Chapter 119 His
Aaron released a choked laugh. One side of his face was permanently stuck in an uplifted position. He rubbed his chin, wondering if his ears betrayed him.
"I knew it!" A shrill voice shrieked from the doorway and in stormed Lady Eves, finger pointed with accusation. "It all makes sense now. Her absurd gold jewelry, that expensive gown with materials imported from overseas, and her abrupt entrance. This was planned by you, wasn't it Aaron?"
"Now, now, Rose-Anne," came her husband in a chiding manner.
Aaron blanched, his head snapping to his mother. "Why would I—"
"You should've told us from the very start, Aaron," Lady Eves decided, placing a hand on her chest as if both a weight was lifted and placed at the same time. "An illegitimate daughter, at that! What will the people say?"
"No, Mother, this is all a misunderstanding," Aaron declared. "I—"
"What's a misunderstanding?" the woman asked, tilting her head, her intricate hair practically shining underneath the sunlight. Aaron's breath hitched. She was what every courtesan wished to be. He never understood the need to describe beauty in great words, until he saw her. He wished to capture every word in the dictionary and laid it out before her, weaving nothing but sentences of high praises. "You," Aaron forced out.
Calmly, she blinked, almost taken aback. She touched her collarbone, blinking closely. "Is that my name?"
"How are you both educated and uneducated at the same time," Lord Eves snorted, folding his arms across his chest and gazing upon his son. He never thought the boy would be capable of such schemes. Or, was his poor son just a victim?
"For now," Aaron gritted. "Let us fetch Doctor Farne, he should be able to explain what is wrong with her. I'll call for the maid and ensure she is presentable."
Aaron stormed out before anyone could ask him any more questions that he, truthfully, didn't have the answers to.
- - - - -
Doctor Farne examined the young woman for what felt like hours. "Doctor, is she telling the truth?" Lady Eve asked immediately once he left the room. Aaron didn't wait for his answer. He strolled straight into the bedroom, followed by the sound of a soft response.
"Yes, she is." Doctor Farne regrettably shook his head.
Aaron locked the doors behind him, evidently shutting his parents out. She was in the same position that he first discovered her. She stared out the window and up at the sky, where oddly enough, a faint silhouette of the moon could be seen. The sun had long set, and dusk was rapidly approaching.
"I don't remember impregnating you," Aaron mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "I've been celibate since birth."
The lady calmly peered over her shoulders. Her silver hair should've unnerved anyone who glanced at her. Signs of an old woman. Yet, she had never appeared more dazzling than now, with rosy lips, and innocent gaze.
"I think… my name is Selene," she whispered, touching her collarbone. "I vaguely remember a man calling out Selene."
Aaron's heart skipped. A man? Who? He found himself drawn to her in unimaginable ways, crossing the distance. "The father of that child?"
"Won't you be the father instead?" she mumbled, bowing her head in defeat. Aaron's breath hitched. Slivers of white fell across her thin, defenseless shoulders. "What an impossible request. What if you have a family that misses you—"
"I must not if I was out in the snow barefoot," she interjected.
Aaron swallowed. Doctor Farne graduated at the top of his class, going onwards to raise many stellar pupils. He was renowned and rumor had it that, if he was a vampire, the royal family would've employed him. Doctor Farne was never wrong. And if he believed Selene had amnesia, then Aaron saw it as the truth.
"My parents would never allow it," Aaron sighed. "I may be a righteous man, but—"
"I can pay for my stay," Selene mumbled.
Aaron opened his mouth, but heard the rapid knocking of his mother. "Aaron, what are you doing in here all alone and unchaperoned with a woman?!" Lady Eves demanded, her fists pounding enough to break the door.
"Rose-Anne, he's a boy. What else do you expect?" Lord Eves mused.
"I don't need your money," Aaron told Selene, his voice hardening and ignoring both of his parents. In her eyes, did he look poor? House Eves were one of the most well-off humans this empire had seen. "You may stay here for free until you and that thing—"
"Baby," Selene corrected him, almost seemingly beginning to grasp her surroundings. "Not thing."
Aaron gawked. He was speechless by her abrupt words.
"Won't you be the father of my baby? I wish it to be a girl as lovely as me," Selene dared to ask, turning and grasping his hand.
Aaron stiffened. She was cold to the touch. His fingers felt like they had been kissed by ice. Blood pounded in his ears as she drew closer to him. She peered upon him with large, innocent eyes that captured his body and mind.
"Please?" Selene urged. "I know this will hurt you, but I must beg you for this favor… And one day, I swear, I will return this favor. I will never tell anyone. You have my promise. Please, I—"
"Are you married?" Aaron suddenly asked.
Selene blinked and the two glanced down. No wedding ring.
"Do you have a lover? A man in your heart?" Aaron continued.
Selene slowly shook her head. "No."
"Then we are to wed in a private ceremony where we'll welcome the birth of our daughter," Aaron finished, dropping her hand and pulling away. What had he just done? When she touched him, he felt invincible. Almost like the world ceased to matter, and nothing was as important as her words and pleas. Aaron touched his forehead, feeling for heat. Had he just gone insane? What did he agree to?
Selene grasped onto his freed hand again, her gaze widening. "Truly?"
Aaron could barely think straight. She was seconds away from pressing her body upon his. A fire grew inside of him, an itching need to wrap his arms around his new possession. That's right, his. No one else's. "Yes, truly, Selene." Aaron bent his head, not sure what he was leaning closer for. Suddenly, Selene let out a squeal of delight, throwing her arms around him. She enveloped him in a tight embrace, her tiny stature dragging him even lower. Aaron was light-headed. He never felt so free in his life. Air filled his chest, his heart skipping, and he unwittingly smiled in relief. For a moment, his hand hovered, before resting upon her spine. Everything felt so right at this moment, as if the stomach pressing into his abdomen belonged to him. As if the child in her womb bore his seed and not a stranger's.
"Thank you, Aaron," Selene whimpered, burying her face into his neck. "You won't regret this, I promise."
Aaron didn't know what implored him to agree to her crazy wish. Whether it was the sympathy he felt for a woman found in the snow or the idea of an orphaned mother and daughter with nowhere to go. Perhaps, it was her blinding beauty that convinced him once the girl was born, he could sire his own. "And neither will your family regret helping me, I swear by it," Selene pulled back, her words throwing him back into reality.
His parents.
F*ck.
Aaron wrapped his arms around her waist and rushed her to the doors. She was stunned, but walked after him regardless as he threw the doors open, revealing a furious Lady Eve and an amused Lord Eve. The father and son shared a look of understanding. "Don't tell me," Lady Eves snapped, clutching her forehead, already predicting the words falling out of her son's mouth. "I won't hear of it—"
"Mother, I'm marrying Selene by the end of this month," Aaron stated, pouring cold water directly onto his parents. His grip tightened on her hip, an action he'd never done, yet felt so smooth. "I'll father her child—"
PAK!
Lady Eves smacked Aaron across the face. Lord Eves rushed to grab his wife, his face a fever of fury. "I said, we are to never discipline our children with our hands, Rose-Anne!" Lord Eves snarled, taking hold of her wrists.
Lady Eves' gaze flashed with venom. "Both of you have lost your mind!" she shrieked at her son, straining against her husband's grasp. "You'd throw your life, reputation, and standing away for a mere woman, Aaron?!"
"Mother—"
"She is nothing, except the clothes on her back," Lady Eves ranted. "She is tricking you, and—"
"I am a willing victim," Aaron interjected. "And it's about time I settle down and start a family. I've never once tangled myself in rumors with women, and this is the first time I've asked you to accept someone of my choosing."
Lady Eves' ears practically poured blood. She scorned this unknown Selene, who so effortlessly bewitched her son, but she couldn't blame the woman. Helpless and pregnant. Just, out of all the boys this succubus chose, why did it have to be Aaron? Their sweet, innocent son.
"I can pay," Selene's soft, composed voice pierced the tension. Like a ghost, she raised her fingers, pointing to the window beyond them. "Venture far into the forest to the cliff that meets the sky, and right below it, buried by snow and branches, you shall find a mine of ores and gems."
"Did you hear that, Arnold?" Lady Eves scoffed and rolled her eyes. "This girl thinks she can buy us out!"
Lord Eves blanched. "Young lady, House Eves have lived on these lands for centuries. We know everything like the back of our hand, and you expect there to be an undiscovered mine—"
"Trust me." Selene's demeanor shifted, as she touched her stomach. "Take care of me and I promise you will not starve on my watch." Aaron truly didn't know what he had entangled himself with. The more she spoke, the longer she stood, the wiser she suddenly seemed. What happened to that timid little lady who didn't even know the reproductive system? His mouth parched. Was it all an act? Yet, when Selene glanced back at him and smiled, he felt her sincerity. Her sincerity. "You…" Lord Eves trailed off, taking her appearance into full account again. "You're not human. What are you?"
"I am human enough," Selene mumbled, resting her palms upon her stomach, the motion fluid and tugging at the heartstrings of House Eve. "I am as human as they come, it is just my hair and eyes that make me seem inhumane."
Lord Eves released a quiet snort, turning to his wife. He hoped to hide his knowing glance. He was no fool of what her kind suggests—a scam artist.
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