Chapter 14
Gigi spun around and walked off, ignoring the rest of the Hart family and Rylan.
They had made up their minds before coming to the island. If she didn’t forgive them, they weren’t leaving. So when she walked off, they just trailed right behind her.
Her godmother was already waiting and rushed out the second she got home. “You’re finally home, Gigi. Anthony made your favorite chicken cutlet, and I rinsed the cherries for you.
“We’ve been waiting. You really should have worn something warmer. Aren’t you cold out there painting?
“Your brother has been complaining too. If you don’t show up soon, he’s going to turn this whole island upside down.”
Gigi smiled at those words. She was just about to speak when a tall, strikingly handsome man stepped out from behind her. “I thought I made it clear. Gigi isn’t my sister. I never said I wanted to be her brother.”
She flushed the second she heard that.
Over the past few days, Julia Palmer and Anthony Carson, her godparents, had been doting on her. They showered her with affection she had never had in the past 20 years.
Wesley Carson had been nothing but amazing to her, but she wasn’t clueless. It wasn’t the way a brother would treat a sister. It was a man falling for a woman.
Julia noticed it too and giggled, patting Wesley’s hand. “Fine. She won’t call you that anymore. Who knows what your relationship will be in the future?”
Gigi walked in with everyone fussing over her, treating her like a princess.
The sight stopped Donovan, Meredith, Kenny, and Rylan in their tracks as they stood at the door.
The scene felt all too familiar. Back then, it was Catherine at the center of it all. Gigi had looked at them with those hopeful eyes more times than they could count, and they had never once cared
Gigi finally got the love she deserved, and it had nothing to do with them. The Hart family was shattered with grief, but Rylan felt it the worst-pain, regret, and jealousy crashing down on him all at once.
As a man himself, Rylan knew exactly what was going through Wesley’s head when it came to Gigi.
Chase 18
As they all sat at the table, Anthony and Julia noticed a few well dressed people at the door, who looked like they had money and power. They couldn’t help but ask Gigi who they were.
Gigi frowned and said coldly, “Just ignore them. They’re just strangers.”
Her words were like a knife to the heart. Meredith’s hand flew to her mouth as she started sobbing. Donovan’s eyes welled up, the weight of his past mistakes with Gigi crashing down. on him.
Drowning in self-blame, Kenny kept his head down and clenched his fists.
Rylan’s eyes were glued to Wesley and Gigi, jealousy gnawing at him like a venomous snake.
He had taken it for granted that Gigi would always be there, always loving him. But now she had found someone else—a man who actually knew how to treat her right.
Wesley seemed to sense the gaze trained on him. He looked up slightly, glancing toward the door with a hint of warning in his gaze. He gently took Gigi’s hand, as if making a statement
to everyone watching.
She blushed a little when she felt his touch, but she didn’t pull away. She knew he was protecting her, keeping her from getting hurt again.
Rylan and the Harts stayed outside the door for three days straight, but Gigi never came out to
see them.
Three days later, they were barely holding it together. Their lips were chapped, and the light.
in their eyes was gone.
Meredith was already in poor health. After going so long without food or water, she couldn’t take it anymore and passed out.
Panic swept over Donovan, Kenny, and Rylan as they hurried to Meredith’s side.
Inside the house, Gigi heard the commotion and felt a pang in her heart. Wesley gently took her hand, and even though he remained silent, his calm gaze conveyed the message. “Don’t worry. I’m here.”
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