Chapter 6 Chapter Six
1663 Words
Amelia stared right at him.
She thought, as long as he said one word—yes.
Even if it was a vague, meaningless yes.
That would've been enough to trap her for life. She'd fall for this man, hard.
But Simon stayed silent. His expression just got colder, saying everything his mouth didn't.
He took a couple of steps back, scanning her from top to bottom.
"Amelia, I always thought you were smarter than this."
Amelia's heart twinged sharply.
She got what he was implying—smart women wouldn't put themselves through this.
Normally, she wouldn't either.
But this time was different. She was pregnant.
Meeting his eyes, she said quietly, "Sorry, Mr. Johnson. I'm just a regular woman."
"In that case, I won't stop you," he replied, before turning around and walking away.
Only after the Cullinan disappeared from view did Amelia's face go pale as she moved to the curb to hail a cab.
At the hospital, Olivia was already waiting.
"Come on, let's get the checkup done first."
Amelia followed her into the ultrasound room.
When they came out, Olivia's face didn't look too good."
What's wrong?" Amelia suddenly had a bad feeling.
Olivia frowned.
"I remember you always had really bad cramps?"
"Yeah." Amelia's body tensed up.
That time when she was seventeen and fell into the sea, it was during her period.
The winter ocean was freezing, and after that, her stomach hurt for days.
Ever since then, her period cramps were like a living nightmare every month.
"Amelia, there's something with your body. Your uterine lining is a lot thinner than normal. This pregnancy... might not hold."
Amelia pressed her hand over her lower belly, her thoughts all over the place.
This baby—he might be the only one she ever gets to have.
She wanted so badly for him to make it into this world safely.
After a moment of silence, she swallowed the pain and said, "I'll do whatever it takes to protect him."
Olivia looked at her closely. "You and that guy... is there really no chance?"
Amelia let out a small laugh, so bitter it felt like it might choke her.
"There's no way."
Just as they left the hospital, Amelia's phone started ringing.
Lily's anxious voice came through loud and clear.
"Boss, your dad showed up at the office again causing trouble. You better come quick. If Mr. Johnson finds out, things are gonna blow up."
Amelia's brow twitched hard the moment she heard Lily mention "your dad." That "dad" was, unfortunately, her stepfather.
Hanging up the call, Amelia rushed straight to the company.
The moment she stepped into the lobby, there he was—Richard—sitting on the couch, puffing away without a care in the world.
"Put that out," she said coldly, her face dark.
Richard just grinned. "Sure, whatever my daughter says goes."
Amelia felt a headache coming on just looking at him.
"Come outside," she said, leading him to a nearby café down the block.
As soon as they walked in, Richard chuckled.
"Wow, my girl's doing well for herself now, huh? Fancy place and all."
Amelia stared at him. "If you're really not scared of Simon, then sure, keep showing up."
Richard sneered, "You think he scares me? What can he do, stop me from seeing my own daughter?"
"Go ahead, find out. But don't say I didn't warn you—if he steps in, playing the ‘mental illness card' isn't gonna save you."
Back when her mom got pushed into that traffic accident by Richard, Amelia had made up her mind to send him to jail.
But somehow he'd gotten his hands on a mental illness certificate, and just like that, he walked away without a scratch.
Because of that, Amelia had been holding a serious grudge.
Seeing that she wasn't joking, Richard suddenly toned down.
"You give me the money, just give me the money and I promise I'll never show up here again!"
"I don't have any!" Amelia cut him off without hesitation.
He'd gotten into gambling lately and had come to ask her for money more than once.
And truth be told, she really didn't have any left—she'd handed everything over for her mom's medical bills just to keep him from getting his hands on it.
"Don't give me that crap!" Richard roared, his voice echoing in the hall. "You work in some fancy office and you're trying to tell me you're broke?"
People passing by all turned to look.
Amelia clenched her fists, trying her best to stay calm despite the fire boiling inside.
"Do you even know how much my mom's treatment costs every month? Since her accident, have you pitched in even once? What gives you the right to come and ask me for money?!"
"Why the hell should I pay for her?! She didn't even give me a child! And now you expect me to fork over money for her medical bills? Dream on!" Richard barked, practically shouting.
Amelia stared at him coldly. "Then why should I give you a damn cent? I'm not even yours, am I?"
"You carry the Clarke name, don't you? That makes me your dad!"
Just as he finished speaking, Richard suddenly grinned wickedly, like he'd just gotten a gross idea.
He stepped forward and grabbed Amelia's wrist. "Amelia, why don't you have a kid for me? If you give me a kid, I swear I'll take care of Grace. After all... she'd be the baby's grandmother, wouldn't she?"
Those words made Amelia sick to her stomach. She shook him off and slapped him hard across the face.
There were quite a few people in the café coming and going.
The slap was loud. Heads instantly turned in their direction.
"You little tramp! You dare hit me?!" Richard roared, yanking at her collar and raising his hand to strike her back.
But before the slap landed, someone caught his wrist mid-air.
"Who's poking their nose in my business now?" Richard snarled, spinning around—only to meet Simon's chilly stare.
The moment he saw it was Simon, Richard froze.
Simon's gaze was icy, not a hint of warmth in it.
He tightened his grip without warning, and a loud yelp came from Richard.
Simon flung his arm away in disgust, like touching him was something revolting.
"Get lost. If I ever see you near the company again, it won't just be your arm you'll lose."
Richard winced in pain, his face going pale, but he didn't dare do a thing to Simon.
He gritted his teeth, shot Amelia a glare, then scurried off like a coward.
Amelia's eyes were still a little red. She tried to keep her cool.
"Thanks, Mr. Johnson."
Simon stood there, every bit of him cold and distant, face giving away nothing. "Has he ever touched you at home before?"
Her lips trembled slightly.
After she turned eighteen, Richard had gotten handsy now and then—touching her face, slapping her butt. Her mom had argued with him about it more times than she could count, but he never stopped. Not until she left for college.
But that kind of thing—not something she could ever tell Simon.
Meeting his eyes, she stayed quiet for a beat before answering, "No."
Simon's face didn't ease up one bit. "Let's make sure this never happens again."
He was clearly talking about Richard dragging his drama into the office.
"It won't. I'm filing for resignation right now."
Simon's eyes narrowed, and then he let out a cold, mocking laugh. "So you've really made up your mind to leave, huh?"
Amelia gave a bitter smile. "Yeah."
Simon let out a low chuckle, the kind that sent chills down your spine. "Alright then, I won't get in your way while you go upstairs to hand in your resignation."
Amelia nodded. "Sure."
He gave her a quick look before turning and heading toward the window seats.
It was only then Amelia noticed there was a woman with him.
The woman glanced back at her, eyes full of mockery and provocation.
Amelia didn't react. She just walked straight out the door.
With Simon? Women like that were always around. He never had a shortage of them.
Amelia had known that for a long time.
But knowing didn't make it hurt any less.
She instinctively clenched the hand resting on her lower abdomen, emotions souring in her chest like acid spilling over.
Well, maybe it's a good thing she was leaving.
Out of sight, out of mind — maybe she'd actually manage to forget him one day.
When she arrived at the company entrance, she drew in a deep breath, straightened up, and forced a smile as she stepped inside.
The office group chat was already buzzing about her resignation.
Apparently, someone had leaked what happened at the club last night.
Some were saying she was a badass, others said Simon was cold as ice — most thought Amelia had pushed it too far this time and totally backfired.
She glanced at the messages, then exited the chat without a word.
Gossip was something the office never ran out of, but Amelia couldn't care less.
Even if, right now, she was the one everyone was talking about.
As she pushed open the office door, the room immediately quieted down.
Lily Brooks's eyes turned red the moment she saw Amelia.
"Boss, are you really quitting?"
Amelia glanced around at everyone, then gave a small nod. "Wishing you all the best."
With that, she quietly started packing her things.
Soft murmurs filled the room, but Amelia didn't pay any attention.
Just as she was almost done, her phone suddenly rang.
It was an unknown number.
She picked it up, and Richard's voice came through.
"Amelia, guess where I am?"
Her heart skipped a beat.
She instantly recalled what Richard had warned her before.
"Richard, lay a finger on my mom and see what happens!"
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