The Billionaire’s Secret Quartet novel Chapter 2001

Hertha briskly pushed Alaric's arm away, her nostrils flaring with heated anger. Her chest heaved, her eyes wide with fury as she confronted Alaric, "I've made myself crystal clear before, Alaric. I have no intention of marrying you, nor do I desire any romantic entanglement with you! You're merely the father of the children, nothing more. Let's keep it friendly, okay? Alaric, please, don't blur these lines."

With that, Hertha turned and walked away quickly, her pace accelerating as if trying to escape an impending storm or a beast on her heels, eager to shake off something unwanted.

Alaric, filled with deep emotions, felt a sudden chill replace the warmth in his heart as Hertha's angry words hit him. It was as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, cooling his ardor from head to toe.

He stood still, watching Hertha's retreating figure. The joy of a once-hoped-for proposal success was now replaced by profound sadness.

As Hertha's silhouette became smaller in the distance, it felt like unraveling a tightly wound cocoon, forcefully stripping away something from the very depths of his being.

The stripping was painful, tied to his flesh, making it hard for him to breathe.

Just as Hertha was about to turn the corner and vanish from his sight, Alaric couldn't hold back any longer. He started running after her, catching up at the corner to see Hertha again. His heart's gates burst open with impulse.

He shouted towards her back, "Hertha, I've looked into it, and I'm not Alar's father by blood. It was Georgia who bribed the hospital staff to fabricate those test results to deceive me! Alar is not my child!"

If he didn't take this step, what was being forcefully removed from his heart was his future with Hertha, hence the unbearable pain, as if a heavy stone pressed against his chest, suffocating him.

Yet, he couldn't bear the thought of having no future with Hertha or seeing her with another man.

The mere thought of her being with someone else twisted his heart in agony.