Charles had always thought that the reason Derrick had forced Janet to terminate her pregnancy was because, at the ti, she was still legally Philip’s wife. And in Derrick’s eyes, nothing was more intolerable than betrayal—especially within his own family. Charles had believed that was the whole story.
But if he had known earlier that the issue hadn’t co from them at all...
Maybe, just maybe, he would have stood up to Derrick, fought him to the bitter end—for the woman he loved and the child they lost.
Unlike Derrick, he wasn’t made of cold steel. He couldn’t be that ruthless.
"You are your own person. Charles is Charles. You deserve to have a child too," Derrick said, his tone softening slightly, but the coercion in his words remained unmistakable.
"I told you—I won’t try again. You can give up now," Philip replied, his voice laced with exhaustion. He shut his eyes, unwilling to argue over sothing that ant nothing to him anymore. Even if Derrick was his father, that didn’t an he could control him forever.
"You—"
Derrick’s rising fury was about to erupt again when Charles quickly stepped in.
"Dad, let’s talk about this another ti. Philip’s tired—let him rest," Charles said, holding him back.
Derrick stared at the pale, bloodless face lying on the bed and said nothing more.
When Charles returned ho from the hospital, Janet was already there. As he pulled into the garage and saw the warm lights spilling from the villa’s windows, a strange, quiet contentnt filled his chest. A smile unconsciously curled his lips.
"You’re back!" Janet was already seated at the dining table, waiting for him. As soon as she saw him, her lithe body rushed into his arms. The faint scent of antiseptic on him instantly gave her a chill.
"You sll good," Charles murmured, kissing her cheek. He wasn’t sure if he ant the food or the woman in his arms, but either way, the tension in his face visibly lted away.
"Do you want to shower first?" Janet asked as she helped him out of his suit jacket, her voice full of gentle care, like a wife long accustod to the rhythm of his return.
"Will you scrub my back for ?" he teased, winking at her with playful affection.
Janet blushed at his overly direct words and gave him a light push. "Shaless."
Charles chuckled as he saw her drop her head shyly, then affectionately pinched her delicate nose before heading upstairs to their bedroom.
"Janet?"
Later that night, as Charles held the woman in his arms—her eyes closed, breathing steady—he called her na softly. He knew she wasn’t asleep.
"Mhm?" Janet murmured, her response lazy like a cat stretching in its sleep.
"Philip’s procedure failed. He refuses to try again," Charles said. His voice was low and calm, but it cut through the quiet like ice.
Janet’s eyes snapped open in the darkness, blinking as she turned to look at him. She could feel more words were coming.
"If... if Philip never has a child of his own," Charles said slowly, "then maybe... maybe we should have two. We could give him one—what do you think?"
He spoke gently, but there was a weight behind each word.
Of all the people in the world, Philip was the one Charles felt he owed the most to. Philip, who was older by two years, who had always protected and deferred to him since they were children.
Even with Janet—soone Derrick would never approve of—Philip had stepped aside, placing her into Charles’s hands without hesitation.
Charles wanted to give sothing back, even if it ant parting with sothing of his own.
But Janet, upon hearing those words, widened her almond eyes in shock, completely stunned and montarily unable to process what he had just said.
"What is it? You don’t want to?"
Charles misread the shock in Janet’s eyes as reluctance. Though he, too, felt a twinge of hesitation, in his mind, his child would be Philip’s child too. They would both love the baby dearly—it was only a matter of giving Philip the title of father, nothing more.
"N-no, that’s not it!" Janet shook her head in a panic, unsure how to respond. How could she not want to have a child with Charles? And yet...
"Your father won’t allow it."
She said it softly, almost in a whisper. How could she explain to him that the man he revered so deeply had threatened her with complete destruction, just to ensure she would never carry Charles’s child?
"Why wouldn’t he?" Charles frowned slightly. "Dad’s not that old-fashioned. Either way, it’d still be his grandchild."
"That pregnancy back then... it was just an accident," he added, perhaps fearing she might overthink things.
"But..." Janet tried to say more, but Charles had already silenced her with a kiss, sealing her lips with his own. He would prove his intentions with action. Even if it wasn’t for Philip’s sake, he wanted a child of their own.
And besides—they’d been together so many tis. By now, she should have shown so signs...
"Charles, don’t..." Janet felt the shift in his body, his desire already palpable. She reached out, trying to stop his hand, but he had already slipped it beneath her, only to pause when he felt sothing soft and unfamiliar.
"...It’s that ti of the month?" he asked, pulling his hand back with understanding.
"Y-yes. This afternoon..." Janet stamred, her face burning with embarrassnt. She couldn’t even et his eyes. She had pretended to be asleep earlier because of her condition.
"Janet... have you felt any discomfort lately?"
Charles’s gaze fell to her lower abdon, thoughtful. It had been over two months since her surgery. The doctor had said there were no lasting complications, but now, rembering the oddities in her behavior that night, he felt sothing was... off.
"No... Why?" Janet replied, a bit confused and secretly anxious. Had he noticed sothing? But she had always been so careful—he shouldn’t suspect anything.
"It’s nothing. Let’s get so sleep."
Charles didn’t press further. He wrapped an arm back around her waist, turned off the lights, and held her as they drifted off into silence.
A week later, Black Rock Co. convened the most urgent eting in its history.
Janet knew sothing serious had happened—the mont Charles entered the boardroom, he hadn’t co out in over four hours.
Normally, he only made a brief appearance at such etings. Giles or Novia would take over the rest. But this ti... this ti, it had gone beyond routine. The situation had clearly reached a boiling point.
Janet knew little about the company’s internal affairs. Charles had never expected her to involve herself in the business world, and truthfully, he preferred it that way.
The corporate world was a minefield of betrayal and manipulation, sches lurking behind every handshake. He didn’t want Janet to beco another Novia—sharp, calculating.
His woman... only needed to stay by his side. A simple, peaceful life was all he wanted for her.
But as the morning wore on and the shareholders finally reached a decision, the outco stunned her.
The company August had brokered a deal with—
was being shut down by the Inspectorate for illegal stock manipulation.
Even more damning, it had co to light that a significant portion of the financial activity flowing through mb Corp. had involved money laundering operations on a massive scale.
For Black Rock Co., which was hit hardest by the scandal, the one held chiefly responsible was August, the project’s lead. He bore an undeniable responsibility for the fallout.
Black Rock had always operated with integrity, maintaining large-scale, legitimate business dealings. It had never been associated with illegal operations of any kind. Now, with this sudden and massive breach, the damage was not only to the company’s reputation but also financial—just the fifty million dollars lost in the deal was enough to cause a major shake-up.
To make up for the loss, August had no choice but to surrender 15% of his shares.
But that wasn’t the end of it.
The ultimate consequence for his negligence...
was expulsion from Black Rock Co.
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