SOLD TO AUGUST CHILDE のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 41 - チャプター 50

CAMILLAI waited.At first I told myself I would give it a minute.Then another.Then another.But the minutes stretched, and the silence inside the small office August had given me started to feel suffocating. I sat behind the desk, staring at the laptop screen that had been placed there for me, but I could not focus on a single thing.My mind kept replaying the scene from the parking lot.That old man.The way August’s body had gone stiff the moment he heard his voice.The way he pulled me behind him like he was shielding me from something dangerous.And the look on his face.I had never seen August look like that before.He always walked like he owned the ground beneath his feet. Like the world adjusted itself around him.But when he said “Grandfather” his voice had changed.It was subtle.Most people probably would not notice.But I did.Because I had been watching him.Closely.I stood up from the chair and walked toward the window of the office, crossing my arms over my chest.T

AUGUSTI woke up with a splitting headache.The kind that pulsed behind my eyes and made the entire room feel too bright, too loud, too wrong. My first instinct was to roll over and bury my face deeper into the pillow, but something stopped me.Warmth.There was warmth pressed against my side.Not just warmth.A body.My eyes opened slowly.For a few seconds my brain refused to process what I was seeing.Then reality slammed into me all at once.Taylor.She was lying beside me in the hotel bed, completely naked, her arm wrapped tightly around my torso like she had every right to be there.My stomach twisted violently.What the hell.I tried to move.Her grip tightened immediately.I froze for a second, staring at the ceiling while memories from last night tried to crawl their way back into my head.Dinner.The restaurant.Driving to the hotel.Walking inside because she said my grandfather wanted to see me.After that… nothing.Blank.Complete darkness.A cold wave of dread settled in

AUGUSTI stood outside the hospital room for several minutes before the nurse finally told me I could go in.Those minutes felt longer than they should have.Hospitals had a way of doing that. The air always smelled too clean. Too sterile. Every second stretched out while your mind filled the silence with every possible worst case scenario.My fingers tapped slowly against my thigh as I waited. My mind kept replaying the moment Camilla had doubled over in the bathroom that morning. The sound she made when she threw up. The way her body had trembled.I had seen people sick before. I had dealt with worse situations in business, in life, in every possible way.But that moment had unsettled me.Because it was her.When the nurse finally nodded and said I could go in, I pushed the door open immediately.Camilla stood near the hospital bed, pulling on her jacket as if nothing had happened.She looked better already.Color had returned to her face. Her posture was steady again. The stubborn

CAMILLAThe water kept running long after I stopped feeling it.It poured over my head, soaked through my clothes, and clung to my skin like it was trying to hold me together. But nothing could. Not right now.I sat on the shower floor with my knees pulled to my chest, my back pressed against the cold tiles, my fingers gripping the fabric of my shirt like it was the only thing keeping me from falling apart completely.I had finally done it.A bitter laugh broke out of me, but it didn’t sound like laughter. It sounded broken. Hollow.Pregnant.The word echoed in my head again, louder this time. Sharper.Pregnant for a man who did not love me.Pregnant for a man who was already promised to someone else.Pregnant for a man whose life was already planned out without me in it.My chest tightened painfully.My life was over.The thought came quietly at first, then louder, until it filled my entire head.Over and over again.I buried my face in my hands, my shoulders shaking as the tears cam

AUGUST“Are you mad?”The words came out sharper than I intended, but I didn’t take them back.Camilla’s head snapped up instantly, her eyes blazing through tears that hadn’t fully dried.“Excuse me?”I leaned forward slightly, my jaw tight, my pulse uneven in a way I hated. “Did you hear what you just said?”“I heard myself perfectly,” she shot back. “Maybe you didn’t.”“You want to get rid of my child and you expect me to just sit here and nod?”Her laugh was dry. Bitter. It scraped against my nerves.“Your child?” she repeated. “That’s funny.”My eyes narrowed.“What is that supposed to mean?”“It means,” she said, pushing herself to stand, her voice rising, “that this is not some business deal you can walk into and claim ownership of.”I stood up too, the space between us shrinking instantly.“It’s not just about you either.”“It is about me,” she snapped, pressing a hand to her chest. “It’s my body. My life. My future.”“And that baby is my blood,” I fired back.Her expression ha