Chapter 1243
Through Zephyr, Riley met Nicholas. However, she never expected Nicholas to fall in love with her. Nicholas never confessed, and Riley remained oblivious.
Riley thought she’d happily marry Zephyr but faced relentless doubts.
The Scott family especially looked down on Riley.
Even once, at the banquet of the Scott family, a relative of the Scott family questioned Riley in front of everyone. The relative asked how someone like her who had been in prison could marry Zephyr, pointing out Lommore was filled with high-society ladies with better
backgrounds. Despite being the miss of the Summer family, Riley had a past that couldn’t be ignored.
To make matters worse, this relative even weaved a hypothetical tale about female inmates turning to unsavory professions behind bars, subtly insinuating that Riley
have been involved in such activities.
It all seemed utterly absurd.
Riley refuted every claim made by that relative, standing her ground. Yet, her rebuttals triggered a backlash from a group of the Scott family relatives.
Riley engaged in a verbal duel with them, holding her own and rendering them speechless.
However, there was no joy in Riley’s victory, only a profound sense of loss. Zephyr, the man who claimed his love for Riley at the cost of his life, hadn’t uttered a single word in Riley’s defense from start to finish.
Leaving the banquet, Riley found solace near a food cart, drowning her sorrows. Yet, she met Nicholas, who had been finding her after hearing what happened at the banquet.
Tears welled up unconsciously in Riley’s eyes when Riley saw Nicholas.
Riley didn’t expect that the first person to find her was Nicholas, not Zephyr.
Nicholas wiped away Riley’s tears recklessly. Seeing that Riley was drunk, Nicholas wanted to send her back.
However, when they reached the entrance of the Summer residence, they found Zephyr waiting there.
It was then Riley realized Nicholas loved her.
That night, Zephyr and Nicholas fought. That night, Zephyr, ignoring Riley’s wishes, claimed her as his.
Zephyr argued he loved Riley too much. Despite her disappointment, Riley felt that a part of her still clung to Zephyr.
Perhaps it was because Zephyr once said, “I, Zephyr, will love Riley as if it were my destiny!”
Riley knew that she loved Zephyr, so she didn’t want to separate. If Zephyr could trust her, she could overlook everything.
She took the initiative to find Nicholas and made it clear to him, “I don’t love you. The person I love is Zephyr.
“I know. I never intended to ruin your relationship. I thought I hid my feelings well, but Zephyr had already figured it out.”
From then on, Riley distanced herself from Nicholas. To Riley’s surprise, Zephyr would still be suspicious and jealous of her even if she just had minor encounters with Nicholas.
Their arguments grew, leading Nicholas to a final decision. “I will go abroad. If I’m not in Lommore, there won’t be any conflicts between you and Zephyr.”
Unexpectedly, after that farewell, Nicholas escorted Riley home only to meet with an accident.
Nicholas sacrificed himself to protect Riley, but Zephyr, the man who vowed to love Riley with his life, let Riley be sent to a psychiatric hospital without any action. Zephyr didn’t even come to visit Riley.
Initially, Riley fought against her wrongful confinement, repeatedly claiming her sanity. Every attempt to escape was filled with hope, hoping Zephyr would rescue her.
Nonetheless, Zephyr never came.
Riley’s hope turned into despair, then into emptiness.
Riley’s love for Zephyr dwindled during those endless, hopeless days.
Slowly, Riley opened her eyes to the light of day. She realized it was morning. A caregiver watched her with concern. “Ms. Summer, you’re awake. Need help to the bathroom?”
“Yes, please,” Riley replied, sitting up and noticing tears in her eyes.
It was because she dreamt of the past, of the unbearable pain.
In the bathroom, after freshening up, a caregiver came to change Riley’s bandages and then served Riley breakfast.
Everything felt drastically different from her time in the psychiatric hospital.
As Riley was halfway through her breakfast, a commotion erupted outside her ward. Shouting was followed by sounds of fighting.
Frowning, Riley wondered what was happening outside. The door of the ward was suddenly pushed open as someone barged in. The caregiver in the ward tried to stop the intruder, but the next moment, Riley was swiftly overpowered.
Just then, a figure entered Riley’s ward. When Riley saw that person’s face, her pupils constricted.
That person was… Zephyr.
Zephyr had come to Riley’s ward.
At this moment, the security guards outside had been controlled by Zephyr’s men, and Zephyr was slowly walking toward her.
Riley’s body stiffened, and a chill rushed up from her back.
“Zephyr! What does he want?” Riley thought.
“Because of the reporters, it was inconvenient to speak. So, I chose a quieter time to meet you,” Zephyr said.
Zephyr’s magnetic voice and his refined face were what Riley had once loved.
However, at this moment, as Riley looked at Zephyr, all her affection had evaporated.
“Mr. Scott, I don’t know what more there is to say between us,” Riley replied hoarsely.
Zephyr furrowed his brows. Riley’s voice, once soft, now sounded grating.
Zephyr turned, instructing his subordinates, “Wait outside the ward.”
“Okay,” Zephyr’s men acknowledged, leaving the ward along with the caregivers.
Now, there were only Riley and Zephyr in the ward.
Zephyr’s gaze bore into Riley. The white bandage on her forehead was glaringly visible.
“You’re quite devoted to Nicholas. Venturing into the Griffin family’s cemetery late at night, willingly injuring yourself. If he knew your dedication, he’d consider his death worthwhile,” Zephyr said sarcastically.
Riley felt a chill creeping over her as she thought, “Zephyr knows about last night? That means there was a spy among the security guards at the cemetery.”
“Worthwhile?” Riley found it both ridiculous and pathetic. “Zephyr, my
devotion to Nicholas, my injuries… it’s not about worth. You never devotion to Nicholas, my injuries… i
understood me, though I once believed you did.”
