Thorns Grow After Betrayal (Celeste and Chester) novel Chapter 34

Gideon closed his hand over his palm, hiding the old scar as he spoke in a gentle, coaxing tone.

"I'm sorry… I'll take responsibility." Celestine's eyes grew even redder, tears threatening to spill.

Vernon could barely keep his thoughts to himself.

The young master, using a scar from over a decade ago to trick a young woman—unbelievable!

Tsk, tsk, tsk.

He was growing more shameless by the day.

Honestly, he should've brought the little miss back from her forced dentist appointment, just so she could witness her uncle's two-faced antics!

"And how do you plan to take responsibility?" Gideon's lips curved with amusement as he reached out, attempting to catch the teardrop trembling at the corner of her eye.

Celestine turned away, quickly rubbing her eyes with her sleeve and dodging his hand.

"I'll save up and hire the best plastic surgeon for you."

Gideon: "?"

Vernon: *snort…*

He prided himself on his professionalism, but sometimes, it was just too much.

Celestine didn't notice the stormy look darkening the man's face. She explained earnestly, "Cosmetic surgery is really advanced these days. I remember there are good hand-reconstruction specialists here in Oceanview. I'll make sure to find the best one for you, Mr. Prescott."

Gideon's smile was all teeth, no warmth. "Miss Selwyn, you must be quite well-off. That's very generous of you."

She seemed in such a hurry to distance herself from him.

Heartless little thing—she'd already forgotten him so completely.

"I don't have much…" Celestine shook her head, missing the sarcasm in his tone. "But I'll work hard to earn the money. I won't let you wait too long."

Soon, she'd finalize her divorce from Chester, and she wouldn't touch a cent of his money.

She needed to step up her efforts to become financially independent.

The longer a scar waited for treatment, the harder it was to heal.

Gideon caught the seriousness in her expression and felt a tightness in his throat.

"All right," he said softly. "I'll be waiting."

"And… I don't want to use my husband's money," Celestine added quietly, worried he might misunderstand.

"Oh, there's no rush," Gideon replied, picking up his bowl and absentmindedly stirring his soup.

So she wouldn't even use Chester's money—she must truly be disappointed in him.

Looking at Gideon's elegantly cold face, she couldn't help but laugh.

It was almost impossible to picture those two versions of him as the same person.

Gideon's gaze darkened; he caught the flash of amusement on Celestine's lips, and his mood lightened instantly.

The next second, distracted, he let Cynthia swoop in and snatch the extra cup of nourishing soup Celestine had brought.

Cynthia downed it, then licked her lips and turned to Gideon with the crafty cunning of a child.

"Uncle Gideon, Miss Angel gave us soup! And isn't there a saying—you can never be too polite, right?"

Gideon winced. "That's not quite how it goes. It's ‘one good turn deserves another.'"

Celestine burst into laughter.

Gideon glanced at her, his tone softening. "Miss Selwyn, would you do me the honor of joining us for dinner?"

Cynthia nodded so enthusiastically her pigtails bounced, her eyes shining as she looked at Celestine.

Celestine couldn't bring herself to refuse; she smiled and agreed, "I'd love to."

While waiting for Gideon to change, Celestine took the chance to check her phone messages.