Chapter 464

Adrian Boucher smiled wistfully. "Yes, I envied him for having parents who adored him. I envied the freedom he possessed."

The loneliness flickering in his eyes made Evelyn Vanderbilt realize his envy of Nathan was genuine.

Adrian continued, his voice detached. "Someone once told me that a life without dreams is tragic. That existing merely to follow rules, jumping from one day to the next without purpose, is no way to live."

His gaze shifted to Evelyn. "That person was Nathan’s mother—Aunt Victoria Knowles."

Evelyn’s lips parted, but no words came out.

Adrian spoke slowly, as if recalling distant memories. "My family elders were always strict. As a child, I was drilled in etiquette, tradition, and endless books to expand my knowledge. Private school only added more burdens. There was no time to play, let alone hope for friendships."

Evelyn understood. Noble birth granted privilege, but the chains of expectation were suffocating.

"How did you and Nathan meet?" she asked suddenly, curiosity sparking about Nathan’s past.

Adrian’s expression softened. "Once, my family punished me by making me kneel before our ancestors’ portraits for a mistake I’d made. I was so angry, I ran away from the manor. That’s when I stumbled upon Nathan and his mother on the street."

He had been just a child then, and Nathan only a year older. Victoria had found him crying in a corner and, after hearing his story, brought him home to the Goldmann mansion.

From that day, he and Nathan became inseparable. The Goldmann estate was the only place Adrian ever felt free—where warmth and laughter replaced cold discipline.

Victoria treated him like a second son, baking his favorite treats whenever he visited.

Nathan, however, hadn’t been so welcoming at first. Jealous of his mother’s affection for Adrian, he’d been combative, always picking fights. And when he lost, he’d cry.

Adrian chuckled. "But he had his moments. When my knees were swollen from kneeling, he’d bring me medicine. When I admitted I’d never played basketball, he dragged me to the court. He even took me to see the ocean for the first time—though his father scolded us fiercely afterward. Nathan stood up for me, though."

His smile widened. "Once, he stormed into my house and yelled at my grandfather for beating me. Then, to avenge me, he released all my grandfather’s prized canaries. Those birds were worth a fortune. My grandfather was livid."

Evelyn laughed. "He was that mischievous?"

Adrian nodded. "Until Victoria’s accident. After that, he changed completely. The laughter vanished. He became withdrawn, his emotions unreadable. We didn’t see each other for years after high school—not until a banquet when he returned from college to take over Luxe."

Evelyn lowered her gaze. "Did you enter acting because of his mother?"

"Yes." Adrian met her eyes. "She told me that while we can’t choose our birth, we can choose our life. I refused to be shackled to the Boucher legacy like my father—unable to make my own choices, even in love. Did you know he couldn’t even pick his own wife?"