The Enticing CEO’s Chosen Bride

The fax machine beside Chloe suddenly rang, its shrill beeping breaking the silence of the room.

Chloe’s eyes flickered with curiosity as she stood up and approached the machine.

With her hand resting on it, her gaze fixed on the paper that lay quietly there, she hesitated for a moment, but

eventually picked it up.

The paper listed advice for expectant mothers, common worries intermingled with old wives’ tales. Chloe skimmed

through them, each point resonating with a mix of truth and superstition: “b2

1. Avoid Fear: Many women harbor a fear of childbirth, which can affect their eating and sleeping habits, and even

hinder their body’s natural stress responses, delaying the onset of labor.

2. Avoid Impatience: Some expectant mothers grow anxious for labor to begin, especially as their due date

approaches. They fail to understand that there’s a window of time around the due date when labor can naturally

begin.

3. Avoid Carelessness: Some women take their pregnancy too lightly, finding themselves ill-prepared when labor

starts, leading to panic and mistakes.

4. Avoid Exhaustion: Both physical and mental fatigue should be avoided during pregnancy. It’s important to reduce

activity and ensure adequate rest.

5. Avoid Laziness: Some women, fearing miscarriage or premature birth, become overly sedentary. This can lead to

a more difficult delivery.

6. Avoid Worry: Negative emotions can impact the smooth progress of childbirth.

7. Avoid Loneliness: Expectant mothers often feel nervous before delivery and crave encouragement and support,

especially from their partners.

8. Avoid Hunger: Given the physical demands of childbirth, it’s crucial for them to eat well before labor to maintain

their strength.

9. Avoid Travel: It’s best to avoid long trips, especially by car or boat. Because various conditions are restricted

during the journey, experiencing difficult childbirth is a dangerous situation that may jeopardize the safety of both

mother and child.

10. Avoid Medication: Childbirth is a natural process, and usually, medication isn’t needed. Misusing drugs or

resorting to induction without medical advice can have severe consequences.”

Chloe read through the list meticulously, a heartfelt smile spreading across her face as she bit her right index

finger. She knew this was how it would be. She was aware of the fears and concerns that could plague an expectant

mother, and she was doing her best to avoid them, but even with all her preparation, she couldn’t be completely

indifferent.

Just this morning, when Rose had brought up the topic, Chloe had felt a surge of nerves herself. Her dependency on

Damon had become a habit. When she had mentioned her concerns to him in the morning, she had not expected

such a strong reaction. When he came out of the bathroom, his words were scarce.

Remembering the cigarette he’d had earlier, Chloe couldn’t help but smirk. It seemed he was even more nervous

than she was. Placing the paper back on the machine, she had just turned to leave the study when Damon

appeared in the doorway.

“Lunch will be ready in a bit. Why don’t you rest a little longer?” he suggested.

Chloe shook her head with a soft laugh, “I’ve been resting enough lately. I should get moving.”

Damon’s gaze swept over her legs, which were swollen and sore from the pregnancy. “Can your legs handle it?” he

asked, concern lacing his voice.

With a playful smile, Chloe stepped forward and slipped her arm through his, “Looks like you’ll have to give me a

good leg massage later.”

His lips curved into a gentle smile, “I’ll help you downstairs.”

“Okay.”

As they made their way down the stairs, Damon suddenly asked, “Do you want to know more details about your

friend’s delivery?”

Chloe paused, “What kind of details?”

“Some families opt for a birth photography service, documenting everything from before entering the delivery

room to the moment of birth,” he explained.

Chloe looked at him with surprise, not expecting him to be aware of such services.

“Watch your step,” he reminded her gently. “If you’re interested, I can ask Danny to arrange it.”

Chloe raised an eyebrow, “Wouldn’t we need Rose’s consent for that?”

“You could mention it to her,” he said casually.

“Rose might agree, but the tricky part might be convincing Morrison.”

Damon glanced at her, “Do you really think Morrison’s opinion matters in this case?”

Chloe thought for a moment. Right now, the expectant mother’s wishes were paramount. If Rose insisted, Morrison

would have no choice but to comply.

Chloe chuckled softly, “You thought of this all by yourself?”

Damon pressed his lips together, “Do you want it or not?”

Chloe nodded, “I’ll talk to Rose about it.”

With a simple “Hmm,” Damon dropped the subject.

After lunch, Chloe brought up the idea to Rose. Considering the significance of the moment, Rose agreed almost

immediately without much thought.

Damon immediately made a call to Danny.

“This kind of thing is pretty common, but usually, it’s up to the Witt family to decide. Shouldn’t you be taking care of

your own wife instead of meddling in someone else’s business? Or maybe you’ve taken a fancy to her friend?”

Danny teased over the phone.

Damon’s face darkened instantly, “Do you want to keep your hospital running or not?”

Danny made a face, “Alright, alright! Just joking. No need to get all worked up.”

Without wasting more words on the doctor, Damon got straight to the point, “Start recording from the prep work,

but edit out anything after she enter the delivery room before you send it to me.”

Danny laughed, “You do realize the whole point of recording this is to capture the moment when women give birth,

right? You sure you want that part cut out?”

“You expect me to watch another woman give birth?” Damon retorted.

Danny fell silent. What the hell was wrong with Damon for shooting this video but editing out that crucial part?

“Okay, you’re the boss. We’ll do it your way.”

Hanging up the phone, Damon pocketed his phone and glanced up. His grandma and mother were strolling with

Chloe and Yulia, heading back. He stepped down the stairs and walked towards them.

—

With just two days until her due date, Rose had the photographer set up the camera in her room, just in case the

due date arrived earlier than expected.

Morrison, on the other hand, seemed even more stressed. He stayed with Rose every day, not daring to leave her

side. There were noticeable dark circles under his eyes. He abandoned work altogether and went so far as to block

all the company’s phone numbers.

When his Mom showed up, he was there like a sentinel. When his Megan made her appearance, he was equally

vigilant. And let’s not even get started on the doctor’s visits.

All the talk about contractions and the elasticity of the cervix – terms that might have once made a man twitchy –

didn’t faze Morrison anymore. He’d become an expert by necessity, practically feeling like he should be the one in

labor, if that were only possible. But alas, it was Rose who had to do the heavy lifting in the end.

Morrison munched on whatever Rose ate, although he never seemed to eat more. It was like he was in some sort of

sympathetic pregnancy.

Sometimes, when the hospital room quieted down, Rose would catch Morrison secretly browsing on his phone,

searching for information about pregnant women giving birth and various aspects of prenatal and postnatal care.

Compared to him, she seemed to be more at ease.

But once he set the phone aside, Morrison would fret over her, urging her to have a piece of fruit or a glass of

water, his restlessness betraying his unease. His anxious doting actually made Rose feel less scared.

He had just refilled her water glass when she sighed softly, crossed her legs, leaned back against the hospital bed

pillows, and said, “The baby wants to hear you sing.”

Morrison looked up, peering at her belly. “When did he decide that?”

“Just now. Come on, you learned some songs, didn’t you? Start with ‘Mother’s Love’.”

Morrison flushed.

“Come on.” Rose clung to his arm. “If you don’t sing, both the baby and I will be heartbroken.”

Taking a deep breath, Morrison began his song. By the end of the song, Morrison’s brow was dotted with sweat.

Rose, ever so supportive, clapped enthusiastically.

Morrison felt like he had used up a lifetime’s worth of embarrassment.

“That was lovely. Okay, how about ‘Good daddy, bad daddy’ next?”

Morrison’s mouth twitched. Wasn’t she being a bit too obvious? A song about Mother’s Love, and for Daddy, it’s

‘Good daddy, bad daddy’?

So childish.

“Hurry up! We’re waiting!” Rose’s eyes shone, her hands clapping in anticipation.

Morrison ran a hand over his forehead and, despite himself, took another deep breath—

“I’ve got a daddy who’s tops, tops, tops, in the kitchen pots and pans go pop, pop, pop. When he does the laundry,

it’s snap, snap, snap. And when he’s happy, it’s laugh, laugh, laugh, but if you’re naughty, it’s a tap, tap, tap.”

Morrison’s voice carried an unmistakable sense of embarrassment as he sang the song with peculiar tones and odd

pitches. Rose started by stifling giggles, but soon she was laughing so hard, tears threatened to spill.

It was meant to lighten the mood, but she was nearly dying of laughter. What wonderfully attentive lyrics!

Morrison had a face full of embarrassment, struggling to finish the song. It took him a good while to ease up and

somewhat suppress the shame he felt.

Rose was still laughing uncontrollably, clearly enjoying herself.

So, Mother’s Love was precious and selfless. Being a good daddy involved cooking, laundry, and perhaps even

spanking for bad behavior.

“Enjoying yourself?”

She nodded, grinning. “So, Daddy, do you want to be the good daddy or the bad daddy?”

Morrison gave her a perplexed look. “If you take over the spanking duties, I’d be more than happy to be the good

daddy.”

Rose frowned and shook her head. “How could a mother spank her baby? That would make him sad. And you can’t

do that either.”