From Desk to Altar: The CEO's Irresistible Bargain

"Ethan's a really sensitive kid. He's got a lot of feelings and gets jealous super easy. He needs someone to be all about him and doesn't do well with half-hearted stuff. If the love isn't all-in, he'd rather be alone than keep it." Seeing Liam bummed out, Serena broke it down for him.

Liam couldn't wrap his head around it. On one hand, it was pretty wild that a kid could feel so much, but on the other, he just couldn't believe it, "What, he thinks I'm not good enough for him?"

"He feels like you prefer the other kid, so in his mind, you're out," Serena said as if it was nothing.

Liam's eyes welled up in a flash, showing a side of him you don't usually see.

"You can't do me like this. You brought him here and made me play nice with that other kid, all to push him away from me on purpose!"

Serena had to laugh, "Ethan's not your kid. Why should he even be close to you? You and his dad are always at odds. You just fought with his dad recently, so him keeping his distance only makes sense." "But..."

Suddenly, Liam, the guy who's always got it together in the boardroom, seemed so fragile.

He couldn't face the fact that Ethan was drifting away, and there was nothing he could do about it.

"I wanna go home," Ethan stated defiantly, hugging Serena's legs tight.

A mom just knows. Serena got that his clinging meant he was feeling let down and sad.

She just hadn't seen it coming that Ethan might actually like Liam that much.

"Alright, home it is." She scooped up Ethan and walked off, not looking back.

The rain was coming down, and they waited for Liam to come and hold the umbrella for them.

Liam actually showed up.

"Here I am, the Mr. Umbrella," he said, a bit miffed.

Serena was speechless, and they all shuffled under the umbrella and made their way.

The dirt road was a sloppy mess, making it tough to walk.

Out of nowhere, this crazy figure came running up and clung to Liam's legs before anyone could blink.

"Liam... Liam! Forgive me, you can't do this. Benjamin needs me, he can't make it without me! Don't let them do this to me, Liam!"

It was Chloe.

Serena watched Chloe begging, her face slowly going blank.

Turns out she could get scared too.

While she was thinking about that, she felt a warm spot on her shoulder and quickly turned to see Ethan quietly crying.

She frowned right away, "Liam, she's scaring Ethan."

Liam looked where she was pointing, and there was Ethan with tears streaming down his face.

Ethan didn't make a scene when he cried; he just silently let the tears fall.

It broke Liam's heart. He didn't bother with his bodyguard and kicked Chloe away himself.

"Get her out of here!"

"No! Don't! Please, Liam! Have mercy on me! Charlotte! Charlotte, forgive me! I realize I messed up!"

No one paid attention to Chloe's cries.

"Why's Chloe losing it?" Serena asked.

Liam explained, "She made a mistake and now she's paying for it. You should know... Vincent probably told you about how she caused Annie and Maria's deaths. That's why she's got to endure the water and the fire." "That sounds like you're taking the law into your own hands."

"No one's got the guts to come after me, and no one will find out what's going to happen to her." He'd already shattered the Beaumont family; nobody cared about Chloe anymore. "You're okay with her suffering like that?"

"I've always been okay with it; it's just the way things turned out."

Wow.

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The way things turned out.

Three lives were lost just like that.

Serena was done with the conversation, picked up Ethan, and they headed home.

Back at the house, she was surprised to find someone sitting in the living room.

After a few words from the butler, she realized the visitor was Dylan.

Dylan turned around with a smile upon hearing her. "Miss Perry, welcome back."

He held up a fancy gift box, "I brought something for Ethan."

Ethan, not feeling great, was indifferent to the gift.

After thanking Dylan for Ethan, she sent the boy to bed and came back to talk to Dylan.

"Your little one's really cute," Dylan complimented with a smile.

"He sure is," Serena replied, sitting down with her coffee. "Way cuter than Chloe's kid."

Dylan's smile froze for a second as he awkwardly asked, "You've seen Chloe's kid?"

He had to confess to Charlotte who the father of Chloe's unborn child was right before her accident. He knew he couldn't keep it from her, so he spilled the beans. Charlotte had promised not to tell Liam at the time.

But now, if Serena was really Charlotte, she must have returned for revenge, and the secret of the child's parentage couldn't be kept hidden much longer.

"The kid's name is Benjamin, and he's actually doing well," Serena said nonchalantly.

"Really? Liam's got Chloe and the kid stashed away in the suburbs, where no one's allowed to visit - it's like they're in soft jail. You wouldn't know how the kid's doing... Did you go see him?" His curiosity about the child was evident, even as he tried to hide it.

He had hoped to use the child, who wasn't Liam's, to tarnish Liam's reputation and break up the Beaumont family.

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But who would've guessed Liam would get into an accident and drop out of the picture for a year and a half?

That was enough time for Dylan to craft a perfect story for the child. With Liam out of the picture, Dylan was sure this kid could grow up well with Liam's name.

As the kid gets older, he's gonna cut into Liam's cash.

When the time comes and he recognizes the child, he'll be able to cash in on Liam's dough.

But Charlotte can't ruin all this.

"So, what's the deal with the kid? You said you weren't a fan of Chloe, right?" Dylan tested the waters.

Serena looked confused, "What's that got to do with me? I just wanted to rile up Liam for taking a swing at my man."

Dylan let out a sigh of relief and switched gears, "Vincent must've filled you in about Charlotte's dad being a gambler?"

"He mentioned it, called him a real piece of work."

"Exactly. Charlotte's old man's been scraping by, and her little bro dropped out to work some factory job. Ended up just like their dad, gambling away everything including the house. They're pretty much scraping the barrel now." Dylan eyed Serena, trying to gauge her reaction.

That Blackwood party last week was big news. I was thinking he might come knocking now that you're in here."

Robert was in deep for what happened to Maria, and Charlotte hated the guy's guts.

If Serena was really her, she'd be showing some kind of tell by now!

Dylan locked eyes with Serena, looking for a hint of a storm.

But Serena was just calmly enjoying her coffee, looking bored out of her mind.

"Why would I be Charlotte, that fool? Why should he bother me? And if he does come by, I might actually want to meet him. If Charlotte and I are both knockouts, then Robert can't be too shabby, can he?" Serena's ignorance made Dylan feel a twinge of sadness.

Maybe Serena wasn't Charlotte after all.

It was supposed to be good news for him, but why did he feel so bummed out about it?