CHARLOTTE(PRESENT DAY)The initial numbness that had held me in its grasp earlier vanished the moment my eyes blinked open for the second time.As the harsh sunlight rays made me squint my eyes, my consciousness spiked from bleakness to awareness, and I was suddenly aware of everything.The smell of antiseptics reminded me that I was in the hospital.And Nathan.My heart caught in my chest at the thought that he might have left, but when I snapped my head to the side, my worry melted, and my heart bubbled.His head leaned sideways against the bed just by my side, his eyes were shut, and his soft snores floated through the monitor’s recurring beep to my ears.Watching him this close-up did something inside me. I almost didn't want to sit on the bed, but I did. I noticed he'd removed his suit jacket and draped it over the headrest of the chair he was sitting on.And his tie hung loosely from his neck.He was a worn-out mess.A handsome mess who'd kept to his word and stayed beside me f
CHARLOTTEEvery second that ticked past as we remained in this awkward silence made me nervous, and I couldn't meet Nathan’s eyes.He stared at me, his gaze boring a hole so deep into my skin that it almost hurt.After some minutes, I decided to break the fucking silence by speaking up.“I—”“How—”We spoke at the same time and laughed nervously like two teenagers caught making out.I cleared my throat. “You should go first,”His eyes twinkled amusingly, and he leaned forward.“I don't mean to push it…” he sighed, and then his eyes narrowed with that same concern I was getting used to seeing. “…but you're okay, right?” He asked.“I am, sir Nathan.”“Nathan, please.” He cringed. “Call me, Nathan.”My lips stretched into a smile. “I’m fine, Nathan.”&l
CHARLOTTEMy heart thumped a thousand times its normal pace per second.I couldn’t believe it. Did I say that? Did I just ask for Nathan’s hand in marriage?Yes, I did. And the thick silence enveloping the room proved that.While I shook internally, outwardly, I maintained a confident front, hoping something good would come from my insane request.I never meant to say this, but it was my only resort with everything happening.I never intended to force Nathan to marry me. I wanted Sir Williams and Lady Melina to see how headstrong I was.They couldn’t control or manipulate me however they liked. If they thought I would let Liam go easily after everything he’d done to me, then they would have another thing coming.I bit my lips anxiously before turning to steal a glance at Nathan.His dark eyes shone in surprise briefly before changing to a calm look. He wasn't offended, nor did he rebuke me.
NATHANIf I wanted to be mad at anyone, it certainly wouldn't be Charlotte.While her request had stunned me for a moment, I couldn’t help but note its coincidence. I’d been thinking of proposing an engagement to her days ago, and now this.Even though I understood her reason, and although it had almost put me in a brawl with my father, I couldn’t stop thinking about the timeliness of the whole situation.Now, as I turned towards her and watched as she begged for my forgiveness, her expression guarded but genuine, an ache erupted in my chest.I didn’t want her to look at me like that for strange reasons. She seemed scared of my reply as if she didn’t deserve my forgiveness.And yet…“Nathan… please forgive me,” she begged again, her voice quiet. She looked into my eyes, her face uncharacteristically serious, and I felt my dick twitch just at that.Fuck it! She already had
AUTHOR’S POVAs Charlotte's gaze fell to the chair Nathan had earlier occupied — their intimate moment still fresh in her mind — his sudden withdrawal from her hit her with an underlying feeling of loss.Her thoughts were conflicted, spinning between her feelings and Nathan’s indifference.Did he feel the same way she felt after this encounter?Was she reading too much into what just happened?And was he lying when he said they would finish what they started?In entirety, was she reading too much into this?She tried to narrow her thinking back to his feelings.How did he react after pulling away from the kiss?Almost indifferent, she reminded herself.He was cold and aloof, with a dainty smirk on his face, but aside from that, she saw something else…regret.She shook her head no.It wasn’t regret. She could tell from how he’d kissed her that he wanted to do
CHARLOTTEDusk had already set, but the passing of time didn’t bring calm to my thoughts.Instead, I continued to think about Liam.I’d been able to come up with a plan that would keep the bastard in prison for long, but there was no way I could pull it off myself.There was only one person whom I knew could help. Nathan.A blush rose as I recalled our intimate moment earlier today.At the same time, nervousness bubbled within me.I wanted to dial his number and ask for help, but—‘Just do it, Charlotte.’ A voice in my head urged. ‘And why are you nervous that you kissed Nathan? Didn’t he kiss you back? Wasn’t he into the act as much as you were?’ The voice said again.With an exasperated sigh, I reached for my phone by the bed.My fingers shook, but that didn’t stop me from dialing his number. I waited for him to answer, and he did.“Hey, Charlotte,” His voice rang through the receiver, shivering my spine.I swallowed hard before speaking.“Nathan,” I said, hoping I sounded as confid
CHARLOTTEI was trying to rest a bit when my hospital door flew open, and my two favorite people in the world walked in.My heart warmed when I saw them smiling widely with nylon bags in their hands.“Mommy!” Charles was the first to drop the nylon bag to the floor and spring towards me.He flung his arms around my neck as I stood up from the bed to hug him tightly, squeezing his little body close. “Sweetie!” I gushed. “How is my baby boy doing?”“Very good,” he grinned, displaying his adorable baby teeth. “And what about you, Mommy?” He pulled back to look at me. “How are you? Are you getting better?”“Yes, I am, sweetie,” I laughed, pressing my lips to his soft curls.I shot a glance at Noah. He’d picked up the nylon bag Charles dropped and placed it alongside his on the bedside table—a spicy aroma wafted from it.“What’d you guys bring?” I eyed the bags curiously. “Takeouts or…?”“Homemade casserole with canned tuna and brown rice!” Charles piped in before I could finish. “Your fav
CHARLOTTEWhen Harry looked away with guilt flashing in his eyes, I knew I and him right where I wanted him.At the same time, I confirmed my suspicions all these years.I remember the first day Liam had called me a cheat.It was the same day he’d looked at me like I wasn’t the woman he married. Like I wasn’t good enough for him or anyone.It was also the same day his views on Sophia miraculously changed, and while I’d been grasping at straws and trying to adjust to my new identity - as the imposter child - Sophia had swooped in and sank her claws in my husband.Right from that day, Liam had shown me hell, and that hell was what led to him wrongfully accusing me of pushing Sophia off the staircase, leading to my arrest.And the cause of all that was Henry Windsor.The wealthy tycoon who’d drugged me on a particular night, causing me to sleep with a stranger I still didn’t remember till today.I couldn’t control the many emotions coursing through me, so I kept mute, willing myself to s
CHARLOTTETHREE MONTHS LATERToday was my wedding day. As I walked down the hall towards my husband, my eyes watered, lips stretched into a smile.I took one step after another, and my mind flashed back to the day he officially proposed to me.*“Come on, get ready. I want to show you something,” Nathan said as he tugged me out of bed.I frowned.I had been feeling sluggish today and wasn't particularly interested in going out.Besides, I wanted to finish the romance novel I was reading, but Nathan didn't budge as he tugged me up.“I promise it will be worth your time. Please?” he pouted, and I laughed at his cute appearance.I gave in and got dressed.He waited patiently for me, and since it was almost dusk, I decided to wear a beautiful strapless gown he got for me the other day.Nathan whistled as he took in my appearance.“I don't know where we are going though. Is this alright?” I asked, and Nathan just nodded.“You're perfect. Come on, let's go.”Nathan was in a perfectly good m
NATHANI met Lucy the day after Charlie found her, and she explained everything she knew.Lucy explained how sad and heartbroken my mother was and how she tried to hide all of her broken feelings from me.She told me how my father and his wife, Melina, killed my mother to take over the company, which was rightfully hers.When my parents got married, my mother was just the rich daughter of rich parents. But after her parents' death, the company automatically passed to her.I guess that was when William started to abuse her.As her husband, he had rights to the company, but my mother held all the power.The company was to be mine when I came of age, but William and Melina killed my mother and took over, making me a CEO while still having the company in their grasp.I thanked Lucy profoundly for agreeing to talk to me.She permitted me, so I recorded all the information and took it to the police as evidence.William was arrested, along with his wife, Melina.My father was furious that I
NATHANThe sun rose before us, and I was still sleepy when the doorbell rang. I frowned as I glanced at the time.It was seven in the morning.Who could be at our doorstep this early?I groaned at the relentless ringing, and Charlotte's body became aware of mine.She opened her eyes and met my gaze, a smile on her lips. My heart skipped a beat as she smiled at me.She was so gorgeous, damn. Her smile, sleepy eyes, and messy hair made my head flutter, and I leaned in to kiss her.“Good morning,” I whispered. She nuzzled against me.“Good morning. I thought I heard the doorbell ringing,” she yawned as she sat up.As if on cue, the doorbell rang again.Charlotte wrapped a robe around her body, and we padded to the living room to see who it was.I asked her to step back while I opened the door.It was a delivery man.Several delivery men.The one closest to me glanced up at me before looking back at his clipboard.“Hello. Is this Ms. Charlotte's residence?” he asked, and Charlotte walked
CHARLOTTEWe spent some time with my new family, and when it got late, we decided to leave.Selina was sad to see us go. She tried to get us to stay overnight, but we told her we would come and visit her soon.Besides, we needed to get home for Charles.The drive home was silent. Nathan was focused on the road, and I kept thinking about what happened.I recalled the day's events, from the hospital visit to the massive feast, and almost combusted from the emotions running through me.By the time we got home, I was still too shell-shocked to speak, and Nathan embraced me.“You've been quiet, my love. Are you alright?” his brows were furrowed with worry, and I rested my head on his chest before I answered.“I'm fine. I am. I just can't…it's so hard to believe,” I said softly.“What is?” he asked.I had a feeling he knew what I was talking about, but he needed me to say the words, to articulate them, so that I could better understand myself.“That I finally found my new family. And they'r
CHARLOTTENathan held me for a long time, and we stayed in the restroom.During this time, I reflected on the reason I’d come here in the first place.The dawning news of my new family—my new beginning, my new home.My chest constricted, and in seconds, tears filled my eyes.I had a mother now.The thought hit me suddenly, so unexpectedly, and the first sob left my lips.A mother.One who loved me.I remembered our encounters and how warm she made me feel, how she laughed with me, how she made me feel at peace.I remembered our connection and the ease with which she related to me.I remembered our shopping spree and how she convinced me to play dress-up. I remembered us laughing at our ridiculous dresses and how beautiful they were.Selina loved me right from the first day we met at the beach.The sob turned into full-fledged tears.Nathan patted me on the back, saying nothi
CHARLOTTEA few days later, Selina called me to inform me that the DNA test results were ready.Nathan drove my nervous self to the hospital.When we got there, we saw Selina outside. She was bouncing on the tips of her legs and immediately embraced me when she saw me.“Hi, Selina. Shall we go in now?” I asked, but the older woman shook her head negatively.“Oh, there's no need for that, my darling. I already got the results. Here, see for yourself,” she said, handing a document to me.My heart pounded, and my hands shook slightly as I opened the document.I gasped when I saw it, tears springing into my eyes.I was Selina's daughter.Selina was my biological mother.A sob escaped my throat as I read the confirmation over and over.After all these years of searching, all these years of misconceptions and lies.After all these years of suffering, of paying for a crime she didn't
CHARLOTTEWhen I returned home, I couldn’t stop thinking about Julian's comment about Nathan's company.Julian had hinted about Nathan losing everything he worked for.What did that mean?Was someone trying to overthrow him? I wanted to call him, but I didn't.He had already started work today, so if something were wrong, he would deal with it.Right?Nathan was competent. So I did not need to worry.I paced for a while, then decided to do something to distract myself from overthinking.It had been a while since I baked, so I went to the kitchen and arranged some ingredients.The worry in my body eased as I kneaded the dough, and I relaxed.I got into a rhythm, losing myself in the chore. My body moved fluidly, the motions as natural as breathing, and as I baked, I sang.I soon lost track of time.Nothing else mattered outside the bubble I was in except for my dough and my song.I
NATHANI was on my way to the office when my phone rang. It was a strange number, and I was reluctant to pick it up.But my instincts told me it must be someone important, so I picked up the call.The call was from the city’s prison, and I frowned when the warden told me an inmate wished to speak with me.Who could it possibly be?I waited as the warden handed the phone to whoever it was, and immediately, I heard the familiar tenor of Sophie's voice; I wanted to hang up.“Before you do anything, I want you to please listen to me,” her voice was weak, and I could feel the rattling pattern of her breath.She didn’t sound very healthy.“And why should I listen to you?” I snapped.“Because the doctor said I'm dying, and I don't want to die with this weight in my chest. I need to see you, please,” she begged, coughing as she spoke.I said nothing as I hung up and parked t
CHARLOTTEI woke up in Nathan’s arms, happy and contented.The past few days were like heaven.Nathan spent every moment with me, spoiling me rotten.We went shopping, ate fancy courses at exquisite restaurants, attended posh and elegant parties, ate street food, and did everything we could think of.I nuzzled into him, not wanting to lose the warmth, when suddenly my phone buzzed on the bedside table, and I groaned.I wasn't willing to stand up yet, but the buzzing was insistent, and I sighed as I sat up and reached for the phone.It was Selina.The older woman was excited when I picked up her call, and I felt guilty for not wanting to pick up earlier.“I hope I'm not disturbing you?” she asked.“No, no. Not at all, Selina. Is there anything I can help you with?” I asked.“Oh. The thing is, I was wondering if you'd like to go shopping with me. I'm bored, and I don't want to go on my own.” I had a feeling that Selina was pouting as she spoke, and the image that came to my head at the