The CEO Gets What He Wants novel Chapter 540

Chapter 540 Exposed

While Avery was wondering if Cayden was the one who had kidnapped Nicole, a woman's bossy voice interrupted her reverie. “I don't care how you manage it, you're going to find me a match! The doctor said Sammy's life will be in danger if we don't conduct the bone marrow transplant soon. He is my everything and your only son. I won't let anything happen to him!”

A man was comforting her. “Don't panic. I'll find a suitable match.”

His voice was familiar. Puzzled, Avery gazed toward its source.

She saw Xavier tugging the arm of a beautiful but domineering woman at the end of the corridor.

The woman looked to be in her early thirties, and it was apparent that she took good care of herself—her figure was lithe, and there was a priceless-looking pendant hung around her neck. Though it was plain from a glance that she had come from a good background, her overbearing attitude seemed to have impaired her elegance.

Xavier, too, had caught sight of Avery and the others.

When his gaze fell onto Cecelia, his eyes shone once in particular.

Xavier smiled abashedly as he walked forward to greet them. “What a coincidence running into you here, Ms. Rumpley! Allow me to introduce my ex-wife, Griselda Whitman.”

He turned to indicate Avery, then turned to the woman called Griselda. “Grizzie, this is my boss' fiancée, Avery Rumpley. The other two are my coworkers, Cecelia Zuckerberg and Nina Richter.”

Griselda peered down her nose at Avery. “Who cares about who they are. I'm giving you thirty days, Xavier. You're going to find Sammy a match, or get ready to bury your son!”

Without even greeting them, she stomped out of the outpatient building, her heels leaving a trail of clacking in her wake.

Avery was surprised at the nasty temper Xavier's ex-wife possessed, but as it was unlikely for her to meet the latter again, Avery did not take it to heart.

Nina, being her usual carefree self, cared even less about Griselda's attitude.

Cecelia, on the other hand, felt differently. Her heart, which had swelled with excitement when she saw Xavier, quickly plummeted.

Mr. Dartsley's ex-wife is so arrogant that he doesn't look like he has a say in anything in front of her. Could this be the reason for their divorce?

Helpless, Xavier gazed at Griselda's departing silhouette, awkwardly fiddling with his gold-rimmed glasses as he did so. “My apologies. She's always been like this.”

“It's all right,” Avery said courteously before adding, unable to contain her curiosity, “I heard your ex-wife mention something about your son needing a bone marrow transplant, Mr. Dartsley. Is he ill?”

Cecelia's eyelid twitched. “You are good at hiding things, Mr. Dartsley. I've never heard about you having a son despite all these years of working together.”

For some reason, Cecelia felt a discomfort in her heart she could not quite identify at the news of Xavier having a son.

It was possibly due to the gratitude she felt for his intervention when she had run into her ex-boyfriend at the children's apparel store. It was also then that she began to develop those unexplainable feelings for him.

From that day on, Cecelia no longer gave him the cold shoulder at the office. Instead, she treated him warmly.

As she spent more time with Xavier, Cecelia realized that he was mature and interesting. His charisma, in particular, seemed to know no bounds.

Xavier, on his end, seemed to have taken on a protective role. Aside from looking after her at work, they often met outside the office; he would ask her out to dinner or a walk through the malls after work—activities that were generally done by people in relationships.

Though they never ventured into the territory of intimacy, they seemed to understand the unspoken arrangement.

Cecelia could sense that he liked her.

However, the news of Xavier having a son struck her like a thunderbolt. The tender shoot of hope and trust that newly sprouted in her heart, wilted almost immediately.

However, Cecelia did not show it. Her smile persisted, though it did not reach her eyes.

Xavier knew her well. He could tell that was an act Cecelia put on when she was unhappy.

Gazing at her exquisite features, he opened his mouth but hesitated.

He knew that was not the time to tell her everything. With a sigh, he refrained from delving into an explanation.

Clueless as always, Nina did not notice the subtle exchange between them. “All the girls at the office thought you were a bachelor, Mr. Dartsley,” she teased. “It's a shock to find out that you have a son! Well done! How old is he?”

Xavier gave a bitter chuckle. “I did not know Griselda was pregnant when we divorced five years ago. As she held a grudge against me because I was the one who suggested we split up, she kept this from me until very recently. Sammy is four this year. He contracted leukemia when he was younger, necessitating a bone marrow transplant. If not for his illness, Griselda might never have told me that I have a son.”

The three women fell silent, at a loss on what to say.

Though medical technology had evolved by leaps and bounds, leukemia remained one of those incurable diseases.

Furthermore, it was difficult to find a match. Even if one was found, there were countless instances of patients succumbing to the disease due to various complications despite the initial success of the transplant.

Avery cleared her throat. “Could we see your son, Mr. Dartsley?” she asked tentatively.

Xavier shook his head. “Sammy's at a hospital in Baykeep, not here. Griselda heard that Dr. Lampert of People's Hospital in Ackleton is an expert in treating leukemia in children, so she wants to switch him over. We'd just met with him and had arranged for the transfer. I'll bring him over from Baykeep this afternoon.”

Avery hummed in response before continuing, “Don't worry, Mr. Dartsley. If there's a will, there's a way. You will surely find Sammy a suitable donor.”

“Yes, I'm sure of it,” Xavier affirmed confidently.

He was still in shock, unable to grasp that he had a four-year-old son.

After the initial shock wore off, a combination of dazedness and helplessness, followed by excitement, joy, and finally despair, overwhelmed him. Xavier gazed at Cecelia with a complicated mix of emotions in his eyes. He felt guilty about having to let Cecelia down.

Cecelia bit her lip. Her eyelashes concealed her disappointment. Instinctively, she caressed her babies that would be due in two months.

It's not that big of a deal. Soon, I'll have two babies who will love me.

...

Having taken an interest in embroidering of late, Silvia came to Needlemania, a reputable old store, for an intricate piece she intended to complete as a gift to her husband to celebrate his promotion.

After spending much time deliberating over the selection, Silvia decided on a piece and paid for it.

As soon as she emerged from the store, she caught sight of Allie in a remote corner, who appeared to be engaged in a heated debate with a woman whose face she could not quite see.

Due to the distance, Silvia could not hear the contents of their argument. The only things she caught were fragments of Allie's furious voice. “Why did you come back?”

“The child is still alive!”

“If this gets exposed, you're going to pay for it,” and similar words of threat.

Silvia's brows furrowed.

She never saw much of Allie because of Claire. In fact, she had almost never witnessed Allie losing control like that.

“If this gets exposed.” What does that mean? Knowing how shrewd Allie is, she would not lose her temper in public if she had not been truly angered.

Unable to contain her curiosity, Silvia shuffled a little closer instinctively, intent on finding out the subject of their quarrel.