The man’s tone was laced with a meaning Celestine couldn’t quite place, but it left her mind wandering in all the wrong directions.
Her fingers gave an involuntary twitch.
She turned and met his gaze.
Gideon lowered his eyes. For a split second, as he blinked, she caught a strange glimmer of vulnerability–almost pitiable, almost suspicious.
Celestine snatched her hand back as if she’d touched a live wire.
No, she had to be mistaken. There was no way Gideon was the type to feign
weakness.
She remembered meeting him all those years ago–his body covered in shocking
wounds, and not once had he ever uttered a complaint in her presence.
Maybe this time it really did hurt?
Celestine found herself genuinely doubting. But no matter how she tried, she just couldn’t convince herself.
Then, suddenly, it hit her.
Gideon was married now.
People do change–sometimes because of someone else. They start picking up each other’s habits, even their expressions, without realizing it.
Maybe Gideon was just unconsciously imitating his wife, letting his guard down in a way he never had before.
The realization settled her nerves. If that was the case, it all made sense.
She pulled out a chair and sat down across from Gideon, facing him directly.
Carefully, she began to unwrap the blood–stained bandage on his arm.
A sharp intake of breath broke the silence. The sound of Gideon hissing in pain made her scalp prickle.
Celestine forced herself to stay calm and said, “Mr. Prescott, I’m not a professional, This might hurt a bit, so please bear with me.””
Gideon, who’d been half–heartedly faking pain for sympathy, gave her a look of
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disbelief.
He narrowed his eyes, noticing how completely unfazed Celestine seemed by his suffering.
Had he overdone it? No, this had to be Vernon’s stupid self–help book–it claimed every woman would fall for this routine.
Gideon smirked inwardly, a touch of cold amusement flickering in his eyes.
“Achoo!”
Halfway across town, Vernon was wedged between a group of bickering board members when a sudden sneeze escaped him.
Are these old vultures cursing me behind my back? His gaze turned sharp as he scanned the room, eyes flicking over every face.
A sly smile tugged at Vernon’s lips. “Just so you all know, everything you say today will be passed along to the CEO–word for word.”
“What? I thought the CEO was still missing!“/
“Yeah, isn’t there still a search party out?”
Vernon arched an eyebrow. “Right, I forgot to mention–he’s perfectly fine. I talk to him every day.”
His announcement landed like a thunderclap. The shareholders who’d been plotting just moments ago paled instantly.
By the time Celestine finished re–bandaging Gideon’s wound, breakfast was barely over. She hurried through her meal, grabbed her phone, and escaped to her room so fast you’d think she was being chased by wild animals.
The truth was, Gideon’s icy stare had been fixed on her the entire time, making it impossible to eat in peace.
Sandra, picking up on the tension, couldn’t resist teasing them. “Trouble in paradise?”
Gideon calmly set down his fork. A deep, almost nonchalant “Mm” rumbled from his throat.
Sandra grinned. “Women always need a little coaxing, you know. With how little you and your girlfriend talk, a stranger might think you barely know each other.”
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“I understand. I’ll keep that in mind.” Gideon pulled out a napkin and wiped his fingers with deliberate care.
He paused, his gray eyes softening as he asked, “Is there anything else I should know?”
Oblivious to their conversation, Celestine switched on the phone Gideon had given
her.
There was no SIM card, but she managed to connect to Sandra’s Wi–Fi.
WhatsApp wouldn’t load, so she downloaded a trending news app instead.
The moment it finished installing, dozens of notifications popped up:
#Breaking: Hong Kong businessman Chester admits he’s married! His wife is NOT Joanna Sinclair!
#Exclusive: Mrs. Fordham fell into Sharkwater! Still missing–Chester posts $5 million reward!
Celestine blinked, thinking she must have misread.
After all these years, Chester had hidden their marriage for Joanna’s sake–how could he suddenly go public online, let alone offer a reward to find her?
