Chapter 349

Daphne

What?

I’m sure I misheard. The jet lag, the anxiety, the stress I’m sure my brain is playing tricks on me.

"What?" I pull her away just enough to look her in the eyes.

"I’m pregnant." Her voice cracks.

This is not a hallucination.

I freeze.

Pregnant.

Like pregnant, pregnant.

With a baby.

A small human. Growing inside her. Right now.

"I’m so scared." Her voice is so small and broken.

I pull her back into my arms. Hold her tighter than I’ve ever held anyone.

"It’s okay." The words come out automatic, soothing, even though I feel pretty fucking gobsmacked right now. "We’ll figure it out."

I’m not sure who I’m trying to convince,her or myself.

"It’s fine, Viv." I kiss her temple. "It’s fine."

How did this happen?

[Well, you’re an Alpha and she’s an Omega, and you’ve penetrated, knotted, and ejaculated inside her a total of—]

That’s enough.

I cut off the System.

I understand the mechanics.

In my defense, we really should have been careful. I should have been careful. I mean it was a possibility technically? What?

And now—

Pregnant.

I don’t know, man.

I hold Vivienne close. Her body is trembling against mine, her breath still hitching with leftover sobs. She’s terrified. I can feel it radiating off her.

I have to be the fucking man here.

Well. Since I’m an Alpha, I technically am the fucking man.

Fuck.

Fucking fuck.

***

Vivienne

Daphne suddenly stands up, pulling me with her. Her hand is warm around mine, steady, certain it’s like she knows exactly what she’s doing, even if I don’t.

I just follow her.

We get into a car. She makes a call, saying things I don’t understand I’m just heating. Coming. Gift. Two hours. Spend money.

I don’t ask questions. I can’t. My brain is still stuck on the word pregnant, looping it over and over like a record that won’t stop skipping.

We stop at a boutique. The kind with no sign outside, where the doors are opened by people who don’t ask questions. Daphne guides me inside. A woman appears with an armful of dresses.

Before I know it, I’m wearing a floral dress—soft, simple, the kind of thing I would have picked for myself if I’d had the chance. Someone is doing my makeup. Someone else is doing Daphne’s, covering bruises I didn’t notice before.

Bruises?

I blink. Look closer. There’s a fading yellow at the corner of her jaw, a shadow under her eye that isn’t just exhaustion.

What’s up with that?

I don’t have time to think about it. We’re moving again. Into another room. A document is placed in front of me. I sign where Daphne points. She signs too.

I look at the title. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Marriage Certificate.

What?

My hand hovers over the paper. Daphne doesn’t pause. She’s already signing, already handing the document to the waiting official, already arranging everything like it’s a business transaction.

Our pictures are taken. We stand side by side, shoulders touching, and a stranger tells us to smile. I don’t know if I do. I can’t feel my face.

Then we’re back in the car. Daphne kisses me—quick, firm, certain.

"I’ll take care of it," she says.

She’s gone before I can respond.

I sit in the back seat, the floral dress soft against my skin, the weight of the marriage certificate in my bag.

What?

It’s like someone pressed the fast-forward button from the moment I told her. I haven’t caught up yet.

***

Daphne

I step aside just in time. The glass cup shatters against the wall behind me, leaving a wet stain on the wallpaper.

"It’s already done." My voice is calm.

"You—you—you—" Bernard Han clutches his chest. His face goes white. He doubles over, sinking toward the floor.

Don’t tell me he’s going to die.

I watch him. Dramatic, isn’t it?

I contemplate letting him die. Just for a moment.But the guilt would kill Vivienne.

I call for help.

*

It’s all so dramatic.

Damien tries to punch me when he gets to the hospital. Tries being the key word. I catch his fist, twist his arm, and shove him back before he can try again.

He stands there, breathing hard, looking at me like he’s never seen me before.

"You married her." His voice is flat. Disbelieving.

"I did."

I look at Bernard’s unconscious form in the hospital bed. The monitors beep. The IV drips. He looks smaller like this.

I pull out my phone to check the time.

4 AM.

It’s been a long fucking day.

At 10 AM, I arrived in the city. At 3 PM, I got married. At 6 PM, I told Bernard Han that I’d married his son’s fiancée and she was already pregnant.

Causing his heart attack was just the cherry on top.

What an eventful day.

The most surprising thing is still the news, though.

Pregnant.

Ha.

"Are you happy seeing Father like this?!" Damien’s voice cuts through my thoughts.

I glance at Bernard. "Silence. Patient here."

Damien’s fists clench at his sides. I raise an eyebrow.

"Where is she?" he demands.

"I’ve sent my wife on a little vacation." I tuck my phone away. "She’s in a fragile state right now."

"How dare you." His voice shakes. "She’s my fiancée."

"My dear brother." I meet his eyes. "I understand it’ll take time for you to process this. But it’s not like there was any sort of good relationship between you and my wife."

"Had there been, she wouldn’t be my wife now, would she?"

"How can you be so shameless?" He grabs me by the collar, yanks me close.

I don’t fight. I just hold his wrist, increase the pressure, one finger at a time, until his grip loosens. Until he lets go.

"Maybe," I say quietly, "if you didn’t have wandering eyes, I wouldn’t have had a chance to swoop in like this."

He stares at me. His chest heaves. It reminds me of an angry toddler.

"The election is barely a month away." His voice cracks. "And you’ve done this? Think about the consequences. The damage you’ve caused."

I consider his words. Then:

"I’ll be honest with you. I don’t care about the reputation. Besides, if something like this can change the tides against you..." I shrug. "I’m afraid your position is already precarious."

"You—"

"Enough." Olga’s voice cuts through the room like a blade. She’s sitting by Bernard’s bedside, her hands folded in her lap, her face unreadable. She’s been oddly silent throughout this whole fiasco.

"Don’t argue in here."

Damien looks at her. Looks at me. Looks at our father, unconscious and pale.

He doesn’t say anything else.

"I’m going for a walk." I leave before anyone can stop me.

Outside, the hospital garden is empty. The benches are cold. The only light comes from the moon and the faint glow of the building behind me.

I shouldn’t. But today is one of those days.

I light a cigarette.

The red tip glows in the darkness. I exhale, watch the smoke rise and disappear.

I sit there for a long time. I don’t know how long. Long enough for the initial rush of nicotine to fade. Long enough for my thoughts to stop screaming.

Someone sits beside me.

I turn. Olga. She’s wrapped in a fleece, her hair loose around her shoulders, her face bare of makeup. One of the rare moments Madam Han isn’t the epitome of perfection.

"Are you not cold?" she asks.

"No."

Silence.

"I didn’t think you would straight up decide to get married on the spot." Her voice is quiet. Almost amused.

I laugh a little. "It was a shotgun wedding. But it was bound to happen. I had several plans—from kidnapping the bride, to knocking the groom unconscious and taking his place. Among other things."

She laughs too.

I stub out the cigarette on the armrest.

"You’re not angry?" I ask.

She scoffs. "Unlike everyone else, I had time to mentally prepare myself."

I look at her and look away.

"It was obvious to anyone with eyes," she adds.

"My bad."

"No." She shakes her head. "It’s fine. She... makes you happy."

"She does."

Silence.

"Circumstances aside." Olga’s voice is softer now. "I’m happy you’re happy. I’m happy you found that special person." A pause. "Not many people get that chance."

There’s a sadness in her voice.I think about her marriage—arranged when she was barely eighteen, to a man much older, a man who never loved her the way she deserved.

"Yeah," I say.

"I’m on your side."

"My, my." I glance at her. "Damien shouldn’t hear you say that."

"Please." She waves a hand. "I love Vivienne. And I know you’ll make her happier than he ever would have."

She’s right about that.

I look at the sun rising in the distance. The sky is pink and gold, soft and warm. The sun looks extra pretty rising today.