‘But... it doesn’t really matter whether you can have children or not. Ashton doesn’t need you to give him a baby. He’s got me for that,’ she added, her voice oozing with satisfaction.
I realised it was completely impossible to have a rational conversation with her. She was utterly obsessed.
‘Ha! Think whatever you like.’
‘Alright, I think you’ve officially lost it. I almost feel sorry for you. Look, I’m busy. Don’t call me again with this nonsense.’ I hung up without letting her respond.
Even though I knew it was all lies Genevieve had concocted, I couldn’t help but wonder why she would suddenly say such things.
Logically, I knew Ashton wouldn’t do anything with her, but that didn’t stop the sick, uncomfortable feeling spreading through my chest.
So I called him, fuming.
‘Mira?’ Ashton sounded like he was in a good mood, his voice soft.
‘Genevieve just called me.’
‘And?’ ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩·𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢·𝔫𝔢𝔱
‘She spouted a load of nonsense. Said you asked her to have your baby?’ That was the part that really got under my skin.
‘You believed her?’ he asked.
‘Of course I didn’t believe her. But why would she say that? You must’ve given her the wrong idea somehow, didn’t you?’
‘What else did she say?’
‘She said... she said once she’s given birth, you’ll divorce me and marry her. That you are just buying time now. She also said I can’t have children.’
Ashton was silent for a long time. ‘It seems falling into the lake last time didn’t knock any sense into her. If anything, it’s just addled her brain even more. Don’t worry about what she meant. Just ignore her.’
‘If you won’t tell me, it means you’re hiding something.’ I wasn’t satisfied.
‘Alright, fine. I’ll tell you.’
Ashton explained that Genevieve hadn’t just been trying to poison his mind about me and Rhys. She’d also been trying to force his hand, to literally get him into bed. More than once, she’d tried to slip something into his drink, hoping to sleep with him and then pressure him into divorcing me.
He’d never fallen for it, but constantly being on guard was exhausting. He was tired of just playing defence. So he’d decided to go for the root of the problem instead.
‘What did you do?’ I asked.
‘I made her believe she’d slept with me.’
‘I don’t understand.’
‘Last night, after you fell asleep, I went to see her. I asked her if she wanted to have my child. She said yes. When she went to take a shower, I turned off the lights, left the hotel room, and another man went in... Do you understand now?’
My mouth fell open. ‘You... that’s... that’s...’
I’d never have thought Ashton would do something . It just didn’t seem like him.
He seemed to sense what I was thinking. ‘She tried to drug me, multiple times. I was just returning the favour.’
I was still trying to process what I’d just heard.
‘You don’t like that I did this?’ he asked.
To be honest, I didn’t. Letting another man pretend to be him and sleep with Genevieve felt like a low trick, something beneath him.
But he wasn’t wrong. She had done much worse to both of us.
‘I don’t want her to keep bothering us,’ he continued, ‘but I can’t physically hurt her because of a promise I made a long time ago. This was the only permanent solution. You understand, right?’
‘I have to go. A client just walked in,’ I said, and hung up, my mind reeling.
The conversation bothered me in more ways than one.
It wasn’t just about Genevieve.
I realised we’d never actually talked about having children. I knew Ashton wanted them. As for me... I wasn’t so sure.
What if I told him I didn’t want kids? Not just for now, not for a few years, but ever?
The days passed slowly.
By some unspoken mutual agreement, neither Ashton nor I brought up our difficult conversation from the other day.
Genevieve, thankfully, seemed to have vanished from my life completely.
I did wonder if Ashton had done something else to ensure her silence, but something held me back from asking. Maybe because I wasn’t entirely sure I’d like the answer.
Lately, I’d been feeling constantly drained. No matter what I did, I couldn’t seem to muster any energy. I was going to bed early, yet I was still exhausted during the day. I didn’t know what was wrong with me.
In the end, I put it down to pure exhaustion. I’d been run ragged for weeks, kept up half the night by Ashton’s demands and then having to get up early for work. My body and mind just hadn’t caught up yet.
‘Mira...’ Ashton murmured, his voice soft as he moved closer to me after his shower.
This time, I pushed him away. ‘I’m exhausted. I just want to sleep.’
I knew how this usually went. My resistance always crumbled, and I’d inevitably get swept up in the pleasure he offered until I couldn’t think straight. I wanted to say no, but Ashton knew my body too well. With just a touch, he could make me forget my own name.
It was always the same. The only way to refuse was right at the start, before his hands could work their magic.
‘I’ve been so tired lately, so sleepy. I really need to get to bed early. I can barely keep my eyes open, and I’m even worse at the studio. Please, just let me sleep tonight. Okay? I’m just completely worn out.’
Ashton looked at me with concern. ‘Are you feeling unwell? Is something wrong? Maybe you should take some time off work. Stay home and rest.’
I shook my head. ‘No, it’s not that. I don’t feel ill, just tired. I think it’s because you... you want me every night. I’m worn out. I’m not like you, you know. I can’t just keep going and never get tired.’
‘But I’m the one doing all the work. How does that tire you out?’