ANMELDEN**Chapter 66: Hospital Again**
The steady beep of the fetal monitor was the only sound keeping me anchored.I lay in the private suite at St. Augustine’s, the same wing where I’d visited Bianca what felt like a lifetime ago. IV fluids dripped cold into my arm. My hospital gown stretched over my twenty-five-week belly, and every tiny kick from the baby sent a wave of both relief and guilt crashing through me.Stress. That was the clinical word the doctors kept using.**Chapter 76: New Rival**The ultrasound gel was still cool on my skin when Victor Kane delivered the next blow.I lay on the examination table in the private clinic, thirty-three weeks pregnant, my belly glistening under the lights as the technician printed out fresh 3D images of our son—strong heartbeat, perfect profile, already weighing over five pounds. Damien held my hand, thumb stroking my knuckles, when Victor walked in without knocking, tablet in hand and face grim.“We have a new problem,” Victor said, glancing at the monitor where our baby’s face filled the screen. “A bigger one than Selena.”Damien’s jaw tightened. “Speak.”“Lilith Voss.”I sat up slowly, pulling the paper sheet over my belly. “Voss? Is she family?”“No blood relation,” Victor explained. “She took the name legally three years ago after marrying and divorcing one of Damien’s distant cousins. Smart move. It gives her credibility in certain circl
**Chapter 75: Second Shadow**The press conference played on every screen in the penthouse.I stood frozen in the living room in one of Damien’s oversized button-down shirts, my hand cradling the heavy swell of my thirty-two-week belly, while Selena Drake’s face filled the television. She looked radiant—flawless makeup, soft lighting, one hand resting meaningfully over her still-flat stomach.“I never wanted it to come to this,” she said, voice trembling with practiced vulnerability. “But Damien Voss deserves to know he’s going to be a father again. I’m eight weeks pregnant. And despite what the tabloids say about his engagement to that girl… I believe our child deserves a chance at a real family.”The headline ticker screamed: **DAMIEN VOSS BABY MAMA WAR EXPLODES — TWO PREGNANCIES, ONE EMPIRE.**My stomach twisted violently. Our son kicked hard, as if protesting the chaos his father had dragged us into again.Damien stood behind
**Chapter 74: Past Sins**The silence in the penthouse was heavier than the city skyline pressing against the windows. I sat on the edge of our bed in my silk robe, the emerald gala gown discarded in a heap on the floor like a shed skin. My hands rested protectively over my thirty-one-week belly, feeling the steady kicks of our son, while Damien stood across from me, still in his tuxedo pants and unbuttoned dress shirt.“Tell me about her.” My voice came out quieter than I intended, but the demand was clear. “No more half-truths, Damien. No more ‘it was a long time ago.’ I want everything. Tonight.”He watched me for a long moment, dark eyes unreadable. Then he exhaled slowly and loosened his tie completely, tossing it aside.“Selena wasn’t just a submissive,” he said finally, voice low. “She was my partner in more ways than one. Business first. She helped broker the Asian expansion three years ago. Sharp. Ruthless. Unafraid of my darkness.” He pa
**Chapter 73: The Ghost**The gala was a glittering cage of crystal chandeliers and whispered power plays. Voss Enterprises’ annual charity ball filled the grand ballroom of the city’s most exclusive hotel, every corner dripping with old money and sharper ambitions. I stood beside Damien in a custom emerald-green maternity gown that flowed elegantly over my thirty-one-week belly, the diamond on my finger catching every light. I should have felt untouchable. Instead, I felt like prey.“You’re breathtaking tonight,” Damien murmured, his large hand resting possessively on my lower back. His thumb stroked slow circles over the silk, right above the curve of my ass. “Every man here wishes he could touch what’s mine.”I leaned into him, drawing strength from his solid presence. After the dirty money confrontation and the intense makeup sex that followed, we’d existed in a fragile truce. He’d been attentive, almost tender. But the shadow of Selena
**Chapter 72: Dirty Money**I waited until morning.The penthouse was bathed in soft gray light when Damien stepped out of the shower, towel slung low around his hips, water still glistening on his sculpted chest. He looked every inch the powerful man who owned half this city. My future husband. The father of my child.And a liar.I stood in the middle of the bedroom in my silk robe, his phone clutched in my hand like a weapon. My belly felt heavier than ever at thirty weeks—our son pressing down as if he, too, was tired of the secrets.Damien’s sharp eyes flicked to the phone, then to my face. He stilled.“Isla.”“Seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars.” My voice shook but didn’t break. “To Selena Drake. One week ago. Right around the time that video conveniently surfaced.”He didn’t flinch. Instead, he walked toward me slowly, deliberately, the way one approaches a cornered animal. “Give me the phone, little
**Chapter 71: Shattered Trust**The video played on loop in my mind even when I closed my eyes.A sleek hotel suite. Damien’s broad shoulders unmistakable in a tailored black shirt. A beautiful woman with long auburn hair laughing as she leaned into him, hand resting possessively on his chest. Then the bombshell—her tearful interview claiming she was carrying Damien Voss’s child too. The timestamp on the footage was from two weeks ago, right after I’d said yes to his proposal.*“He told me I was special,”* the woman had sobbed to the camera. *“Just like he’s telling her.”*I sat curled up on the chaise in the penthouse living room, knees drawn up as much as my thirty-week belly would allow. The diamond on my finger felt heavier than ever. Damien had spent the last three days trying to extinguish the firestorm. Victor had issued statements. PR teams spun damage control. Damien swore it was Marcus Hale’s latest move—a deepfake mixed with a paid actr
Chapter 45:Unexpected VisitorThe studio hummed with focused energy. Priya coordinated with the marketing team on the Foundation launch materials while I finalized the visual identity system. For the first time in weeks, I felt almost in control. The dizziness had eased, replaced by a bo
Chapter 44:Clinical LightThe private medical suite on the 18th floor of Voss Tower felt more like a luxury spa than a doctor’s office. Soft lighting, original art on the walls, and a calm, middle-aged physician named Dr. Amara Patel who had been on retainer with the family for years. Th
Chapter 40:Tide TurningThe statement went live at 8:07 a.m. By 9:30, my phone had become a living thing—vibrating nonstop with notifications, interview requests, and cautious congratulations from industry contacts. I stood in my studio, watching the analytics dashboard climb as the Voss
Chapter 37:Echoes of the Past The soft click of my keyboard filled the sunlit studio Damien had carved out for me in the penthouse. Natural light poured through skylights onto my drafting table, illuminating bold new designs—darker palettes, sharper lines, pieces that no longer apo







