Obviously, It’s My Child

“Isn’t there something you have to say, Senior?”

“Is Elliott okay?”

“Not that. Are you not going to apologize?”

Erich tilted his head to the side.

“But I have nothing to apologize for? I would have done more to get you.”

“What?”

Claire’s face turned red in an instant. Erich was more specific because of what Grey had said about ‘prey hunting’. However, as Claire didn’t know about the conversation, she couldn’t help but be taken aback.

“Not that! Apologize for swinging your fist!”

“I’m definitely sorry about that. I didn’t mean to scare Elliot.”

Erich opened his arms and said in a very soft voice.

“I apologize. And I will apologize to Elliot separately later.”

“I didn’t ask you for that. Someone else is the victim.”

“I decided to give proper compensation to the hotel side as well.”

“You do know who I mean, right?”

“I won’t apologize to Delford’s attorney. Where’s your sharp intellect, Claire? I don’t think you understand the situation very well.”

“Did I not understand the situation?”

“He was the one who swung his fist first.”

“Nonsense. Grey is a gentleman. It’s obvious that you started the fight first, Senior.”

“That’s further proof that you don’t understand the situation here. One woman and two suitors. Do you need more reasons to raise our fists?”

Erich leaned over and held the arms of the chair Claire was sitting on.

Caged by him, Claire involuntarily drew in a breath. The smell of water and soap mixed with his body scent tickled her nose.

A different kind of tension and heat pulled on her nerves. She tried to take a deep breath to calm herself, but when he did, his face was close enough for their breaths to mix.

Claire caught her breath to remain unnoticed, and she clenched and unclenched her fist once. And she said, keeping her composure.

“Grey is the victim. I asked him to get married because of my own plan, but this time I unilaterally asked to end the marriage. I can’t even raise my head in front of him.”

“You’re naive if you really think he gave you the ring purely to match your plan.”

“…….”

Claire had nothing to say to that.

Erich asked again without even thinking of stepping out of the way.

“By the way, it looks like you’ve made up your mind to marry me.”

“I didn’t come to this conclusion because I like the idea. Don’t misunderstand.”

“…….”

“If you kiss me now, I will kill you.”

Erich halted. Claire put her index finger to his lips and pushed him away.

“Before that, don’t we have something else to talk about?”

“What about?”

“You seem to have sent investigators to Delford. Are they still not back?”

Hearing those words, Erich’s upper body was pushed back. However, he still did not remove his hands from Claire’s armrests.

Claire managed to catch her breath. Erich’s body scent mixed with the smell of soap and water permeated her lungs.

“They’re back aren’t they? Are you still going to insist?”

“…….”

Erich was silent. He thought that saying her sister was pregnant didn’t necessarily mean that Claire didn’t have children of her own, but there is a sense that she wouldn’t say that.

After reading that in her head, Claire smiled in vain.

“Well, good. It’s not a bad thing to have ample room for excuses like that to others.”

“Claire.”

“Really, it’s a bit absurd for you to have done that, Senior. You know me. Of course, if I had children, I could have tried not to reveal them.”

The words made Erich furious.

“It is for this very reason that you are bothering me.”

Claire stabbed his chest with her index finger as if pushing him away.

“Anyway, since I’ve already been caught, I’m not the kind of person who’ll insist on telling lies that aren’t even believable. Right?”

“…If it’s someone you don’t like enough to run away from, that might be the case.”

Claire was silent for a moment, then she looked up at him, dumbfounded.

Did he do this to catch a woman he hated so much?

“I didn’t run away because of you. Why would I run away in the first place? We only slept together once.”

At those words, right then, Erich’s brow furrowed heavily.

Claire pushed him away and stood up.

She relocked the door with her own hands. She opened all the doors leading to the living room to make sure they were empty, then she bolted the elevator and locked all the other doors.

She then brought a small picture frame she always carried with her for Elliot.

Erich obediently accepted the frame she handed over.

Inside it was a pretty girl with blonde hair and sky blue eyes. She didn’t have much of a resemblance to Claire.

“This is my younger sister. She looks like my mom and I look like my dad. My mom’s maternal side has Rommel blood mixed in.”

“I see.”

“She had a boyfriend who she dated at the academy.”

Erich frowned.

“Did he just leave her?”

“It’s not like they were getting married, so what to do? It’s a common thing.”

It really was.

Being in a relationship without the intention to marry was considered undesirable, and besides that, dating in the academy was strictly forbidden. Even so, there’s no way that nothing would happen when young men and women, who were in the prime of their youth, were staying together in one place.

“I don’t know who it was. She said it was a secret because he had a high status.”

“Trash.”

“Be careful with your words. I’m not saying this because he’s my sister’s boyfriend.”

Claire sighed.

“That day… When she returned home, she had been a mess. She said she saw something she shouldn’t have seen. If she were to get caught, everyone would die.”

Until then, Erich had just listened without much thought.

He knew from the beginning that Claire cared for and loved her younger sister dearly, but that younger sister was someone he had never met. So, no emotions arose in him.

But at this moment, he had the same guess as Claire had all this time.