All Chapters of Pregnant For My Brother's Best Friend: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

CRYSTAL.ONE MONTH LATER.The nights were colder in the servants’ quarters.Maybe it was the wind slipping through the cracked window, or maybe it was just me feeling empty, feverish, and forgotten.I was shivering so hard my teeth clattered. I'd been sick for almost a week now, and no one cared about me. No one even came to check on me, except Merilyn, one of the maids. Sweet, kind Merilyn — the only person in that entire house who still looked at me like I existed.She told me she’ll try to talk to Tessa about my condition, hoping she’d tell my parents, but I begged her not to. I didn’t want their pity. I didn’t want their disgust walking back through that door.I’d called them for days — Dad, Mum, even Derek — no one picked up. It was like I’d died, and the world simply carried on without me.The last time I glanced at the mirror, I couldn't recognize myself anymore. My eyes were dull, my lips cracked, skin pale and hollow. I’d lost weight, color, even the little bit of pride I use

CRYSTAL."Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you..."Our voices filled the tiny apartment. It was off-key and uneven, but full of effort.Jason’s little hands clapped with excitement as he stared at the cake on the table like it was a miracle.It was barely a cake.A small, lopsided one, bought cheap from the corner bakery. The frosting was cracked, the candle bent. But to him, it was magic.And to me… it was enough.He grinned up at me, his teeth flashing through the crooked smile he got from me. “Mommy, look! My name’s on it!”I swallowed hard, forcing the lump in my throat down. “Of course it is, sweetheart. You’re the birthday boy.”“Come on, buddy, make a wish!” Noah said, leaning closer to Jason with a grin big enough for both of them.He had the kind of excitement a father would.He wasn’t Jason’s father, but sometimes I forgot that.He’d been there for every fever, every hospital run, every time Jason collapsed mid-play.Noah had been my lifeline for the past three years

JADEN.The moment I got the necessary information I needed about where my men had found her, I nearly committed mass murder.How did they fucking miss it? How did they not know she was in a city that was barely four hours away?Five fucking years.I paid professionals. The best. Men who could find ghosts if I asked them to. And somehow, it still took them five whole years to find a woman who was just almost next door?Fuck.I wanted to put a bullet through every one of them.By the time I left my son's party, my pulse was pounding so hard I could barely think.I didn’t pack a bag. I didn’t even fucking breathe. I took my private jet, and in less than an hour, I was already in Ithaca.The drive from the airstrip to the address was… chaos.The neighborhood looked like a graveyard for forgotten dreams. It was the true definition of poverty.Faded houses with rusted mailboxes. Sidewalks cracked open like wounds. Children playing barefoot on the road. The kind of place I wouldn’t have imag

CRYSTAL.Last night was awkward. Kissing Noah was... Oh, my God. I didn't even want to imagine it.I apologized more times than I should have when he came into the room last night.Although he said it was fine and that it was nothing, it wasn't nothing.I used him just to get that jerk out of my life.Jason kept asking if Jaden was his father.For five years, I'd been living my life, trying to let go of my past, and here it was again, haunting me down with its claws.I had overslept because I stayed up almost all night.Kristy would have my throat today.After kissing Jason goodbye, I instructed him to stay in his class until Noah comes to get him home.By the time I arrived at work, it was already eight minutes past eight.I hurried to the changing room and put on my uniform immediately. Thank God I hadn't bumped into Kristy by the door. She was always standing there, waiting for latecomers to punish.I was still rubbing sleep from my eyes when I rushed into the staff changing room.

CRYSTAL.His lips moved against mine slowly, reverently, and desperately in a way that shredded every piece of my restraint.For a split second, I froze. My hands were still pressed against his chest, and I could feel his heartbeat. Then I tried to push him away. “Don’t...”He kissed me harder, pressing his tongue deeper into my mouth, violating every corner of it.I couldn't breathe.My back hit the door again, and this time he didn’t let me go. His hand moved up to the side of my neck, his fingers threading into my hair, holding me still as his mouth took and took until I couldn’t think anymore.Every protest I had died between our lips.He tasted exactly like I remembered... heat and mint.When he finally pulled back, both of us were breathing hard. His forehead rested against mine, his thumb tracing the corner of my mouth where my lips were still trembling.He closed his eyes, his jaw tightening like he was fighting himself. “I can’t not touch you, Crystal. I’ve gone ha