Chapter 1660

Utterly stunned, Mandy's hand halted mid-air, the sting of impact pulsing through her palm. She

had landed a hard slap on Jonah's face instead.

Julien gazed at Jonah, who had unhesitatingly shielded him, his heart pounding so hard that it was

about to explode. "Jonah, I..."

"Aunt Mandy, please do not hit Julien. He's not to be blamed. It's all my fault.”

A deathly silence descended on the corridor after Jonah addressed Mandy. His calmness in the face

of unyielding pressure felt the more pitiful. "Julien has suffered through beatings for me and the

Taylor family. I do not ever want to put him through anything like that. I will protect him to the best

of my ability.”

Jonah's declaration caught everyone by surprise. Meanwhile, Julien's head hung low. Though

Jonah's gesture touched him, he found himself weighed down by guilt and self-blame.

Since childhood, Edgar and Mandy had instilled in him the belief that he was the hope of the

Lovelace family, thus impressing upon him the expectation to become a responsible and

independent man.

Contrary to expectations, Julien had become a troublemaker, incapable of bringing any value to the

family. He lamented, feeling like he didn't deserve to be called a man.

"Jonah, you said Julien was beaten. What does that mean?” Alyssa's chest tightened.

"Julien has been in a bad place ever since he left the Lovelace family," Jonah recalled the frightening

red marks on Julien's fair complexion. He clenched his fist to suppress his anger. "When Julien heard

about Dad's relapse, he rushed over to treat Dad despite suffering from injuries.”

Mandy grew nervous. "Did the Lovelaces... punish him by the family rule?"

"Jonah, stop it." Julien tugged at Jonah's sleeve and shook his head defeatedly. He said in a barely

audible voice, "Just drop it. It's all in the past. You don't have to explain on my behalf.”

From the sounds of it, Julien had suffered beatings from the Lovelace family. Feeling cold from head

to toe, Mandy stumbled backward. As an ex-Lovelace who left the family, she was privy to their

scary and inhumane family rules applied to punish dissenters.

Now that Jonah and Julien’s relationship had been exposed, Mandy genuinely worried that the

Lovelaces would beat Julien to death.

Without warning, the doors to the treatment room flung open. Winston was wheeled out by Neil,

still looking feeble from the severe relapse. Still, he sat upright, refusing to reveal his vulnerability in

front of his children.

"Dad!" Winston's children appeared worried and scared. Judging from the timing of Winston's

appearance, he must have learned about Jonah and Julien.

They feared that Winston would release his wrath and disappointment on Jonah. Besides, they

worried that the devastating news would deal another blow to his fragile health.

"Dad." Feeling nervous, Jonah instinctively grabbed Julien by the arm and pulled him to the back, a

move that shocked Alyssa.

Jonah's behavior was no different than Jaspers protective stance. He loved Julien the same way

Jasper loved her.

There was nothing wrong with being gay. It did not affect anyone's life in any way.

So what if the relationship subjected the Taylor family to mockery and condemnation? All that

mattered was the family remained a safe haven for Jonah and Julien when the world turned against

the couple.

Julien stood frozen behind Jonah, too afraid to look straight at Winston. He looked oddly

diminished and small despite being tall, good-looking, and accomplished. Overwhelmed with

shame, he wanted to dig a hole and hide in it.