Chapter 3

"IVF?" I stared at Tori, then at the plush, sterile surroundings of the clinic's private consultation room. "Why? We're both healthy. We can... we can try naturally."

The words felt hollow even as I said them. We hadn't been intimate in over a year.

Tori gave a short, humorless laugh.

"Naturally? Ethan, please." She looked at me as if I were something unpleasant she'd found on her shoe. "This isn't about... that. This is about securing the Sterling-Hudson legacy. It' s about the joint venture. It's about ensuring the bloodlines continue, efficiently and with the best possible outcome."

She paused, her gaze chilling. "Did you honestly think I'd willingly mix my DNA with yours through... that?"

Her disgust was palpable. Each word was a fresh wound.

I felt a tremor of anger, a deep, primal rage I hadn't known I possessed.

"No," I said, my voice low and firm. "I won't do this. This is insane."

Tori's eyes narrowed. "You don't have a choice, Ethan."

She nodded curtly to two large men in dark suits who had been standing unobtrusively by the door. Clinic security, I presumed. On her family's payroll, no doubt.

They moved towards me.

"Tori, don't," I warned, backing away.

But it was too late. They were strong, professional. They grabbed my arms, their grips like iron.

I struggled, but it was useless.

"This is assault!" I yelled, my voice hoarse. "You can't do this!"

Tori watched, unmoved, as a doctor in a white coat entered the room, a syringe in her hand.

"A mild sedative, Mr. Carter," the doctor said, her voice calm, almost soothing. "To help you relax."

"Get away from me!"

They forced me onto a reclining chair. I felt a sharp prick in my arm.

My struggles became weaker. The room started to spin.

The humiliation was a burning fire in my chest. They were treating me like an animal, a breeding stud.

My last conscious thought was of Abigail Hayes, her warm voice, the promise of escape. Maine.

Then, darkness.