When There Is Nothing Left But Love
Chapter 1 Pregnant
Six weeks pregnant.
Shellshocked, I was riveted to the spot by
the three words that appeared on my ultrasound report. It only happened
once! How did I get pregnant?
What should I do now?
Should I tell Ashton about this? Will he refuse
to divorce me because of this?Nah, I doubt it! He’ll probably think that I’m
shamelessly using this child to blackmail him.
Suppressing the frustration that was rooted
in my heart, I stuffed the ultrasound report into my bag as I made my way out
of the hospital.
There was a Maybach waiting outside the
hospital with one of its windows rolled down by a fraction. An attractive man
with a frosty expression could be vaguely seen sitting at the driver’s seat.
A handsome man in a luxury car would
undoubtedly garner the attention of many passersby.Ashton Fuller was the
epitome of wealth and good looks. I had long grown used to the curious gazes of
the passersby after so many years. Ignoring them, I slid into the front
passenger seat.
When the man who was resting with his eyes
closed felt a slight movement, an indistinct frown settled between his brows.
Without opening his eyes, he asked in a deep voice, “Has everything been
settled?”
“Yes!” I nodded as I passed the contract
signed with the hospital to him, uttering, “Dr. Ludwick told me to send his
greetings to you.” I had intended to sign the contract alone at the hospital
today, but I ran into Ashton on my way here. For a reason unknown to me,
he offered to drive me here, saying that it was on his way.
“You’ll be in charge of the case.” Ashton
had always been a man of few words. He didn’t take the contract; instead, he
gave me these instructions in a perfunctory manner before he started the car
engine.
I nodded and kept silent.
Obeying him and carrying out his orders
seemed to be the only two things that I knew how to do.
The car drove toward the city center. It
was already evening now, so I was confused as to where he was headed if not
back to the villa. Although I felt puzzled, I never took the initiative to ask
him anything. I simply remained silent.
The ultrasound report was at the forefront
of my mind, but I didn’t know how to broach the topic with him. Caught in a
dilemma, I peeked at him from the corner of my eye. As usual, he exuded a cold
and distant aura, his sharp and ruthless gaze focused straight ahead.
“Ashton!” I blurted out. My palms grew a
little clammy as I clutched my bag; it was probably due to my fraying nerves.
“Speak.” This single syllable was barked
out without a trace of emotion.
He had always treated me like this anyway.
After a good few seconds, the tension gradually left my body as I calmed my
nerves. Taking a deep breath, I announced, “I’m...” Pregnant.I had merely
two words to confess, but I swallowed the second word that was on the tip of my
tongue the moment his phone abruptly rang.
“Rebecca, what’s wrong?” Some people
only reserve their gentle and loving side for one person.
Ashton’s gentle side was only reserved for
Rebecca Larson; it was plain to see from the way he conversed with her.
Rebecca’s words over the phone caused
Ashton to abruptly hit the brake as he spoke to her in a soothing tone,
“Alright. I’ll be over in a while. Don’t go anywhere, okay?”
As soon as the call ended, his icy
expression slipped back into its place. Glancing at me, he ordered in a clipped
tone, “Get out.”
His order left no room for discussion.
This was not the first time that he had
kicked me out of his car. Seeing as such, I nodded and shoved the words I had
planned to say down my throat before opening the car door and getting down.
My marriage with Ashton came about due to a
twist of fate, but love was never in the equation. Ashton already had Rebecca
in his heart, so my existence was redundant. Perhaps, it could even be
considered an obstacle.
Two years ago, George Fuller, Ashton’s
grandfather, suffered from a heart attack. While he was hospitalized, he forced
Ashton to marry me. For his grandfather’s sake, Ashton reluctantly did so.
During the two years that his grandfather was still around, Ashton disregarded
my existence but otherwise did nothing else. Now that his grandfather had
passed on, he couldn’t wait to get a lawyer to draft the divorce papers for me
to sign.
The sky was already dark when I returned to
the villa. The enormous house was empty, resembling a haunted house. Perhaps it
was because of my pregnancy that I didn’t have an appetite. Hence, I went
straight to my bedroom to wash up and call it a night.
In my drowsy state, I heard the faint sound
of a car engine being switched off; it was coming from the courtyard.
Is Ashton back?Isn’t he supposed to be with
Rebecca?
Chapter 2 Can You Stay
The bedroom door was abruptly pushed open
before I could ponder any further. Slightly drenched, Ashton headed straight
for the bathroom without sparing me a second glance. Following that was the
sound of running water.
His return made it rather impossible for me
to continue sleeping, so I got up and put on some clothes. I took out a set of
his pajamas from the wardrobe and placed it by the bathroom door before going
straight to the balcony.
As it was the monsoon season, it started to
drizzle outside. The sky was dark and the sound of the rain pelting on the
bricks could be heard vaguely.
Sensing the sound of movement behind me, I
turned and saw that Ashton had emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped
around his waist. His hair was damp and the droplets of water dripping down his
muscular body created an enticing sight.
He probably noticed my gaze, so he glanced
at me with a slight frown. “Come here,” he commanded in a voice void of
emotion.
I obediently walked over and caught the
towel that he had thrown toward me. He then demanded, “Dry my hair.”
I had long gotten accustomed to his
domineering ways. Just as he sat on the edge of the bed, I climbed onto it and
kneeled behind him to wipe his hair.
“Grandpa’s funeral is tomorrow. We should
head over to the family home earlier,” I reminded him. I wasn’t trying to make
conversation with him. Rather, I was worried that he would possibly forget
about it as his mind was rather occupied with Rebecca.
“Mm,” he grunted out a response and said
nothing further.
Knowing very well that he didn’t want to
interact with me, I kept mum and focused on drying his hair. After that, I lay
on the bed once again, ready to sleep.
I realized that I had been feeling rather
sleepy lately, and attributed my behavior to my pregnancy. Ashton would
usually head to his study after he showered and would stay there until
midnight. Given that was the norm, I was befuddled when he got under the sheets
after he put on his pajamas.
With reasonable effort, I managed to
withhold my questions even though I was utterly confounded. In spite of
that, his arms suddenly wrapped around my waist as he pulled me in toward
him. Then, a feather-light kiss brushed across my lips.
I raised my eyes to gaze at him in
perplexity. “Ashton, I’m...”
“Unwilling?” he questioned. His obsidian
eyes flashed, a hint of wild desire swirling within them.
I lowered my gaze. Indeed, I was unwilling,
but it wasn’t for me to decide.
“Can you be gentler?” The fetus was only
six weeks old and the risk of a miscarriage was high.
His brows furrowed, and without a word he
rolled over and started ravaging me roughly. My body curled from the pain and I
could only do so much to protect the child from harm’s way.The rain started to
pour heavily in tandem with his rough movements. Lightning flashed across the
sky and thunder boomed right after that, causing the room to be illuminated
every time that happened. After a long while, he got up and went into the
bathroom.
Drenched in a cold sweat from the pain, I
had the urge to get up to take some painkillers. Nevertheless, I dismissed the
idea as soon as I thought of the child.
All of a sudden, the phone on the bedside
table rang. It was Ashton’s phone. I glanced at the clock on the wall and saw
that it was already eleven o’clock.
Rebecca was the only one who would call him
at such an hour.
The sound of running water in the bathroom
stopped. Ashton stepped out once again, wrapped in his towel. Wiping his hands
dry, he hurriedly answered the call.
Unable to hear the words that were being
uttered on the other end of the line, I could only observe Ashton’s brows
furrowing slightly as he exclaimed, “Rebecca, stop fooling around!”
With that, he ended the call, got changed,
and prepared to leave. In the past, I would have turned a blind eye to it, but
this time I abruptly grabbed Ashton’s arm and pleaded softly, “Can you stay
tonight?”
He frowned as a hint of displeasure made
its way to his handsome face. “Did I pleasure you so much that you’re starting
to act out?”
His words oozed with sarcasm.
I was taken aback for a moment before I
began to think that his words were absurd. Tilting my head to gaze at him, I
explained, “It’s Grandpa’s funeral tomorrow. Although you can’t bear to let her
go, shouldn’t you practice a little restraint?”
“Are you threatening me?” He narrowed his eyes
at me. He gripped my chin in a trice and spat out in a low and dangerous voice,
“You seem to have grown a spine, Scarlett Stovall.”
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