Bought For A Baby, Kept For A Lifetime-Chapter 26: Fury

Her heart began to race; it beat so fast she thought it would break through from her ribcage.

The man’s sinful, yet effortless elegance couldn’t be denied.

Though his face was hidden behind the mask, she knew the feel of his mouth against her own, against her skin, and... on her nipples. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Her face immediately turned beetroot red, but she couldn’t break her gaze away from his, not with how his deep, dark eyes kept her entranced.

"You’ve gotten what you came here for. You have fulfilled the contract." His smoothly deep voice suddenly broke the silence in the room.

He glanced down nonchalantly at the watch around his wrist, no longer raising his gaze to her.

"Meet Butler Jones for the part settlement." Saying this, he began to walk out of the room as if standing there was a total waste of his time. The nonchalance of his words sent a blow to hit Anne with a strange force she hadn’t anticipated.

A rush of disappointment came with a disheartening clench in her chest.

She watched him stride with long steps to the door before he suddenly stopped, as if he’d recalled something. Without knowing why, she looked at his glorious back with a bit of expectation.

She also didn’t know what she expected to hear from him, she just knew that she didn’t like it when he’d made to leave, and if he stayed... she wouldn’t hate it.

"Oh, and one more thing..." He slowly turned to her, and his dark gaze was filled with a strange emptiness, a sort of professionalism that made her feel like a big fool.

A fool for putting meaning to last night, a fool for letting herself feel all those unnameable emotions the man clearly hadn’t felt.

Only Heavens knew how many times he’d been through this before, and she... was actually hoping he would stay?

This was merely a business transaction to him, a contract. Why had she allowed herself to momentarily forget that?

"Don’t show yourself to me if it isn’t as stipulated in the contract. The next time you defy any of the rules set within the contract..." His eyes turned seriously stern, "...will be the last time you ever step foot into my home."

Anne stared in a daze before she awakened herself and nodded absentmindedly.

As the man exited the room, a dull ache rose in her chest. An ache that turned sharp with each passing minute. She had to raise her hand to her chest to try to ease it away, but it wouldn’t stop.

It felt like she had been given a cure to a century-old wound, but that wound was abruptly torn open just when it was beginning to scab over.

Tears formed in her eyes, but she refused to shed them.

How dare she cry now when she’d been the one stupid enough to allow herself feel.

She shouldn’t have let herself feel.

========

Butler Jones carefully pushed open the door of the study.

His master was standing before the windows. All the butler could see was his back, but a strangely chilly aura seeped out from him.

"Master, you called for me?" The butler walked soundlessly into the room.

Silence.

Even though he’d spoken, the man in the room didn’t seem to have heard him.

Butler Jones had just opened his mouth to speak once more to attract the man’s attention when a bout of laughter suddenly erupted from his master.

The butler was startled.

Master Andrew was actually... laughing?

This laughter wasn’t the usual type, riveting with joy. This one sounded dark and bitter, filled with self-deprecation and unmistakable rage.

"Master?" The butler couldn’t help but feel worried as he stepped forward and peeked into his master’s face.

His eyes widened as he noticed the faint signs of prolonged lack of sleep usually evident on his master’s face had vanished slightly.

Had the master gotten some sleep last night?

But... he should have fulfilled the contract with Miss Thompson last night.

Could that be the reason for his sudden reaction?

When the butler was standing directly next to Andrew, that was when he noticed the glass of whiskey in the man’s hand.

He was actually drinking this early in the morning?

What tragedy must have befallen him last night to prompt him to be downing alcohol in the morning?

Butler Jones wanted to say something when Andrew dug his fingers into his hair in frustration and threw the glass of whiskey to the wall. It shattered instantly.

Butler Jones flinched slightly at the sound.

He let out a sigh. He was used to his master’s temper, but just not so early in the morning.

The air around Andrew continued to grow even more stuffy and unbearable to breathe. His mask was kept on the glass desk, and his handsome face was a show of fury.

A suppressed kind of rage directed at oneself.

"I’ll... get the maids to clean this up."

The butler didn’t try to make assumptions, nor did he try to say anything to calm the man’s anger. He slowly bowed and excused himself from the room, leaving the tall, brooding figure to simmer in his own rage.

==========

Hours later, Anne left the Black Thorn Manor.

Her steps were weak and slow, like a ghost strolling through the world, lost of its own directions.

You got what you wanted, Anne.

You can finally save Kristen!

You can finally save him!

She thought when this moment came, she would be jumping in joy, but the part of her chest where her heart resided felt vacant.

Something had been taken from inside her, and she didn’t know what. It left her empty and lost.

Anne went directly to the hospital. She entered Doctor Steve’s office with determined eyes.

They said Kristen’s surgery merely had a tiny percentage of success, but no matter what, she would stay by his side. She would make sure to save his life.

"I’m ready to complete the formalities required for my brother’s surgery."

The doctor gazed at her with a genuine mix of bafflement and a hint of awe. Despite everything he’d told her, even after giving her time to ponder her decision, she’d still decided to go through with it.

She was undoubtedly brave and very determinedly persistent. Most people would choose to take the easy way out of this. They would take the doctor’s advice and free themselves of the responsibility of a relative who’d been bedridden in a vegetative state.

Doctor Steve stood up from his seat; a smile of appreciation came upon his face.

"I’ll get everything started. We’ll contact Doctor Reynolds immediately. Miss Thompson, I can’t assure you that your brother will be back to you safe and sound after the surgery. Please prepare yourself for anything."