His Heart Knew Before He Did novel Chapter 11

Simon York froze for a few seconds, his voice laced with disbelief as he sought confirmation.

"Lydia, what did you just say? Who is he?"

"I'm Lydia's boyfriend." This time, Xavier Vance took over the conversation, smoothly extending his right hand toward Simon. "Nice to meet you. I'm Xavier."

Simon stiffly reached out to shake his hand. "Hello. I'm Simon York."

Xavier pulled his hand back and naturally draped his arm over Lydia's shoulders, pulling her a little closer to his chest.

"Ah, I've heard so much about you. Lydia has mentioned you before. She said..." Xavier offered a silent, mocking smile. "You were like a brother to her."

For some reason, a layer of inescapable bitterness coated Simon's heart.

He took a deep breath and looked at Lydia again, seeking one last shred of reassurance.

"Lydia, you're lying to me, aren't you? You just moved back to your hometown. There's no way you found a boyfriend this quickly. Besides, for all these years, there hasn't been a single man by your side except for me. You wouldn't be this careless with your relationships. Are you just doing this to make me mad so..."

"Simon," Lydia cut him off decisively. "You're overthinking it. I'm not that childish. Xavier and I met on a blind date a few days ago. We felt we were a good match, so we got together. I genuinely think he's a great guy and I want to see where this goes. It has absolutely nothing to do with anyone else, any past events, or you."

Simon stared into Lydia's eyes, trying to dig up any trace of a lie in her gaze.

But he couldn't catch the flicker of hesitation he so desperately wanted to see.

After a long moment, he furrowed his brows slightly, his tone dead serious. "Lydia, relationships aren't a game. I'm not against you dating, but ask yourself honestly—do you really know him? Do you love him?"

"People can take their time to get to know each other, and feelings can be nurtured over time. As long as I'm willing, none of that matters right now."

Simon was momentarily left speechless.

Lydia had loved him for so many years, yet she had never once revealed her true feelings to him.

Now, hearing her speak with such absolute certainty about another man made his chest feel incredibly tight.

But on second thought, he was getting married soon. Lydia needed to have her own life.

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