Chapter 33: Forest's POV

She whimpered while she was on top of me and bit into my shoulder to stifle her moans and screams.

She was straddling me while we sat upright on the bed. I helped her move up and down on my shaft while holding onto her behind. I had each cheeck in my hand and I was holding each of one of them so tightly. My fiancé's behind is so supple and ample that it drives me out of my mind at times. I'll never get enough of her ... and now she's pregnant.

I thought it would take us a couple of months to get pregnant, maybe even a year or two. I got angry everytime I thought of the fact that if we hadn't broken up, we would have already had at least one kid by now. We would have been parents to the most beautiful boy or girl and I would have spoiled the two of them the way I'm spoiling her right now.

However, lucky for us, she got pregnant only two months after being back in my life. She's adamant that she doesn't want anyone to know yet. She reminded me about her promotion and that if anyone from her firm caught a whiff of her pregnancy before the time is right, her career might be jeopardised. Then she pointed out that the people who've tried to get me to enter into an arranged marriage would try to kill her if they found out she's pregnant. Our engagement already put a target on her back.

I told her that there's nothing I won't do to keep her safe and happy, but she insisted that we do things her way because that's just how Charlie is.

I didn't tell her that since she punched Lauren I constantly have people watching her. I know where she is at all times and I always know who she is with. The only thing that's left is me planting audio devices and cameras on her so that I can hear and see everything her security detail can only observe from afar, but I'm trying really hard not to resort to doing that.

So for now I'm letting her think that we're doing things her way.

I realised from a very early age that my fiancé hates feeling like she needs someone to save her. A Knight in shining armor is something she's adamant she'll never need because 'she has her own damn armor'. For her, asking for help means she's weak and she desperately needs to prove to herself that she's not weak because when she was young and at her most vulnerable, her own parents did terrible things to her.

So if she finds out everything I'm doing to keep her safe, she'll think I'm trying to tell her she's not strong enough to protect herself, and that's her worst fear.

She started shaking as yet another orgasm rolled through her body. I held on to her. My arms were wrapped around her back, making sure there's absolutely no space between the two of us.

"Forest." She cried out loud again. "Please. Don't. Stop. Don't stop, okay?"

I made her look at me and captured her honey lips with mine. She cried right into my mouth while I helped her ride me like she does every night. "I'll never stop, Charlie." I breathed into her mouth. "Never."

She was panting, digging her nails into my shoulders and moving her hips faster and faster while she cried louder and louder until a loud cry left her lips for the third time tonight and she was left shaking in my arms.

"I love you." She whimpered against my shoulder. I love you so much, Forest."

I kissed her again and she started melting in my arms again.

We had the most amazing night at the banquet. I got to show off with the most amazing woman right by my side and then she got announced as partner right at the banquet. Everyone wanted to take pictures of her ring, her dress, her hair and even now, there are multiple reports of Charlotte Ericsson and Lucas Greyson's engagement. The news about our engagement is almost as big of a deal as the merger finally being wrapped up and her being announced as partner.

Everyone is talking about the man and woman who are taking New York City by storm ... and I know she planned it that way. She made sure her promotion got announced at the banquet so that our relationship would hurt Lauren that much more.

Now that I think about it, if I had gone to the banquet with Lauren, I would have lost Charlotte forever. No one would have reported that Lauren and I were just two friends who went together. In fact, the more I insisted that we're friends, the more rumours of us being more than friends would have spread around.

And then Charlie would have started acting more withdrawn. She would have pushed me to spend more time with Lauren and insisted that Lauren stay at the house. She would have convinced herself that she was giving me what I want and I would have lost her. I can't believe how close I came to losing her again.

"I love you too, Charlie." I kissed her shoulders while she trembled in my arms. "More than you can ever imagine."

I pushed her beautiful curls out of her face while she panted. I can only thank my lucky stars that she punched Lauren. I might have made the biggest mistake of my life if she hadn't.

I might have lost her forever.

After the banquet, I let her go home with mom, Christian and Belle. Joshua told me he found out more things about what she's been getting up to. She bought the most exclusive art galleries in the city and then flew out Justin Odewell's ex-girlfriend to come and manage those galleries and exhibit her work there.

The woman she brought here doesn't know Charlotte is behind it yet. My fiancé is a majority shareholder in most art galleries in the city and she used those companies to bring that woman back to the country.

We all watched Justin falling in love all over again while his pregnant wife watched ... the man had no shame about fawning over the red haired woman ... and it was all Charlotte's doing.

Lisa Mitchell's marriage is about to go through a very tough time and the woman has no idea that Charlie is behind it. And if Charlotte is taking things this far with the Mitchells, then it means that this fight is about more than Charlotte punching Lauren in the face.

"Let's go take a shower." I whispered in her ear.

"No." She refused to unwrap her arms from my neck. "Not yet. Just hold me. Please?"

"You okay?" I asked.

"Yea." She sighed. "I just ... you can't leave me, Forest." She blurted out. "Please. Please don't leave me. I know I owe you an explanation for what I did to you and I know you'll never be able to trust me again, but-"

"I trust you." I reassured her.

"You don't think I was out there sleeping with other men?" She looked up at me. "Most people would think that. No one would blame you."

"Well I'm not most people and I know you."

She bit her lip and I saw those familiar tears gathering in her eyes again while she had an internal struggle that she seemed to be losing.

"I think you deserve someone better than me." She hid her face in my chest. "I think you deserve someone who didn't need to get all kind of ointments just to get rid of her scars, Forest. And I think you deserve someone who's background won't embarass you or make people pity her, but I'm too selfish to let you be with a person like that."

I tried to make her look at me, but she refused.

"I just want to be enough for you." She still refused to look at me. "Maybe I'll be able to tell you what happened one day. I don't know, but for now, just ... please be patient with me. Please don't leave me ... okay?"

She finally looked at me and her tears were gone now.

She's gone from begging me not to ever leave her while sleeping, to doing it when she's wide awake. As if I could ever do such an unthinkable thing. As if I wouldn't break down again if she and I were to break up again.

I put a ring on her finger and put a baby in her, but honestly I want to shackle her to me so that she'll never leave my side ever again. I'm afraid that she'll come back home one day and have even more scars like the one on her stomach and her back.

"I will never leave you." I repeated what I now say almost every night. "Charlotte, the only person I deserve and the only person that I will ever be with is you. And whatever you think will scare me away or chase me away, I promise it won't. I fell in love with you when I was only nine years old and the love and admiration I hold for you has only grown ever since. Tell me you understand that. Tell me you understand that I refuse to live without you."

She bit her lip again and I could tell she was trying to convince herself that I was telling her the truth, but something inside her couldn't let her believe me.

She left me for five years and it only took her a few minutes to get me to kiss her and take her to my place when I saw her again, but she still seems to think that I would leave her.

"And you should know that I love every inch of your body." I made her look at me. "I love every single scar on your body. I'll kiss you everywhere, Charlie. You don't need to use any ointments to take away your scars. You don't need to do something like that for me. And you'll always be enough for me. You are more than enough."

...

"I don't go around buying villas in Italy for just anyone." I tried to ease the tension when she didn't respond. "I only buy villas and jets and homes in Paris, Greece and London for you. It will only ever be you."

She chuckled and slapped my shoulder. She was back to being invincible again.

"You know you're doing too much, right?" She laughed some more. "Flying business class is enough, I don't need an entire jet. It's almost as if you knew I was going to be announced as partner tonight."

She raised a brow and looked at me as if I'd tell her that I'm having people watch her every move.

"I bought the Jet and all those properties as engagement gifts." I pulled her closer to me. "And I also bought you all those things to show you just how happy I am that you're going to make me a dad. I should buy you the entire world for doing such an amazing thing, Charlie."

She smiled, but it was an uncertain smile.

She's very worried about her pregnancy. She won't tell me why, but I know her scars have something to do with it.

"We already have an appointment booked with Dr Shetland." I tried calming her down. "She's the best obstetrician in the country. You'll be fine, okay?"

She curled further into my arms. "You promise?" She asked.

"I promise." I kissed the top of her head.

She drifted off to sleep in my arms like she does every night. She was peaceful and like always, she refused to let go of me even in her sleep.

She's gone through great lengths to hide a lot of things from me. It usually takes Joshua a week to find out closely guarded secrets, but he's struggling to find out what made her break up with me because of how well she's hidden it.

He actually thought he hit a wall, until he found out Dr Avilon was trying to share Charlotte's hospital file with mom. That one piece of information seems to be leading him down a road that neither of us thought to explore - Charlotte being in hospital right before breaking up with me.