Chapter 268\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now there was a chance like this to help her overcome her inner\u00a0<\/p>\n
demon.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was a good thing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine got home, thinking about what Leona had said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Of course, she knew Leona\u2019s whole \u201cI\u2019ll tell you in three months\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
thing was just to provoke her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If she fell for a simple provocation like that, she wouldn\u2019t be\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If she wanted to know what was said back then, Madeleine\u00a0<\/p>\n
could just ask Roderick directly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick had just gotten home from work and wanted to get\u00a0<\/p>\n
close with Madeleine when he heard her question.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBack then?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick frowned, as if he was having a hard time\u00a0<\/p>\n
remembering.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 268\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, don\u2019t say it didn\u2019t happen. I saw it with my own eyes. You\u00a0<\/p>\n
two were talking, and her eyes were all red. You were probably\u00a0<\/p>\n
comforting her, right?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
As Madeleine spoke, she pouted. The movement was barely\u00a0<\/p>\n
noticeable, but Roderick still caught it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He thought for a moment, then reached out and pulled\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine, who was standing in front of him, onto his lap.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember now.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou remember?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine stared at him. \u201cWhat did you two talk about?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember now. You were the one who lost the trophy that\u00a0<\/p>\n
day. Madeleine, did you lose the trophy because of this?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine, who had been staring at Roderick for an answer, fell\u00a0<\/p>\n
right into his trap.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She opened her mouth, but couldn\u2019t get the words out clearly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine instinctively shot back, but her eyes darted away. She tried to get off Roderick\u2019s lap, but he held her waist firmly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 268\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWho cares what you two were talking about? I just\u2026 I just had a bad day, I wasn\u2019t in a good mood!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick let out a low chuckle, his chest vibrating slightly. He\u00a0<\/p>\n
gently rubbed his chin against the top of her head, his tone knowing and a little teasing:\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOh?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Just a bad day?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Not because you saw me talking to another girl and got jealous?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWho\u2019s jealous?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, instantly bristling, but her cheeks flushed against her will.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t flatter yourself. I was\u2026 I just hate Leona, that\u2019s right, I\u00a0<\/p>\n
hate her!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cReally?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick raised an eyebrow, deliberately drawing out his tone,\u00a0<\/p>\n
his deep gaze locked on her darting eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt really wasn\u2019t because you liked me back then, so\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 268\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cRoderick!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine cut him off, flustered and annoyed, reaching to cover\u00a0<\/p>\n
his mouth. The tips of her ears were bright red. \u201cDon\u2019t say\u00a0<\/p>\n
another word!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick smoothly caught her mischievous hand, holding it in\u00a0<\/p>\n
his palm. The smile on his face faded, and he became serious.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He sighed, pulling her a little closer into his embrace.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay, I\u2019ll stop teasing you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He said in a low voice, his fingertips gently stroking the back of\u00a0<\/p>\n
her hand, \u201cThat day, I was talking to her, but I wasn\u2019t comforting\u00a0<\/p>\n
her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine stopped struggling and looked up at him, confused.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI was asking her if she knew about the rumors.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick\u2019s gaze grew calm, holding a hint of a businessman\u2019s\u00a0<\/p>\n
cold edge. \u201cMy tone was probably a bit harsh, and she started\u00a0<\/p>\n
crying.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI told her in no uncertain terms that the Livingston family wouldn\u2019t stand by while someone damaged your reputation with\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 268\u00a0<\/p>\n
dirty tricks.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If she tried any more tricks, or if those rumors had anything to\u00a0<\/p>\n
do with her, the consequences would be more than she could\u00a0<\/p>\n
handle.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick\u2019s tone was calm, but after he finished, he looked a\u00a0<\/p>\n
little regretful.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe rumors eventually died down, but my investigation showed\u00a0<\/p>\n
it really had nothing to do with Leona herself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine was stunned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had never thought the truth would be like this.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At the time, she had only seen Leona\u2019s red\u2013rimmed eyes and\u00a0<\/p>\n
lowered head, and subconsciously assumed\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2026 cried?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeleine asked hesitantly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roderick nodded. \u201cShe probably felt humiliated, or maybe\u00a0<\/p>\n
wronged?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 268\u00a0<\/p>\n
After all, there was no direct evidence pointing to her at the\u00a0<\/p>\n
time. I apologized to her afterward, I just didn\u2019t expect\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He gave a helpless smile and brushed the tip of Madeleine\u2019s\u00a0<\/p>\n
nose with his finger. \u201cThat a certain little fool would see half of\u00a0<\/p>\n
it, misunderstand for all these years, and even get angry\u00a0<\/p>\n
enough to throw her trophy away.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
With the truth out in the open, Madeleine felt a complex mix of\u00a0<\/p>\n
emotions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So back then, Roderick had been protecting her in his own way.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And Leona\u2026 perhaps she really had shouldered some baseless\u00a0<\/p>\n
accusations and pressure, to the point that it became an\u00a0<\/p>\n
obsession.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSo,\u201d Roderick lowered his head, resting his forehead against\u00a0<\/p>\n
hers, their warm breaths mingling. \u201cCan you tell me now why\u00a0<\/p>\n
you were so angry you threw away your trophy back then?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Was it really just because \u2018you didn\u2019t perform well\u201c?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 269\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 269\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cedella is a passionate storyteller known for her bold romantic and spicy novels that keep readers hooked from the very first chapter. With a flair for crafting emotionally intense plots and unforgettable characters, she blends love, desire, and drama into every story she writes. Cedella\u2019s storytelling style is immersive and addictive\u2014perfect for fans of heated romances and heart-pounding twists.<\/p>\n
Night Carved Paths Into Silence by Zyrel Ash ` 268 Chapter 268\u00a0 Now there was a chance like this to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[85],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-heart-surgeons-last-patient-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29565"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29565\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}