One Night Stand With My Husband’s Brother

Chase swallowed a bite of the food he couldn’t even taste, and felt it settle wrongly in his stomach. Suppressing a grimace, he took a sip of water.

This was torture.

He loathed the sight of Jeffrey and his mother. That was why this food looked so unappealing. He would have asked West to come with him to the dinner, but he had a feeling that this was strictly family time.

Besides, West was in the hospital receiving treatment for the injuries he sustained from they fight that landed him in jail.

His eyes moved over to where his father sat, and noticed that he was picking at his food as well. The food couldn’t be unappealing, because Jeffrey was wolfing down his plate like an animal.

Eleanor placed one hand on his arm, encouraging him to eat more in her sickening “worried” tone of voice.

That was unusual. His father usually had a healthy appetite. Chase was still staring at them when he felt the pressure of someone’s glare at the side of his face.

Before he turned, he already knew it was Jeffrey.

Jeffrey glared at Chase, because he just hated how difficult it was to read his mind. He knew Chase knew about him and Selene, but never confronted him about it.

Was he so arrogant that he would act like he didn’t care?

Jeffrey had always been intimidated by Chase, but now, he was uncomfortable, afraid of what Chase actions would be … and finally, he was angry. Very angry because he was afraid. He suspected that Chase night have nasty plans up his sleeves, and that’s why he was so silent.

He didn’t want to be afraid of Chase. His fucking younger stepbrother.

It was a blow to his ego, and he would rather channel all of it into anger. And that was what he felt as he glared at him.

Chase met his glare with a bored expression, then looked away, dismissing him rudely. Jeffrey felt his blood boil over.

Richard suddenly stood up from the dinner table, announcing that he was done eating. Eleanor immediately protested,

“Honey! You have barely eaten anything so far… please come eat some more. Is it the food? Do you want something else?” She was dramatic as usual, playing the role of the perfect wife.

He gave her a shake of his head and looked over at Chase. “Come see me in my study, son.” He turned away from Eleanor and walked towards the stairs.

Anything to get away from the fucking dinner.

Chase got up from his seat and went after his father, walking a short distance behind him. They climbed up the large, undulating staircase that showed the soft shine of gold.

There was a dark crimson rug covering the middle part of the golden stairs, like the Axford-owned red carpet.

The protectors lining the stairs were pure white like pearl, to match the huge chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling.

At the top of the stairs, they took a few steps through the large arched hallway, and through the polished oak wood doors that looked normal, until they automatically opened up into Richard Axford’s iconic study.

“Sit down, son.” Richard said.Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

Chase lowered himself into a couch, watching his father with hawk eyes. Now he was sure something was definitely wrong. He watched as his father moved to his large work desk to pick up some papers.

And walked back to hand them to him.

Chase took it and looked down. His eyes skimmed the contents, narrowing when he realized it was a medical report. But then he froze when he saw the medical condition typed out in BOLD on the paper.

Stomach Cancer. Stage II.

Shock. So much shock plowed through Chase that he looked away from the paper to his father. For the first time, he noticed that his father had lost some weight.

A ball of dread settled in his stomach.

Richard said quietly. “I realized that you might not believe me if I tell you with just words, son. Especially after I had faked my heart attack to get you into marriage. But this is real, son. If you still have doubts, you can come with me to my next doctor’s appointment.”

Chase was speechless. He kept staring at his father with so many thoughts and emotions running through his head.

“I have been going for my regular checkups.” His father said. “But the doctors didn’t discover my condition until recently. It’s not their fault. Remember Axford hospital is the best of its kind, with the best doctors and specialists. The disease was just very sneaky. They say my chances of survival is fifty-fifty. I might not survive it-”

“How can you say that?” Chase finally spoke up. He was angry. Angry that his father could easily accept this condition. Angry that his only real family could be leaving soon.

Angry that Stage two stomach cancer was not a troublesome lawsuit that he could fucking get rid of with his arsenal of deadly lawyers.

“How can you say you won’t survive? You’re going to just let this condition bring you down that easily?” Chase growled. “You’re Richard Axford. You have. To Fight. This.”

“Bring your voice down, son. I have not told anyone about this. My doctors are keeping it a secret, because if the world gets wind of this, it would surely affect our stocks. Coupled with your divorce scandal, the effects on our company might be massive.”

Richard sighed, leaning against a couch. “Listen, Chase. My body is old. I do not plan to give up so easily, but at the same time, I am aware that I cannot withstand or fight the cancer the same way I could if I were younger.

“Son, you are almost thirty. You would soon be leaving your twenties, and this is still a young age compared to the years you have in front of you. I wouldn’t want to see you going through the rigors and heavy mental stress of a divorce. Just please, call it off.”

Chase blinked, not liking where this was going at all.

“I have never mentioned this, but as a young man, I wanted to be a photographer. But I had a responsibility to carry on the Axford legacy. So I did. I know how it feels to abandon your dream, to fulfil your duty. I am just glad you never had any dreams apart from leading Axford. It would have been devastating to watch you suffer like me.”

Richard sighed again, with a wistful smile. “All I did was protect The Axford Conglomerate, just like my father did, and his father did. But what would make me fulfilled, and at peace with myself, is knowing you have a heir to pass our legacy on to.

“A grand child. Grand children, in fact. Please, Chase. This is a plea from my heart. I want to see an heir from you.”

Chase was slightly thrown off by the raw emotion in his father’s eyes. This had to be the first time his father was pleading with so much sincerity.

“I always loved kids, you know.” Richard chuckled softly. “As a young man, I couldn’t wait to have kids. And when we had you, I wanted you to have siblings. Unfortunately, your mother couldn’t have any more babies.”

“If your mother had suggested adoption, or any other way of getting more kids, I would have supported her whole heartedly. But she was so contented with you, so I didn’t push. I was also happy with my little family.”

Chase stiffened and looked away.

His mother was a sensitive topic to him. Hearing his father told about her now, especially after that nightmare he had earlier, hit his feelings too raw.

He didn’t want to hear his father talk about her, because he still bore resentment towards him for marrying another woman. As he grew older, he understood that his father truly loved his mother, and Eleanor could never take her place.

But that resentment never went away. Besides, there had always been something about his parents’ relationship that he didn’t fully understand, because he was just a little kid. Now, it occasionally tugged at his mind.

But he could never figure it out.

Richard observed Chase’s silence, then sighed again. “Son. Alright, even if you don’t want to call off the divorce, then there are other options to give me a grandchild. You are an eligible young man, you can easily remarry, or get a surrogate, or perhaps-”

“-I’m divorcing Selene because she cheated on me. Repeatedly. With friends, associates, even clients.” Chase cut in, looking back at his father.

Richard froze, shock covering his entire face as he burst out a resounding, “What?!”