Broken Vows and Buried Twins novel Chapter 20

"Are you done hitting me?" Julian's face was terrifyingly dark. "Can you sit still and listen to me now?"

Hester's face twisted with absolute revulsion. She shoved at his chest again. "Get away from me!"

Julian's eyes narrowed dangerously. "If you refuse to listen to reason, I have absolutely no problem using force."

Hester's breath hitched. They had been together for years; she knew exactly what he meant by 'force.' Thinking of the fragile life growing inside her, she didn't dare push him any further. She took a deep, trembling breath and forced her rage down. "Fine. Just get off me first."

Seeing her yield, Julian's eyebrow twitched upward. He always found it highly satisfying when Hester surrendered to him. His expression softened slightly as he released her and sat up on the edge of the bed.

Hester pushed herself up, instinctively pulling down the hem of her shirt to cover her stomach. Julian watched her from the corner of his eye.

She stood up, walked over to the armchair by the floor-to-ceiling window, and sat down. Staring at him with freezing detachment, she said, "Speak."

Julian was highly irritated by her attitude, but he knew her temper. If they hadn't lost the twins in that horrible accident, she would still be that vibrant, passionate girl who loved life...

Remembering the woman she used to be, a complicated knot of emotions tightened in his chest. He used to think of Hester as the sun that lit up his dark world. He had secretly sworn to spoil and protect her for the rest of his life. But fate was a cruel joke.

Julian pulled himself out of the memory and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Five years ago, the hearse transporting the babies to the cemetery collided with a semi-truck on the highway. It burst into flames on impact. The fire was catastrophic. By the time emergency services arrived, the vehicle was completely incinerated. The driver and the funeral director didn't make it out either."

"Stop..." Julian looked down, completely unable to hold her gaze anymore. "I failed you when it came to the children."

"No. You failed them." Hester stood up, wiping the tears from her face. "Do you know what broke me? Seeing how incredibly gentle you were when you held that little boy. Because once upon a time, I used to daydream about you holding our babies exactly like that."

Julian's head snapped up. In that split second, a flash of genuine, piercing agony tore through his eyes. But Hester couldn't care less anymore.

"I will have my lawyer send the divorce papers to your office. I don't want this house. But exactly like I said earlier—I am taking every single asset we built together. You still have Weston Corp. Losing our shared marital assets won't bankrupt you. But I absolutely refuse to let Melody and that bastard child enjoy the fruits of my labor. So, if you genuinely feel any remorse for what happened to my babies, you will sign the papers without a fight."