Matilda felt her body tense when Jacob approached and suddenly wrapped his arms around her from behind.


    For over twenty years, she had secretly wished for this moment—to be embraced tightly by Jacob, the only man she had ever truly loved.


    Now, her first love from all those years ago held her close, his hands securely resting on her waist. In that instant, Matilda was flooded with emotions reminiscent of their youth.


    As her feelings surged, she instinctively ced her hand over his. But as soon as she did, a wave of realization hit her: this was not right.


    Panic set in, and she quickly pulled away from Jacob’s embrace, smoothing her hair as she spoke awkwardly, “Jacob, we can’t do this. You’re still married, and I can’t betray ine!”<h3 style="background-color:DodgerBlue">


    Jacob, visibly agitated, responded, “She’s the one who broke your trust and let you down! When we were together, ine knew about our strong bond. She was fully aware that I was your boyfriend, yet she took advantage of me when I was vulnerable. If she hadn’t acted so shamelessly, we could have still been together!”


    After a brief sigh, Matilda replied, “While it’s true that ine made mistakes, I was the one who chose to let you go. I decided to give you to her, and now I can’t betray her. I shouldn’t do anything that would hurt her. It’s a matter of principle. I don’t want to be just like her.”


    Jacob argued passionately, “That woman destroyed our rtionship and the happiness we could have shared. Do you really think principles matter when ites to someone as despicable as her?”


    With determination, Matilda responded, “I understand that ine plotted everything that happened. I know she’s a viin, but I refuse to sink to her level just because I’ve been hurt.”


    Looking Jacob in the eye, she continued, “No matter what, you are still ine’s husband. We can meet and share meals like friends, but starting a romantic rtionship isn’t an option…”


    Tears welled up in Jacob’s eyes as he looked at Matilda, his voice trembling as he asked, “Does that mean we can never be together again? After so many years apart, can’t we try to make up for lost time? Don’t you have any regrets?”


    Matilda’s face fell, her heart heavy. “Of course I want that. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have left the United States to return to Aurous Hill. But I believe that a gentleman should handle love and finances wisely. Maybe there will be a chance for us after your divorce from ine.”


    Without hesitation, Jacob eximed, “Then I’ll divorce her right away!”


    Matilda replied firmly, “Jacob, please don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying that if you divorce ine, we’ll automatically be together.”


    Nervously, Jacob asked, “Matilda, what do you mean? I don’t get what you’re saying. Don’t you want to be with me?”<fn9a88> The rightful source is Find1Novel</fn9a88>


    With sincerity, Matilda exined, “Jacob, we haven’t seen each other in years. How can we just jump back into a rtionship? It’s not that simple.”


    Continuing with her serious tone, she added, “When we first fell in love, we were just students, spending our days in school, surrounded by ssmates. We never had the chance to be alone together. Now that we’re older, love feels different. At our age, we need to think not only about our feelings but also about our children and how they would perceive our rtionship.”<h3 ss="has-text-align-center" id="chapter-list"><strong></strong>