A Journey from Bitterness to Truth (Matilda and Yvan) novel Chapter 809

"Am I losing my mind?"

Yvan couldn’t hold back, his eyes red with emotion. Matilda stared blankly at the man hovering above her. His face was still as strikingly handsome and fierce as ever, the kind that made him the dream man of every woman in Ashton City. But right now, tears were falling from that face onto Matilda's own, like acid burning her skin, making her whole body ache.

Yvan's voice was husky with tears as he tried to mark his place in Matilda's life, but she didn’t want it, couldn’t bear it. A tattoo of Yvan’s name was already a mark of shame—how could she let him leave another trace on her body? She wished she could carve out the flesh on her waist to erase that line of ink.

"Matilda..." Yvan clung to Matilda’s shirt, trembling. This vulnerability was something she had never seen in him before, and now it felt both alien and terrifying.

"I don’t know what to do anymore," he said, his voice breaking. "You want to leave, and I can't stop you..." He looked up, gripping Matilda's bare shoulder. She realized what he intended and cried out, "No! Yvan—you can’t do this..."

She felt a fleeting memory of when he had rescued her from a dangerous situation on Kangaroo Island, pulling her away from menacing strangers with the grace of a guardian angel, whisking her away to safety in a hotel, gently luring her into his world. Yet, he had stopped, saying, "I respect your choice. I won't force you. You're a good girl."

But now... Reality hit her like a cold slap. Matilda felt like a shattered doll beneath Yvan. Why is it that the beginning is always the most beautiful? The deeper you go... the more it hurts?

Yvan... I’d rather mourn in the abyss of your absence forever than face your cruelty again.

It was as if Yvan sensed her thoughts. His hand paused.