Chapter 7

She stared at the main door with her feet firmly planted on the floor. She could feel her stomach tied in knots while her entire nerves went berserk.

If she dreaded going up there earlier, she felt twice anxious to see him again. But this time, she had her answer to his question.

She could tell he was the one who paid for the operation. Who else could it be? Why? She guessed she would only know if she would talk to him. But it would not change her decision.

"I..." She finally gathered the courage to walk back into the reception area without the guards stopping her.

"Ms. Morgan..." Somebody suddenly called her from behind, making her abruptly turn. "Mr. Hawkins asks me to escort you upstairs."

The man in a black suit urged her to follow him into the elevators. She could only guess that he was already expecting that she would be coming back.

A part of her wanted to back out and run, dreading what awaited her upstairs. But the other part thought of her son, nagging her to do the right thing.

Even though she did not intend to accept his offer, the least she could do was thank him for his help.

Eventually, her eyes fixated on the red number that climbed one level at a time until it finally stopped at her final destination.

"Please follow me." The man said when the doors opened, but she took a few seconds to comply.

Then, she was back at the closed door where a man was already waiting for her on the other side. She could not help but wonder what he would say.

Was he expecting she would agree to this ridiculous idea and marry him just because he paid for his son's operation?

Although she said she would do anything for her son, it did not include marrying a stranger.

"Ms. Morgan is here, Sir." The man announced, forcing her to follow him inside. Then, the man exited the door and closed it behind him, leaving her alone again with the father of her child.

She looked around the room, anywhere except him, afraid to make eye contact with the man. But she could tell his eyes were on her.

"Thank you." She finally said after a long silence. She guessed she could not take the deafening silence anymore, and hearing her heartbeat was not helping to calm her nerves.

He did not respond, making her wonder if he even heard her. Did she even say it out loud? But she watched him stand from his desk and grab his phone.

"You can thank me later. But for now, we have to go." He said when he was just a meter away from her.

Before she could say one word, he grabbed her hand and pulled her with him outside his office and into a narrow hallway.

Simultaneously, he raised his phone to his ears and called someone. "Is everything arranged?" He said on the line.

"Where are we going?" She dared to ask, finally snapping out of her confusion. She tried to pry her hand from his, but he only gripped it tighter.

Still, he only ignored her as he kept walking and talking while pulling her with him. Then, he stopped, making her realize they were about to enter another elevator.

It was smaller than the other one as the doors opened, and he dragged her inside without answering her question.

"We are on our way up." He informed whoever was on the other side of that phone call.

"Where are you taking me?" She tried to get free again when he ended the call and put his phone back in his pocket. But this time, she used more force, snatching her hand away from him.

"I am going to see the boy you claim is mine." He finally answered her. "I thought I could do you a favor by letting you ride with me."

"Wait a minute." She said, slightly confused and panicking.

It was not what she had in mind when she decided to see him. She did not want him to claim their son as his. She only wanted him to help him.

"You have this all wrong." She waved her hands at him. "He is not your son." She said, only to realize it came out wrong.

"I meant, Oliver is your son, but it doesn't mean you have to be his father." She clarified, hoping to clear the confusion. "I only need your money, nothing more."

She did not want him to take responsibility for her son. She still wanted to raise her child alone and live as far away from his family as she initially intended.

She could not even imagine accepting his offer of marriage because she did not want him or anyone in his family to be part of their lives.

"I see." But before he could say more, the elevator opened to a staircase.

And on the top, she could see a single door. She could only guess it was the rooftop. Silently, she could not stop thinking about what she would do next.

Should she go back down and take the bus? Or should she go along with him and convince him that he did not need to be a part of their son's life?

"So basically, you are saying that you just want my money and nothing more from me." He surmised, sounding like he was on a losing end of a negotiation, and he did not like that.

"Yes! I only want you to pay for Oliver's medical bills. After that, you don't have to hear from us again." She reiterated her wishes. "You can return to your life as if we did not exist."

She stood before him, pondering his possible reaction. She had thought about this. Most men like him, in his position, would be relieved to hear that she did not want anything else from him.

Therefore, she was sure that after this night, she did not have to see him again. And her son did not have to know who he was.

But.

"No!"