Deirdre found his temperament almost too zig-zagging to make sense. In the past, she could ingratiate with him as much as she wanted, no questions asked. But now, the same things suddenly irritated him.She ducked, squeezing her shoulders into herself, and cast her sight to the floor to begin feeling and salvaging the documents.At that moment, Brendan suddenly yanked her arm toward him and, by extension, her entire body. Before she knew it, the force nailed her legs across his lap, her shocked expression facing his visage.It was a…. rather suggestive position to be in.Deirdre froze as she sensed Brendan drawing her into himself before he rested his chin on her shoulder.“God. What must I do, Deirdre?” he asked, surprisingly defeatedly.Deirdre blinked. Her fingers slipped gently before lacing around his strong, firm arm. She did not find their position repulsive—just awkward.“You’re not mad anymore?”Brendan looked up. “What good does my anger do? It doesn’t matter how angr

“Here’s the thing. We don’t give a damn who you’ll end up marrying, but since we’ll be staying together for a while, let me give you a piece of advice,” Deirdre said a little apathetically. “Mrs. Engel is going to be your housekeeper and your cook. That means she has plenty of chances to surprise you, don’t you think?”Mrs. Engel caught on. “She’s right, Miss McKinney. Protecting yourself against obvious enemies is one thing, but against someone who you depend on? It would be easy for me to place some pins on your pillow… Or spit in your filet…”Charlene’s expression darkened before the older woman finished. “You dare!?”Mrs. Engel shot a disgusted glare. “What’s stopping me? I’ll quit once Miss McKinnon leaves anyway. You don’t even know where my home is. I am not scared of your petty payback!”Charlene gnashed her teeth for a while before her ire subsided a little. She glared daggers at Deirdre and turned her umbrage back against the latter. “You turn being a doormat into an art

Deirdre emerged from her room, causing Mrs. Engel’s eyes to twinkle before she immediately rushed to greet her. “Mrs. Brighthall! You’re here!”Brendan immediately pulled his arm out of Charlene’s.Charlene glowered. She finally had the chance to be alone with Brendan before this b*tch decided to ruin it! Not that she could point her fingers right now. Deirdre was bearing Brendan’s child. It was only normal that the man was disinclined to show any sign of intimacy with her while the woman he impregnated was standing right there.Thus, Charlene launched back into her well-practiced pretense. “Aren’t you feeling unwell, Miss McKinnon? Why are you here?”Deirdre descended the stairs with Mrs. Engel’s help and curled the corner of her lips. “I got hungry just like you, Miss McKinney. After all, I’m pregnant,” she replied. “Besides, this is your first meal since coming to my house, and it’d be so unbecoming and improper of me not to join in.”Her smile screamed deliberation. She was

All Brendan cared about was the kid Deirdre bore him, right? So what would happen… if Charlene got pregnant too?The young woman thought long and hard about it as she savored her risotto. When she was done, she got up and went for a bath as preparation. Deirdre lay on her back alone and watched the sky turn darker and darker. Sleep came to her like a cascade, but a second after she drifted off, she heard soft noises coming from her balcony. It sounded as if someone was opening her window. She pulled herself up with her palms, but before she could even see anything, the figure that entered her room through the balcony threw their arms around her and locked her in a suffocating embrace.Deirdre froze. Shock gradually displaced her sleep. Then, softly, she urged, “Have you gone nuts?”The first floor did not sound like much on paper, but it was still a considerable height to fall from. The fact that this unhinged man had decided to climb out of his window and into hers as if he wou

Brendan pinched the bridge of his nose as if he was trying to fight back fatigue. “I accidentally took a nap during my bath. What’s the matter?” “Oh, it was nothing,” Charlene smiled. “I was just enjoying a chat with Miss McKinnon.”“A chat?” snarled Deirdre, clearly not in the mood to play along. “I’m not in the mood to engage in brain-rotting chatter in the middle of the freezing night. Miss McKinney, though, spent a good few minutes knocking on your door until everyone in the house woke up!”She turned on her heels and slammed her door shut.Brendan turned his attention back to Charlene. His face was markedly devoid of rage, impatience, or any emotion. Still, his attention lingered on her body for a far longer time than he usually did.“Aren’t you cold?” he finally remarked.Of course Charlene was cold—her getup was scant by design! She did not expect Brendan to take his bath this late into the night either. But since he put it that way… Charlene would not let this perfect ex