Chapter 590
Chapter 589:
He wrapped the ice carefully in the delicate fabric, constructing a makeshift cold compress of almost absurd luxury. He was a man who could start wars in the market. Right now, he was simply a desperate husband, doing whatever he could with whatever he had.
Gaston lowered himself onto the plush wool rug in front of the sofa, one knee on the floor, looking up at Jocelyn with an intensity that made her breath catch.
He pressed the silk-wrapped ice pack carefully against her swollen cheek. The sudden cold made her gasp, but it was quickly followed by a wave of numbing relief. The fiery throbbing began to recede.
His touch was incredibly gentle, as though he were handling something fragile and irreplaceable. His fingertips brushed against her skin as he held the compress in place, and the contact sent a shiver down her spine that had nothing to do with the cold.
The hidden camera captured the moment with quiet precision — the sharp, handsome lines of Gaston’s profile, the worry etched into his brow, the absolute devotion in his dark eyes.
Jocelyn looked at him, her eyes swimming with grateful tears. “Thank you, Gaston,” she whispered.
He reached up with his free hand and gently stroked her hair. A small, teasing smile touched his lips, though his eyes remained fiercely protective.
“If you can’t handle a little toothache,” he murmured, his voice a low, soft rumble, “how are you going to handle childbirth, hmm p>
The words were a tease, but they were laced with something deeper — a profound, quietly spoken hope for the future. A future he was desperate to share with her.
Jocelyn let out a watery laugh and swatted weakly at his shoulder, looking at him with a mixture of annoyance and overwhelming love.
𝘘𝘶a𝘭𝗶𝘁y 𝘵r𝘢𝗇𝘀𝗅а𝗍i𝘰n𝗌 𝗈𝗇 𝗀𝘢𝗅ո𝗈𝘷е𝘭s.𝗰𝗼𝗺
Gaston held her gaze. He leaned forward and gently kissed away the tear tracks on her cheek — a soft, reverent touch full of a healing tenderness. Then his lips drifted to the corner of her mouth, the side that wasn’t swollen, and finally pressed firmly against hers.
It wasn’t a kiss of passion. It was a kiss of pure comfort — designed to distract her, to anchor her, to absorb some measure of her pain and draw it away.
Jocelyn closed her eyes and melted into it. The ache in her jaw faded into insignificance against the warmth spreading through her chest.
The moment was broadcast live, unedited, to the world. GastonCollinsKiss shot to the top of the global trending list within seconds. The live stream’s traffic hit an all-time peak, the servers straining under the load.
In the control room, Penelope leaped out of her chair. “We did it!” she shouted at her team. “We created a monster p>
Miles away in Washington D.C., the atmosphere was entirely different.
Conrad Sterling sat behind his massive mahogany desk, sipping a glass of extraordinarily expensive single-malt whiskey. He was in an excellent mood.
His secretary walked in carrying a tablet. “Sir, there is no unusual activity from Justin Collins. He appears entirely focused on his family matters p>
A lobbyist seated across from Conrad slid a thick envelope across the desk — a bribe for a favorable vote on an energy bill.