Chapter 56: Chapter 56
She swallowed. “Aiden has a point. Your life is different.”
"And until now, you're still blind to see that I'm willing to change my whole life for you." He knelt down and caught her hand. "Marry me, Esmeralda. I want a chance to be the father of your child and to be your husband. Yes, I don’t deserve the chance. What I did to you was unforgivable. But I am trying my best to be a better person for you. And I will try some more."
Her heart pounded. That was not what she expected. Aiden must have thought that Amadeus would leave her alone if he found out she was pregnant. That the responsibility will scare him. Their plan failed. He wanted to marry her, but she was not pregnant.
“Amadeus, how can I be so sure that you won’t hurt me?” she asked.
"I am haughty. And that includes my money and my status in life, which I used to show that I'm strong and no one could ever fool me. You can have everything under my name up to the last penny. You can have it and not leave anything for me."
“Do you think I will marry you because of money…”
"No. I know that even if I was the richest person on earth, I could never force you to marry me. I could never blame you for not trusting me. You gave me something so beautiful, but I ruined it. I don't have a heart. I am cruel. If you can't see any goodness in me, I'll let you marry Aiden. I'll let you be happy because that's the only way I know that I could never hurt you again."
“Amadeus…” He let go of her. Amadeus, the man who could not accept defeat, was willing to give her up for her own happiness.
She saw the sadness on his face. He looked like a general who lost the battle. "Just do me a favor. Give this to our child." He removed the necklace he was wearing, the same necklace he gave to her. "I want our child to have this. I was not making it up when I told you that this mattered to me. And I will give it to the woman who was important to me.”
“I’m important to you?”
He nodded. “From the start. So don’t ever think that I claimed you because I only wanted revenge. No, it was not trophy sex. I took you because I want you. When I found out that I was your first man, I felt so blessed. I don’t think I deserved it.” She closed her eyes when he caressed her cheek. “I knew that moment that I won’t let you go back to Aiden.”
“Do you really want to marry me?” she asked and slowly opened her eyes.
He nodded. “Yes. I want to make things right.”
“What if I’m not really pregnant?” she asked cautiously.
“Then, I’ll continue pursuing you.”
Esmeralda’s forehead knotted. “Continue pursuing me?”
“Don’t you know that I was courting you all along? Why do you think I am doing those difficult things to get close to you? Going to the market with you, doing the job of a construction worker, being Jeremy’s tutor… I would do everything to make you see that I'm no different from you. That we're not worlds apart. That if you ask me to give up everything, I will do it. because I love you, Esmeralda. ”
“I thought you just want to play with me. That you want me to fall for you so it would satisfy you when you leave me.”
He shook his head. “Including giving up my pride to give in to you for my brother’s wish? If you are just a part of the game, I won’t do that.”
“You gave him his dream cut-flower farm because you wanted me to stay away from him, right?”
He laughed softly. “Of course, I want to take you away from him. How can I have you for myself if you’re still marrying him?”
“But you hate me. You even blackmailed me. You embarrassed Aiden and me at the party when you said you love me.”
“Wrong. That’s a true declaration of love. When I returned to Manila from San Luis, my company was in chaos. But I had to fix it. I want to prepare you once I introduced you to the world. I sent people to fetch you in San Luis. I want us to be ready when we finally face Aiden. But it was too late. You arrived in Manila, and you did not wait for me. So I had no choice but to tell everyone about us.”
“Do you really love me?” she asked.