Filed to story: Mr Williams Madame Is Dying Novel Free Online (Madison & Hunter)
He could already wander around at home because his legs got better. He didn’t need others to support him.
It was the early summer, and the temperature was rising.
Lying down under a tree, Madison was getting sleepy and fell asleep.
When she woke up, there was a blanket over her. Jeff was waving a fan to shoo the mosquitoes away as he always did when she was a child.
Her mother passed away, when she was younger, but he gave her all the love she needed.
Her childhood wasn’t a sad one due to the absence of maternal love.
On the contrary, she grew up into a confident and capable person under Jeff’s love.
At that time, her eyes spoke of determination, and she gave a warm yet confident aura to others.
He had long noticed something after he regained consciousness-it was rare to see her smile.
She wouldn’t bring up Hunter in front of Jeff, either.
She would put on a gentle smile sometimes, but not anymore. Aside from eating and sleeping, she was mostly absent-minded.
Even though she had been forcing smiles so that he wouldn’t notice, Jeff could see through her.
After all, she was the daughter he raised for years.
Hunter was the cause of her personality change.
Jeff didn’t know what Hunter had done. The couple’s relationship was getting worse after Hunter took her back home.
He was aware of everything, and it pained him to see her acting this way. Thus, he spent most of his time keeping her company.
Madison was baffled to see him waving a fan gently as soon as she woke up. “Dad.”
“You’re awake. Are you thirsty? Tea time is ready.”
Her cheeks turned red. “I’m not a kid, Dad.”
He chuckled and stroked her hair. “To me, you will always be a kid. I got your back.”
“I know.”
“Madison, I know that you’re not having a happy life right now. Let’s leave this place.”
She was taken aback by that. “Is this place bad?”
“It’s not bad, but you’re unhappy. It’s been a long time since I saw a genuine smile on your face.
“I don’t know what’s going on between you and Hunter. But if he’s the cause for it, I will get you out of here.”
He caressed her hair gently. “I’m broke and can’t provide you the best like before.
“But I can get a job and earn a living to feed you. Do you still remember what I said?
“Happiness comes before anything. The others come after that. I wish to see my daughter’s happy face, not watching her living days gloomily.
“I’ve been through the same thing before. If something’s wrong in a relationship, you need time to overcome it.
“You’re still young, and there’s a long life ahead of you. Give yourself and Hunter some space.”
Biting her lip, she shook her head lightly. “We can’t leave for now, Dad. We can’t go anywhere.”
He remained firm with his stance. “Why not? Do you think that I can’t feed you because I’m old? I-” “No. It’s not because of you.” She looked at her belly while stroking it. “I’m pregnant, Dad.”
Jeff was in disbelief, which turned into shock and, subsequently, joy.
“R-Really?”
Jeff became visibly more relaxed. He had thought the relationship between Madison and Hunter was irreparable.
It seemed like he had been overthinking. The two of them were having a child, and it was a good thing.
“Why would I lie to you? I’m a little over a month pregnant, with twins, too.”
Jeff said excitedly, “Great! That’s wonderful.”
Madison had already lost a child when he was hospitalized from the traffic accident.
Even though Madison would always wear a smile when she visited him, she grew more frail as days went by.
It was only natural that Jeff was concerned.
He could relax a bit now that she was pregnant with Hunter’s babies, and they had been together for a long time.
“What has been going on between you and Hunter? Why is he visiting less now that you’re pregnant?”
Madison resisted the urge to tell him the truth. After all, the Evans Family was bankrupt, and Jeff was still recovering.
Nothing good would come out of her telling Jeff the truth. It would only make him hate Hunter.
“He has a unique identity and has recently encountered some trouble. He’s concerned for our safety, so he sent us here to be protected by professionals.
“Besides, I’m not even past my first trimester, so it’s better to be cautious.”
Madison’s explanation cleared up Jeff’s worries. “No wonder he’s been calling me every day but never meeting up. Madison, you have to tell me how you feel about Hunter.”
Madison put a hand on her stomach and lied, “Even though we have had our disagreements, he’s still the father of my babies.”
“That’s true. You’re both still young and are bound to argue from time to time. Don’t overthink things.
“Just focus on keeping your babies healthy. You have to keep them safe this time.
“Everything will be better when they are born. The kids will serve as the bond that keeps you together.
“You’ll be a family as long as there are kids. You’ll look back in a few years and laugh at how naive you were.”
Madison murmured, “The kids will serve as a bond
“That’s right, many young people these days don’t cherish what they have.
“They get divorced too easily. The kids would end up being the innocent victims of the relationship. Will things even get better in the next marriage? New problems will still arise.”
Madison raised her head to look at Jeff’s gentle eyes.
“Dad, what if the marriage is already unsalvageable? What if there was domestic violence, cheating, and compulsive gambling?
“Do we still have to tough it out for the rest of our lives?”
“That’s not what I meant. I was talking about problems that can be overcome.
“The two people have to be willing to change for each other, to become better, and work on the marriage together.
“If it were the scenarios that you mentioned, the problem would be unsolvable. The marriage would be a bondage between an aggressor and a victim.
“I would rather see the marriage end if that was the case.”
Jeff looked at Madison with a gentle but firm gaze. “Madison, I’m not trying to force you to make a choice.
“I just want you to know which choices are the ones that you will not regret. You still have a long life ahead of you. You will need to live for yourself.”
“Dad, what about your relationship with mom? Have you ever blamed her for leaving?”
Madison had too many questions surrounding her parents’ relationship.
Jeff’s expression remained gentle. His voice didn’t change at the mention of Chloe.
“I don’t blame her. Love has always been a multiple-choice question. Why would I blame her? I just wasn’t her choice. Love is about tolerance, understanding, and not hurting.
“Even if I couldn’t have her, I’m willing to let her be with the man that makes her happiest.”
Jeff and Hunter were like polar opposites when it came to love.
Madison couldn’t help but ask, “What did you get out of it?”
Jeff fanned himself and raised his head to look at the sky. “Let me ask you a question. What would I get if I forced her to stay?”
Madison fell silent.
Jeff added, “All I would get is resentment. She wouldn’t yell at me for it, but she’d ignore me and hate me for the rest of her life. She’d lament the unfairness of the world. Her eyes would become lifeless, and her lips would never smile.
“Even if I had her with me in person, I’d never have her heart. The relationship would look fine on the surface but would actually be in ruins. That would’ve resulted in you having to walk on eggshells during your childhood.
“I’ll never forget how you tried so hard to make her like you. You were still so young. Kids your age had no worries, but you were trying your best to win her favor. And despite your efforts, she still didn’t warm up to you.
“Sooner or later, you would’ve become like her if we had remained a family torn by such internal conflicts.
“A peacock is only beautiful because it has enough space to roam freely. It wouldn’t even display its feathers if it was stuck in a cage unhappily. Its beauty would be concealed.
“I let her go so that there wouldn’t be hate, even if there was no love. She’d get the happiness and freedom she wanted, and I’d be satisfied spiritually. The only regret was that you lost your mother.
“The truth is, nothing is guaranteed to work out in this world. Sometimes, you won’t get anything in return even if you worked hard. It all boils down to how we make our choices.”
Madison understood how Jeff felt. It was similar to what she was going through with Hunter.
“You must love Mom a lot, right, Dad?”
“Of course, I do. I fell hopelessly in love the first time I met her. Your mother was elegant and dignified. She was perfect in every way. The sad thing was that she never loved me. She married me due to circumstances, and I tried my best to love her during our years together.
“I was never able to change her mind, though. So, I set her free. Knowing she got the happiness she sought, I feel my hard work didn’t go to waste.”
Madison asked, “You never remarried after Mom left. Is it because you never met anyone else you liked?”
Madison saw that Jeff’s expression changed when she brought that up. His face lost its glow immediately.
Jeff looked at Madison with a sigh. He decided to tell her the truth.
“There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you. You were still too young then. I wanted to wait a couple of years before telling you. Then, all those things happened…”
Jeff shook his head and continued, “It’s already come to this. I think you deserve to know the truth. There was a woman I liked a few years back. She was slightly older than you. She was pretty, lively, and her eyes always glowed. She was a student whose education I funded. It’s such a pity…”
Jeff’s expression became worse as he said, “I had thought she was just a kid when she first confessed her feelings to me. What would people think if an old man like me got together with a young woman like her?”
Madison knew that Jeff was talking about Jodie. She didn’t expect Jeff to be the one to bring it up.
She asked, “What happened next?”
“It’s not like I didn’t plan on getting married again. But you know how serious I am regarding marriage and relationships. I’d never settle with someone I didn’t have feelings for. So, I didn’t pay her any mind.
“She was smart and excelled in her studies like you. She skipped grades multiple times and started working at a young age. She tried her best to appear more mature in front of me. She was frustrated that I treated her like a child.”
“Did you like her, Dad?”
Jeff looked at the clouds, starting to space out.
×××
guess I had feelings for her. She had the liveliness and youthfulness of a young woman. Initially, I took care of her because I felt bad for her. Then, we began to get in touch more. I felt happy when I was with her. I felt younger. So, I started to take her feelings more seriously.”
Jeff turned to look at Madison’s face. “I fell in love with your mother when I was still a boy. I could love unreservedly. At my current age, I had to think twice before acting. I was afraid that you wouldn’t like it. Also, I was worried about what people might say about us.
“My hesitance ended up becoming the reason she left. She was already pregnant when I found her again.
Madison’s eyes widened in surprise. “Her baby wasn’t yours?”
First, it was Leia, then it was Jodie. Both times, when Madison thought she had grasped the truth, she was wrong.
