77. The Deal Breaker.

[Claire]
"Father, compose yourself!" I yelled at him and he stared at me in shock. I wasn't too surprised that he'd asked me to abort the child but I was surprised that he thought I would obey him so easily or take the coward's way out.
"Don't provoke me, Claire." He gritted his teeth and lived closer to me. "I have never laid my hands on you before, don't let me start now." He threatened.
I shivered in fear but I did not show it, nor did I back down from the fight. In all my years, my father had never spoken to me like this before.
I wanted to yell back at him but I knew that that action would yield nothing, I had to be diplomatic about things and a little manipulative but it was nothing that he hadn't done to me before so there wasn't any foul play involved.
"You will not have that bastard child, not under my roof." He glared at me.
"Fine." I huffed. "I've been thinking of moving out anyway."
"Both of you should calm down at once, please, emotions are running high right now, you don't mean what you're saying." My mother pleaded.
"No." My father frowned at her. "Because of her I almost lost the company."
"Dad!"
"No, you don't get to cry, let me finish." He spoke bitterly. "Because of you I almost lost the company and now that we have a chance to save it, you want to ruin that chance again, I'm not going to let you."
"Don't speak to her like that, please calm down, there's a better way to resolve this issue." My mother pleaded again.
I placed my hand on my stomach as I tried to calm myself, it couldn't be good for the baby if I was all riled up like this.
"Mother is right." I sighed. "There has to be a better way."
"Of course there is, just get rid of the baby." My father said and I shook my head.
"I'm so sorry father, I know that I've brought disgrace and shame to you, please can you ever forgive me." I fell to his feet and grabbed his leg as tears poured out of my eyes.
They were controlled tears though, if only I'd discovered this talent of mine earlier in life I could have won an Oscar award.
"No, no, no, get off me." He tried to push me away from him but I didn't let go of his leg. "There's another way." He finally stopped struggling and sat back down.
"What!" I looked up at him, my eyes wet with tears.
"You could get married immediately, at least before you start showing, that way when you start showing nobody will talk about it."
"Yeah?" I sighed sadly, to think that I was expecting something better from him.
"It would be easier if you just told the father that you were expecting his child, I'm sure he will take responsibility immediately and ask you to marry him, and if he doesn't then I know certain ways to convince a man into taking responsibility for his actions." My father smirked.
"I already told you, the father is out of the picture." I stood up from the floor and flung myself on the couch sadly. "He will never know about this child."
"I'll never understand women." My father groaned and then appeared to be in deep thoughts for a while.
"I've gotten it." His eyes lit up and he smiled. "You can get married to someone else, that would save me from another scandal and the father of the child would never know that the child is his, even if he eventually finds out about the baby."
"That is genius, papa." I stood up from the couch and went to give him a hug.
My father was right, the only way to ensure that Jean or Luke, I didn't really still know which one to call him, the only way the Prince, I could refer to him like that, the only way to ensure that he wouldn't claim any rights to the child would be to get married and have the baby in wedlock.
"But who's going to agree to marry me now with the scandal and now a baby that isn't theirs," I complained.
"Shush, nobody must know about the baby yet, concerning the scandal, Ivan still wants to get married to you." He said grinning.
"Ivan, no, I'd prefer someone else." I frowned, Ivan knew about the Prince, I couldn't risk getting married to him, he would deduce that the child was not his immediately.
All this was still a theory in my mind, I didn't yet know how I would be able to get married and have sex with another man after Jean, not to talk more of giving the said person another man's child.
Besides, I was almost three months gone, who would I marry and how soon could I marry such a person that he won't find out about my scam.
"Ivan is perfect and it will help the company." My father argued.
"No, Father, that won't work," I said after thinking about it. "I'm very tired right now, I'll go and take my rest, we should talk about this in the morning," I said and stood up.
"I'm still calling the hospital just in case, that is the best option for us because if your pregnancy causes a scandal and I have to pick between you and the company, your guess is as good as mine on which one I'm picking."
I rushed away from there because real tears were threatening to spill out of my eyes and I didn't want to cry in front of anybody.
"How can you say that to her, are you saying you will pick that stupid company over your own daughter and your grandchild." My mother scolded my father as I hurried to my room.
I hadn't even thought of it like that, I wasn't just going to be a mother, I was also making my mother a grandmother and my father a grandfather alongside the King and I was also making the Prince a father.
My child was an heir from both sides, both maternal and paternal.
I shuddered to think of all the troubles my child would have to face in life if word ever got out that he was the Prince's son.
.
.
[Luke]
"Are you very sure about this?" I asked as I covered my mouth with my hands.
The first time I was with Claire she had been a virgin so obviously she hadn't been using any preventive measures, I also hadn't used any preventive measures with her so there was a high chance that she could indeed be pregnant with my baby.
"Yes sir, after she left the hospital, I hacked the security cameras to get the video I just sent you and I also accessed the hospital's files, her file had just been updated and it is written there that she is about ten weeks pregnant." He said.
My head felt like it was about to explode and my chest expanded and constricted with emotion, for the first time in a while I felt scared and my heartbeat intensified.
"Thank you very much," I said as I closed my laptop screen. "This changes everything," I said to myself as I got up and began to pace the length of the room.
My child with Claire would be the heir to the throne after me so of course, my father would have to reconsider his stupid laws when he finds out about this and maybe Claire and I could have our happy ending.
Annemarie's wedding in America was in three months, I hoped I'd have been able to convince the King in that short time so when I visited America I could speak to Claire and try to resolve all her issues.
I knew that she most likely hated me right now but a child was involved, we couldn't afford to act like children.
I had to tell someone about this and so I went to Sir Thomas's office, thankfully he was in and not accompanying the King at this time.
"Sir Thomas, may I have a word with you?" I asked politely when I entered his office.
"Why do you look so serious?" He asked and gestured towards a chair. "Drink?" He asked and I nodded.
"Bourbon?" He asked and I nodded.
"I have something very important to tell you." I looked at him and then at the servants in the room.
"Didn't you hear, it's a confidential conversation, leave." He ordered them and they left the room immediately.
"You know how you told me not to cont—"
"Wait." He stopped me and gulped his drink." Now, tell me."
"I couldn't stay away and I kept tabs on Claire in America," I said.
"You never listen." He shook his head. "There's more isn't there?"
"Yes, there is.
"So spill it already, I'm too old for suspense."
"She's pregnant with my child."