Chapter 467
Noah was looking at William and me with such hope in his eyes. It was apparent he longed for us to nod and tell him that our so called relationship and supposed engagement were an act born of fecessity..
It was heartbreaking to see Noah so desperately hopeful. As I had no real family growing up, I genuinely cared for and cherished him like a younger brother. As for William, his feelings for his nephew ran even deeper.
But, even though we couldn’t bear or wish to see him in such pain, William and I answered in near–perfect unison, “No, we’re not pretending.”
Before Noah could even process those words, William held my hand and added, “Emi and I are really together, and the children she’s carrying are mine. From now on, don’t call her ‘Emi‘ anymore. You should call her ‘Aunt Emi.“”
I couldn’t help turning to William, startled by his blunt and harsh words. Wasn’t he being too cruel by saying this?
William met my gaze but didn’t say anything. He only tightened his grip on my hand.
Like a hangman’s noose, William’s words instantly strangled all spirit from Noah and drained all color from his face.
Shaking his head in denial, he stumbled backward. “No! N–No… This… This can’t be…”
Seeing how much pain he was in, I was overcome with the urge to comfort him. However, I ultimately managed to hold myself
back
William was right. If we wanted Noah to fully give up on his feelings for me, we had to be ruthless. We had to make this a clean
break. Otherwise, things would only get messier down the road.
Noah was still young and so full of potential. He shouldn’t be wasting his time on me. He deserved a better life.
Compared to the way I almost caved, William remained utterly store–faced. He looked as though he was dealing with a stranger.
“It’s the truth,” he said flatly. “From now on, you have to bury the feelings you have for Emi away. They shouldn’t exist.”
William’s cold and unsympathetic words broke Noah.
Crumbling, Noah aggrievedly yelled, “You can’t do this, Uncle Will! You know! You know very well how much I love Emi! You know I’ve worked hard these past years just so I could be with her! So why? Why have you done this to me? Why!”
Noah was completely heartbroken. He was utterly crushed.
He wouldn’t be so anguished and distraught if it had been anyone else. The only one who could make him feel this way was his uncle–only William could hurt and gut him like this.
William knew! He knew just how much Noah liked me and longed to have me. He knew just how much…
Noah wondered how he had done this. He wanted to know how he could have gone through with this.
Ever since he was brought back to the Ashford family, he had told William how much he liked me and how badly he wanted to be
‘with me.
William was the one who understood Noah most–better than anyone else. Yet now, William had snatched away the person he wanted more than anything. His uncle had taken away the one thing Noah valued more than life.
It was why Noah couldn’t make sense of it. William was his uncle and the blood relative who cared about him most.
William had always been stern and cold toward Noah. He also used ruthless tactics against him.
Despite this, Noah knew William only did so for his own good, and so he would grow up well. He also knew his uncle was the person who loved him and his sister the most in this world.
Because of this, Noah couldn’t handle what was happening. He truly couldn’t accept that the uncle who cared about him so much had stolen away the woman he held most dear. It felt like betrayal of the worst kind.
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“Because Emi never liked you that way. She’s only ever seen you as a little brother. Even if you were given a lifetime, she would never fall in love with you,” William answered.
Noah had been about to speak, but William’s callous words rendered him speechless.
He wasn’t an idiot. He had always known I never had any romantic feelings for him. He also knew no matter what he did, I would always only see him as a younger brother.
I would never be with him.
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