During those years, Damien’s business empire expanded rapidly, and at the same time, rumors that Natalie had gone insane became increasingly widespread.Everyone believed Damien to be a devoted and loyal husband—so faithful that he remained by the side of a hysterical, mentally ill woman without ever abandoning her. Such love—who could say it wasn’t noble?Even if a few voices dared question his carefully constructed persona—some even pointing out the suspicious downfall of the Cowan family, suspecting that from the very beginning, Damien had been playing a long and ruthless game—those voices were quickly drowned out. Without even needing to respond, there were always netizens to defend him, claiming these doubters were just haters spreading baseless rumors. Either stupid or malicious.Natalie was no longer surprised by this.The world was absurd. The truth had never been the most important thing—what mattered was what people wanted to believe.She only knew one thing: Aron was growin
Just as Damien raised his foot to kick her again, Uncle Wesley entered and interrupted him.Uncle Wesley reminded him that it was time to meet with the business partners, and they had to leave.Damien finally stopped the violence.Before leaving the study, he told Natalie, “If you won’t tell me, I’ll still find your lover. I’ll rip the bastard out of your belly in front of you, and I’ll castrate him right before your eyes.”After Damien left, Hugo came to her side, holding her in his arms, wiping away her tears, and apologizing to her.“If I hadn’t been careless, you wouldn’t have gotten pregnant. If I hadn’t been greedy for you, you wouldn’t have had to endure all this.”But Natalie never blamed Hugo.The relationship she had with Hugo was a step she took first; it was her own choice.Moreover, Hugo had given her so much happiness. Without him, Natalie didn’t know where she would be now.Maybe she’d already gone mad.She lay in Hugo’s arms, pleading with him, “Take me away, please.”
Natalie recovered after three months of rest.Damien also warned her not to bring up the topic of divorce again, nor to think about seeking death. If he wanted, there were many ways to make her obey, but by then, she might already be in a wheelchair, unable to take care of herself. And when he said something, he would follow through, so she should not challenge his patience and limits.After that, Damien left the house and did not return for years.Natalie had long shifted from love to hatred for this man. When he was away, she no longer felt any sense of loss; instead, she felt a sense of relief.Divorce was not an option, but after surviving near death, she had gained a profound understanding of the value of life. She deeply regretted her actions when she had tried to drown herself and Aron in the sea.In the days that followed, even when times were hard, she was determined to live—for Aron’s sake, she had to live well.At that time, Hugo was Damien’s head of security. He had been i
Aron stood there, stunned, as he watched the two figures walking toward him. The woman walked ahead, and the man silently followed behind her. The woman was holding a basket of fresh flowers, and the man was carrying a bag of vegetables.The tall trees on one side of the courtyard were growing vigorously, their branches extending onto the path.The woman wore a plain long dress, draped in a white cotton shawl, and was speaking as she walked.The man helped her brush aside the tree branches, smiling gently as he nodded in agreement.When she reached the stairs, the man extended his hand to support her on one side.The sight before Aron seemed to transport him back more than a decade.Back then, Hugo had also silently protected his mother, but in the role of the family’s security guard.More than ten years had passed, and Hugo’s appearance had changed, but the woman he was protecting still seemed to be the same one from Aron’s memories—his mother.Her slender figure, beautiful eyes—apar
On Aron's side, after the issue of Rachel's age was resolved, the couple went to the civil affairs bureau to register for their marriage right away.The next day, they held a simple, small wedding at a church. Although they didn't have the blessings of their parents or an extravagant party, they invited a few close friends, and the modest ceremony was warm and full of love.The wedding dress was provided by Seraphina, the wedding rings were sponsored by Ryan, and the officiant was Isabel.There were no flower girls to help lift the skirt, so they had little Ba instead. There were no groomsmen or bridesmaids, but the bouquet was fashioned into a flower crown, which was later thrown to little Ba, who had been holding Rachel's skirt.Little Barton was dressed in a shiny black fur coat, wearing a white tailcoat with a red bow tie, holding Rachel's skirt in his mouth, walking steadily by her side. Aside from not throwing candy, he was just as charming as any flower girl.Although the weddi
Aron sighed, "You should have told me earlier. I wouldn't have forced you."Rachel said, "I was afraid if I told you, you'd make me remove it. I was also worried that you'd make me keep it. At the time, I wasn't sure, and when I used the pregnancy test, I still wasn’t confident it was accurate. So I went for an ultrasound, hoping to confirm things before discussing it with you properly."Hearing her explanation, Aron finally felt at ease. At least, she didn’t want to terminate the pregnancy, nor was she planning to break up with him.He said seriously, "I won’t pressure you on this. As long as it’s a rational decision you’ve made after considering everything, I’ll respect your choice."Forcing her to keep the baby or to terminate it—either would be an inhumane act. Aron would never do that.Rachel had calmed down a little and asked, "Do you think we should keep this child?"She was no longer certain.Aron held her hand, paused for two seconds, and said, "The real question is whether y