The Breeding Deal: Brother-in-law's Forbidden Offer - Chapter 57

Chapter 57: Return Gift

After soaking in the bath for twenty minutes, Christine dried herself and slowly made her way out of the bathroom, supporting herself against the wall. Sophie was waiting outside and quickly wrapped her in a fresh, soft bathrobe, helping her sit down on the edge of the bed.

Her entire body was in agony – her neck hurt, her throat hurt, her wrists hurt, and especially between her legs. It felt as if someone had taken her body apart and forcibly reassembled it piece by piece.

As she took small sips of the throat-soothing tea Sophie had prepared, her eyes fell on a wooden box sitting on the nightstand.

Christine didn’t remember having anything like it in the house. The box was clearly high-end, made of black walnut. Upon closer inspection, she could smell the subtle fragrance of sandalwood – it seemed like an expensive gift from someone.

When Christine opened it, she found a delicate brooch resting on fine lambskin leather.

The brooch had an exquisite design – enamel floral paintings with rose gold vines winding through vibrant blooms, adorned with gemstones of varying sizes that cast soft, peachy glows in the lamplight.

The largest stone, approximately one carat, was set prominently in the center.

Sophie was crouching on the floor, organizing the medical supplies when she looked up and saw Christine examining the box. “It’s a return gift from Boss for you,” she explained.

Return gift?

Christine frowned slightly, not quite understanding.

“Hehe, do you remember Labor Day?”

Sophie said while laying out iodine, rubbing alcohol, and cotton swabs on the nightstand. “You gave Boss a gift then, and this is his return gift. He had us bring it back for you. It’s been in the living room for a few days, but since you haven’t been home lately, I just brought it up when I saw it.”

So it was actually… a return gift from Adrian, but Labor Day was three months ago.

Christine wasn’t particularly knowledgeable about luxury jewelry – even her wedding ring had been chosen with Ethan, visiting store after store until they found a style they both liked.

But she knew this brooch must be incredibly valuable.

At her engagement party with Ethan, she’d seen Rebecca wearing something similar, with rose-colored gems. Her friend had whispered to her then about how wealthy the family must be, explaining that Rebecca’s brooch wasn’t just any stone – it was an extremely rare Paraiba tourmaline, with even a single carat potentially worth millions.

And this brooch in her hands had even more of these stones than Rebecca’s, more brilliant, gleaming luxuriously under the lights.

Seeming to read Christine’s thoughts, Sophie nodded, “Boss had it specially made with Paraiba tourmalines.”

Christine was shocked – why would Adrian give such an expensive return gift?

This piece was probably even rarer than Rebecca’s wedding gift to her and Ethan – the golden clock she’d given up to convince Adrian to make love with her, and make her pregnant.

She placed the brooch back in the jewelry box, closed it, and weakly raised her hand to wave at Sophie.

‘I don’t want it,’ she mouthed silently, gesturing for Sophie to return it to Adrian, then fell quiet.

Sophie remembered how Adrian had just beaten Wesley half to death, and didn’t dare make decisions on her own. Reluctantly, she tried to persuade Christine: “Hey, Christine, maybe you should keep it. It’s just a return gift, and you know my boss’s temper…”

Without another word, Christine picked up the gift box and, supporting herself against the wall, began limping toward Adrian’s room.

Whether it was a return gift or anything else, she would never accept anything from Adrian Blackwood again in this lifetime.

Seeing her determination, Sophie bit her lip, quickly caught up and took the box from Christine’s hands. Under her watch, Sophie placed the box in the center of Adrian’s desk. Then she hurried back to support Christine, saying, “See, I’ve put it there. Can we go back to rest now? After you’ve had enough sleep, I’ll accompany you to the hospital the day after tomorrow.”

Christine blinked at her in agreement.

Sophie helped Christine back to bed, laying her face down to treat the back of her neck.

The injury there was severe – something had apparently constricted the area for too long, leaving the entire nape swollen and purple. After carefully applying iodine with cotton swabs, Sophie turned Christine over to treat her exposed wrists. The sight was equally disturbing – large patches of broken skin and severe swelling. Without proper disinfection, it could lead to serious infection, particularly dangerous for a pregnant woman.

Sophie worked as gently as possible. By the time she finished with the wrists, Christine had fallen asleep on her side, still clutching Ethan’s pajamas. Her eyelashes fluttered restlessly – clearly, her sleep wasn’t peaceful.

She must be having nightmares.

After finishing up, adjusting the air conditioning, and covering Christine with a blanket, Sophie went downstairs to text her brother.

Sophie: [Bro, you busy?]

James: [When am I not busy? Get to the point.]

Sophie: [I just want to discuss – don’t you think our boss is a psychopath?! Christine is pregnant! How could he?!]

James: […Dr. Wong said it was okay after three months.]

Sophie: [WTF! Can’t believe you’re defending him!! Are you crazy like him?! Yes, it’s allowed after three months, but not like this! He’s inhuman, absolutely inhuman. Back home, neighbors would drag someone like him out for a beating.]

James: [Sophie, this is your second time badmouthing the boss this month. If you lose your job, don’t drag me down with you.]

Sophie: [Tch.]

His sister fell silent, and James smiled slightly at his phone.

“BANG!”

Suddenly, the presidential suite door burst open behind him. A girl rushed out wearing only a black camisole, her outer clothing nowhere to be seen.

Just minutes earlier, she had eagerly pushed open the same luxury hotel suite door in front of James.

“…What happened?” James quickly put down his phone and steadied the girl.

“I… I…” the girl’s delicate voice was tearful as she looked up, revealing a stunningly innocent face. “I don’t know… I didn’t do anything.”

She was an up-and-coming singer known for her girl-next-door image. She frequently attended galas and events hoping to catch the attention of wealthy backers, and had recently been trying to get Adrian’s attention.

This time, she thought James’s introduction would help her connect with Adrian. But as soon as she entered the room, before she could even introduce herself, Adrian emotionlessly yanked her to his desk, pinned her arms behind her back, and roughly tore off her top.

The top was a borrowed Chanel haute couture piece from her studio. Her heart sank at the sound of buttons hitting the floor, but Adrian’s strong hands held her immobile, leaving her too frightened to even breathe.

After a few seconds, when Adrian didn’t make another move, she tried to turn her head to look. Before she could, she heard him say two cold words: “Get out.”

The next moment, Adrian kicked over the coffee table beside him.

Wine glasses shattered instantly, red wine splashing across the floor.

The young girl had never seen anything like this. With a frightened cry, she didn’t even stop to dress properly, just clutched her chest, grabbed her bag, and fled the room.

“It’s alright, I understand. Be careful on your way home.”

James sighed inwardly as he slipped a thick envelope into the girl’s purse – hush money for the incident.

The girl couldn’t say anything more, just wiped her tears and left.

After watching her leave, James hesitated briefly before knocking on the suite door and entering.

Adrian sat behind the presidential suite’s desk, half-turned away from James. Behind him sprawled the city’s most magnificent night view, as if he owned it all.

His head was tilted back, while his tie was on the floor, hand pulling at his loosened collar, his expression dark with frustration.

Just like last time, he couldn’t get aroused.

Whether it was the sexy and sultry model Kiko or tonight’s sweet young singer, he couldn’t feel any desire.

His mind was filled with just one woman – an insignificant, neither sexy nor particularly pleasing, utterly ordinary woman.

“Find me a psychiatrist.”

He spoke without moving, his gaze fixed on empty space, voice cold as ice. His Adam’s apple bobbed, betraying his terrible mood and impatience.

“…Yes, boss.”

James hadn’t expected this request. After a moment’s surprise, he quickly switched to professional mode, bowed slightly, and backed out of the room.

Christine said she wanted to return to the beginning.

But wasn’t Adrian trying to do the same?

James couldn’t even begin to offer advice.

Because he couldn’t tell if his boss was frustrated from unfulfilled desire, or if he had unknowingly fallen in love for the first time.

After all, Adrian Blackwood had never had feelings for anyone before.

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I really hope that I can update more in the coming end of Jan & February… brain cells declining for plots LOL.