these things made Xavier want to tear Claude to pieces. How could he let Yvette leave with Claude?
“I hope you remember one thing,” Xavier warned. “I’ve never been one to grant others‘ wishes.”
That night, neither of them slept well.
Meanwhile, Daphne was home when she received news that Yvette had been in a car accident but hadn’t died.
At that moment, a call came in, and Andy’s voice came through. “Daph, you have to help me. I’ve been hiding everywhere.”
Daphne’s eyes narrowed. “Where are you right now?”
Andy gave her the address.
After Daphne took a look at it, she forwarded the address to the police without hesitation.
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