Billionaire's Regret: Losing Me And Our Son - Chapter 277: Chapter 277

My brows knitted tightly, my face burning with rage. "And you—why did you make me agree to such a disgraceful demand? York, you're my brother. Blood or not, we're family in every way that matters."
York froze, staring at me in stunned silence.
After a long pause, York finally looked away and said gravely, "Are you pitying me?"
I froze, unsure which of my words had hurt him.
"Sorry, I didn't mean it that way." At that moment, I was terrified of hurting York. I hastily added, "Shirley told me about your past, but I swear, I'm not pitying you. You know, I was in an orphanage too when I was little, so I understand how you feel."
I'd never had a private conversation with York about any of this.
Honestly, I'd never told a soul about my childhood, not even once in all these years.
I'd always been worse than others at emotional expression, or maybe I'd poured all my love into Quinn and Benedict.
"You understand how I feel?" York cut me off with a bitter laugh. He countered, "Natalia, have you ever spent two weeks in 104-degree heat, watching over a corpse?"
A shiver ran through me as I pictured York as a helpless child.
I couldn't believe it. "You mean your biological mother..."
Shirley's account, as harsh as it was, still didn't capture the full extent of the truth.
Shirley only knew that York's biological mother had passed away from illness, but she didn't know the body had gone undiscovered for so long.
York stayed by his biological mother's lifeless body. As a little boy, he was at a loss and could only cry helplessly.
It wasn't until the putrid stench of the decomposing corpse alerted the villagers that someone finally called the police.
It was only at that moment that York realized his biological mother had already died. She would never wake up again.
My blood ran cold as I listened.
I truly had no right to say I understood what he'd been through.
"I'm sorry," I apologized, at a complete loss for what else to say.
York's brown eyes bore into me with an intensity that sent chills down my spine, a fleeting glimpse of fury and despair flashing in their depths.
I was at a complete loss.
The next instant, I spun around and pulled York into a tight embrace.
I patted York's back, feeling his rigid, tense posture. I murmured soothingly, "It's all in the past now. You have me and Mom. We'll always be family."
York's hands lifted instinctively, hovering for a moment before falling back to his sides.
York gently pushed me away.
"Yeah, you're right. It's all in the past now." A practiced smile curved at the corners of York's lips as he said, "Family? If we're truly family, what difference does it make which of us becomes CEO?"
He quickly slipped back into his usual composed demeanor.
"Alright, the priority now is to close the acquisition smoothly. The rest doesn't matter to me at all."
Unexpectedly, York ended up comforting me.
With that, York stepped into the elevator without so much as a backward glance.
That evening, I returned home.
After dinner, I got a call from Shirley. "Natalia, are you free tomorrow? Your aunt wants to go shopping. She's inviting us to go with her."
Accompanying Faye shopping now counted as part of my job.
I replied readily, "Sure, I'll pick you both up tomorrow."
The moment I hung up, Quinn placed a glass of milk before me.
I turned to see Quinn's handsome face.
Quinn grumbled, "You've been so busy lately, you barely have time for me."
"Thanks." I took the glass of milk and kissed Quinn on the cheek. I teased, "Once I become CEO of Maple Media, I'll probably be busier than ever. If you really care about me, why don't you quit and be a stay-at-home dad?"