Library

Maghanap

Home / Romance / Until The Baby Is Born: CEO's Temporary Fiancee / Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

Lahat ng Kabanata ng Until The Baby Is Born: CEO's Temporary Fiancee : Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

122 Kabanata

In a mess

Ivy sat at her desk, the glow of the computer screen lighting her tired face. Her eyes burned from staring at it for hours, but she didn’t stop until she hit send. The final file uploaded, the progress bar turned green, and a soft chime confirmed the delivery.It was done.She leaned back in her chair, exhaling a shaky breath. The project was finally complete, the one she had worked on for days with sleepless nights, endless edits, and too many tears she’d wiped away before anyone could see. Her hands trembled slightly as she closed her laptop.Her phone rang.The screen showed Mr. Christopher.Her heart jumped.She hesitated a moment, then answered. “Hello, Mr. Christopher.”“I just got the file,” his deep voice came through, calm but curious. “Tell me something, Miss Marlowe… is this Asher’s project?”Her stomach knotted. She knew this question would come, she just didn’t expect it this soon.She swallowed hard. “As far as I know… yes.”There was silence on the line. Then his tone s

The betrayal

IN THE HOSPITAL The doctor closed the file and looked at Asher with a calm but serious expression.“She’s stable for now,” he said, his tone steady but carrying the weight of warning. “But she was clearly under a lot of emotional stress. That’s not good for her or the baby. You understand, Mr Cole?”Asher only nodded, though his chest felt like it was caving in. His throat was tight, words refusing to form.“The pregnancy is already complicated,” the doctor continued, flipping through a few last pages before shutting the chart. “Her body’s exhausted, and the baby reacts to her distress. She needs complete rest and no tension at all. If she stays calm, she’ll recover. With the due date approaching, things will get delicate, so be careful.”“I will,” Asher said quietly. His voice came out strained, rough, almost unfamiliar to his own ears.The doctor gave him a knowing nod before leaving the room, the soft squeak of his shoes echoing down the hall.Then…silence.The faint rhythmic beep

The Greens

Asher pulled up to the airport, his hands tight on the steering wheel. The arrivals gate buzzed with noise, footsteps, laughter, suitcase wheels rolling across the floor. Then, amid the crowd, he saw her.Riley Green.Her long beige coat brushed her knees, hair swept to one side as she searched the crowd. When her eyes met his, she broke into a relieved smile and rushed forward, dropping her bag to throw her arms around him.“Asher,” she breathed out, hugging him tightly. “You came.”He hesitated before returning the hug, his arms wrapping around her loosely. “Of course I did, I promised,” he murmured. “You sounded… upset.”She pulled back slightly, wiping the corner of her eye and giving a small, embarrassed laugh. “I know, I overreacted. It was just, everything’s been so overwhelming. I came back from Europe. The business expansion, the meetings, the people... I just needed someone who still feels like home.”Asher gave her a faint smile, though his chest ached for reasons he couldn

The restlessness

HIS APARTMENT The apartment was dark when Asher stepped inside.The soft hum of the city beyond the windows barely reached the quiet here, a quiet that felt wrong. Too still. Too empty.He closed the door behind him, the sound echoing faintly through the halls. The air was cold, sharper than it should’ve been. It used to be warm when she was here. Somehow, her presence always softened things, filling the space with a kind of calm he could never explain.Now, it just felt hollow.He walked toward the bedroom, his heartbeat loud in his ears. The room looked exactly as they had left it, two cups on the bedside table, her book still facedown on the pillow, his shirt thrown over the chair. But the bed… the bed was empty.The blanket was untouched. The pillow is cold.A lump rose in his throat. “Ivy?” His voice came out low, unsure.Silence.He checked the balcony, the kitchen, even the little reading nook where she liked to sit with her tea when she couldn’t sleep. Nothing.His chest tigh

Flashes

Riley glanced sideways at him, amused. “You know, you’d think after all these years, you’d be better at pretending they’re not there.”He sighed quietly. “I wish.”The city buzzed with an easy afternoon warmth as Asher and Riley walked side by side through the open-air shopping district. The glass roof spilled soft sunlight over rows of designer stores, people drifting past with shopping bags and coffee cups.Asher kept his hands in his pockets, trying to ignore the faint clicking of cameras in the distance. He’d gotten used to being followed lately, though “used to” wasn’t quite the right word. Tolerated, maybe.She grinned. “You’re practically their favorite soap opera these days, Asher Cole, mysterious CEO, tragic past, rumored engagement.”He rolled his eyes, muttering, “Rumored.”Before she could reply, a sudden burst of flashes came from ahead, too close, too fast. A group of paparazzi rounded the corner, cameras raised.“Asher! Over here!” one shouted. “Who’s your actual woman,

The past

A FEW YEARS AGO The cafeteria was packed that afternoon, loud, hot, and full of laughter that didn’t quite reach Ivy. She sat in her usual corner, back pressed against the cold wall, trying to stay invisible. Her tray sat barely touched in front of her, a sandwich, milk, an apple.She kept her eyes on her notebook, scribbling quietly, hoping no one noticed her. But someone always did.Jason.He sat two tables away, surrounded by his friends, loud, confident boys who thought the school belonged to them. Jason leaned back in his chair, chewing gum, his sharp eyes following her every move. He didn’t speak at first, just watched. Like a cat watching a mouse that forgot where to run.One of his friends laughed. “Yo, man, your little project partner’s got company.”Jason’s gaze flicked up. Across the cafeteria, one of the boys from Ivy’s science group had walked over to her table and sat down, smiling.“Hey, Ivy,” the boy said kindly. “You got the report ready? I can take it to the lab roo

The thoughts

“Ivy?”The moment Ivy opened her eyes, she saw Asher inside the car. He immediately got down the car and was standing in the middle of the road, chest rising and falling too fast, his expression twisted with panic that he couldn't hide fast enough.“Ivy?” His voice cracked as he rushed toward her, grabbing her shoulders and pulling her into his chest. His arms wrapped around her with a firmness that made her knees buckle. “What the hell happened? Are you hurt? Why were you in the middle of the road?!?”She didn’t answer. She couldn’t. Her fingers clutched the fabric of his coat, clinging like she was terrified he would disappear if she let go.Her whole body trembled uncontrollably.Asher pulled back just enough to cup her face, his thumbs brushing the tears she hadn’t realized were falling. “Talk to me,” he breathed, his jaw tight. “Ivy…look at me, baby.”Before she could force a word out…A slow, mocking clap echoed from behind her.Asher immediately put his cold detached mask on as

The kiss

Jason couldn’t breathe.Every blink replayed the same scene, Asher holding Ivy, arms wrapped around his Ivy. His chest tightened until he thought his ribs might crack.“How dare he touch her…” Jason whispered, voice hollow, vibrating with a fury that had lived in him for years. “She’s mine. She has always been mine.”The memories hit him like fists.Asher Cole, the golden heir.Jason’s cousin. His father’s older brother’s son. The son of the man who inherited everything.Jason’s own father, the little brother, had always been on the outside looking in. And Jason had watched it his entire life, the way his father was pushed to the back of every family gathering, every board vote, every conversation.Then Asher’s parents died. The tragedy that should have shattered the Cole dynasty… instead became Jason’s curse.His father was put in charge, a temporary head of the empire. But instead of stepping into the power they waited for all their lives, he dedicated himself to raising Asher, to s

The workshop

THE NEXT DAY “Okay, okay…wait, I think this diaper is upside down,” Ivy said, staring at the tiny practice doll like it had personally betrayed her. Asher arched a brow, arms crossed over his chest. “You think? Ivy, its legs are in the sleeve holes.” She looked again. “...Oh.” The instructor of the New Parents Workshop tried not to laugh. A few expecting couples giggled nearby, and Ivy’s cheeks warmed. Asher stepped closer. “Here,” he murmured, lifting the doll gently. “Let me help before this baby files a complaint.” “I’m learning!” Ivy protested through a flustered smile. “We don’t all have secret dad skills pre-installed.” “Maybe yours are still downloading,” he deadpanned. She swatted his arm, and he couldn’t help the small, amused exhale that escaped him. The tension of last night, the fear, the silence, it loosened, if only a little. They finished the diaper practice with minor casualties such as the doll losing a sock dislocating an arm, Ivy declared emotional

Not real?

“I’m nothing compared to my mother,” Ivy whispered.No warning, no lead-in. The words just fell out of her, like they’d been pressing against the back of her teeth all morning.Asher’s expression changed immediately, his posture straightening, his shoulders settling into that quiet alertness he always carried when she said something that hinted at old wounds.“Why would you say that?” he asked. His tone wasn’t sharp, but it wasn’t soft either. Careful. Controlled.Ivy looked past him, to a spot on the far wall, white paint, a smudge of worn color where someone had once taped a poster. But she wasn’t seeing it. Her breathing shifted, shallow and uneven.From Asher’s perspective, she was slipping into that place again, the space she disappeared into when memories grabbed her by the throat.“Well… from the file on my background check,” she said, voice thin, “you already know how my father was.”Asher’s jaw tightened, barely noticeable. He had read those pages. Too many times. He’d imagin

PREV

...

NEXT

I-scan ang code para mabasa sa App

DMCA.com Protection Status