Chapter 601

The server approached with a tray of champagne flutes, the golden liquid sparkling under the chandeliers.

Vanessa waved him away with a delicate gesture. "None for me, thank you. I'm expecting." She placed a protective hand over her stomach. "Perhaps some sparkling water with lime?"

A stunned silence fell over their group. All eyes immediately dropped to her midsection.

"Didn't Vanessa just lose a baby recently? She's pregnant again already? That's... remarkable."

Ethan looked like he'd been struck by lightning. His brow furrowed in confusion. "When did this happen? How could I not know?"

It had only been three months since the miscarriage. They'd barely been intimate since then - just a handful of times when Ethan had been drowning his sorrows in alcohol.

Vanessa stroked her belly lovingly, beaming up at Ethan. "I just got the news two days ago."

"I'm already ten weeks along! I suppose my body just knows how to hold onto a pregnancy." She squeezed Ethan's arm. "Darling, we're going to be parents! Isn't it wonderful?"

Ethan said nothing.

The announcement brought shock, not joy.

His gaze flickered to Evelyn, who stood stone-faced, showing no reaction to Vanessa's news.

A dark cloud passed over Ethan's features.

Alexander, ever the peacemaker, broke the tension with a chuckle. "Well now, Vanessa. Does this mean I'll be a great-uncle soon?"

Ethan's chest tightened painfully at the words.

Just then, a commotion erupted near the grand entrance.

Claire had arrived.

She'd come to the Bennett estate for her daughter's one-month celebration - and she'd brought her new boyfriend Julian, throwing down the gauntlet at Lucas. The whispers started the moment she walked in.

True to form, Lucas stormed in within minutes, his expression thunderous.

His icy glare could have frozen hell as it landed on Julian before he grabbed Claire's wrist and started dragging her away.

Julian moved to intervene but was immediately surrounded by Bennett security.

Lucas, flanked by his bodyguards, snarled at Julian. "Get this bastard off my property!"

Claire whirled on him. "Julian is my boyfriend! How dare you!"

"This is my house - I'll dare whatever I please." Lucas tightened his grip. "You're in my territory now, Claire. You should be more concerned about yourself!" With that, he hauled her away.

She struggled instinctively, but Lucas's jaw clenched. "Don't you want to see our daughter?"

At the mention of their child, Claire stilled.

The bodyguards efficiently escorted Julian out. Evelyn started forward but Alexander caught her arm. "Let them work it out privately."

Inside the private suite, Lucas locked the door with a decisive click.

Claire looked around expectantly. "Where is she?"

Lucas's voice was arctic. "Break things off with Julian, and you can have her back."

"Over my dead body!" Claire spat.

Lucas laughed humorlessly. "Really, Claire? What is he to you that you'd abandon your own child for him?" He stepped closer, eyes blazing. "What kind of mother does that make you?"

"A mother? If I were truly heartless, I never would have carried her to term!"

"Lucas, I carried her for nine months. Who the hell do you think you are, keeping her from me and making demands?"

"Julian cooks for me, takes care of me, prepares everything for the baby. He's been more of a father than you ever were!"

Lucas's eyes turned feral with rage.

"Anything he can do, I can do better, Claire. Have you ever considered you're stealing my right to be a father? That child is mine too. How can you just let some stranger play daddy?"

"How can you be so cruel? How can you just stop loving me?"

"I threw this party for her... for you. Look around - this is our wedding suite."

Claire froze.

For the first time, she noticed the room's decor. Rose petals covered every surface, just like the day they'd gotten married. The sweet fragrance filled the air.

But this time, the roses were his idea.

Lucas gripped her shoulders, his voice breaking. "Hate me if you must, but don't stop loving me. Don't leave me behind..."

He pulled her into a crushing embrace. "Claire, you don't really love Julian, do you? You're just using him to hurt me."

"You kept our baby because part of you still hoped for us, didn't you?"

"I've changed. Can't you come back to me?"

His voice cracked with a vulnerability she'd never heard before, making him sound like a lost child.

Claire clenched her fists, her mind reeling.

She'd never seen Lucas like this - raw, exposed. It left her speechless.

Before she could gather her thoughts, Lucas captured her lips in a searing kiss that stole her breath.

When she tried to push him away, he pinned her wrists against the door.

His tongue invaded her mouth with desperate intensity, igniting a fire that made her pulse race wildly.

"What are you— mmph! Let me go!" Her protest was muffled against his lips.

Lucas seemed deaf to her words.

Eyes closed, he poured every ounce of his longing into the kiss, as if trying to brand her with his love.

Even when Claire bit down hard enough to draw blood, he only held her tighter, breathing ragged with need.

"Come back to me, Claire. I can't survive without you."