Chapter Twenty-One

The sun barely peeked through the heavy curtains when I woke up the next morning, my mind still swirling with everything that had happened in the past few days. The wedding. The confrontation. The heartbreak.

I rolled over to the other side of the bed, expecting to find Jillian next to me, but the space was empty. For the first time in weeks, I felt a cold, aching emptiness settle deep in my chest. I couldn’t quite figure out if it was anger, regret, or something else entirely. Maybe it was the exhaustion from the emotional rollercoaster I had been dragged through, but one thing was clear: I needed space. I needed time to think.

My thoughts raced back to the truth Jillian had hidden from me—Alyssa’s pregnancy. I still couldn’t shake the bitter taste in my mouth. All this time, he had known. He had known and hadn’t told me, and it felt like a betrayal.

My fingers curled into the sheets, gripping them tightly as if holding on would keep me grounded. I had believed in him. I had trusted him, even after everything. But now… now I wasn’t sure if I could trust anything at all.

A soft knock on the door broke me out of my thoughts. I stood up quickly, smoothing my wrinkled dress before walking over to the door. I opened it to find one of the maids, her face tight with concern.

“Good morning, Mrs. Colbert. I was sent to bring you breakfast.”

I gave a tight nod, stepping aside to let her in. She placed the tray on the table and left without a word. I stood there for a moment, staring at the meal as if it might hold the answers to my many questions. But the food didn’t offer anything, just a distraction from the weight on my chest.

I sat down and stared at the plate in front of me, but I had no appetite. I pushed the food aside, rubbing my temples as the reality of the situation started to sink in. The one thing I knew for sure was that I had no idea what to do next.

Suddenly, the door to my room creaked open, and I looked up to see Jillian standing there, his face a mask of tension. His eyes held a question, but he didn’t speak.

“What do you want?” I asked, my voice colder than I intended.

“I need to talk to you,” he said softly, stepping inside, though he didn’t approach me.

“About what?” My hands gripped the edge of the chair, my body stiff with uncertainty.

“Alyssa,” he replied, his voice low. “I know you’re upset.”

“Upset?” I repeated, my tone rising. “You lied to me, Jillian. You lied about everything. You knew she was pregnant and didn’t say a word. How could you—how could you keep something like that from me?”

He lowered his head, his hands shoved into his pockets as he exhaled deeply. “I didn’t want to hurt you.”

“Hurt me?” I scoffed. “You think this doesn’t hurt? I found out that your ex is carrying your child in the middle of our wedding day. How do you think that feels?”

“I never wanted to put you in that position,” he murmured, stepping forward slowly but hesitating when I backed away. “But the situation is more complicated than you know.”

“Complicated?” I laughed bitterly, shaking my head. “This was never complicated for me, Jillian. I married you. I trusted you. And you let me believe… what? That this was all real? That I was the only one?”

“You are,” he said urgently. “You are the only one, Christy. This”—he motioned vaguely between us—“this is real. But Alyssa… she… I didn’t know how to handle it.”

“Don’t lie,” I spat. “You’ve been handling it for months. And now you expect me to just… to just what? Forget it?”

He looked away, running a hand through his hair in frustration. “It’s not that simple. I didn’t want to burden you with that. I thought… I thought I could protect you from it.”

“By lying to me?” I crossed my arms over my chest, my heart racing. “By keeping me in the dark?”

“I never wanted you to be in the dark, Christy. I just didn’t know how to tell you the truth. I was trying to figure out what to do.”

“Yeah, and now it’s too late,” I said, feeling a surge of anger rush through me. “Because you didn’t think to trust me. Because you thought you could handle everything on your own.”

“I’ve been trying to protect you, Christy,” he said quietly, his voice a mixture of guilt and pain.

“Protect me?” I repeated, the bitterness in my words unmistakable. “By hiding things? By lying to me? By letting me fall deeper into this mess without knowing what I was really walking into?”

He was silent for a long time, his gaze dropping to the floor. When he finally met my eyes again, his expression was raw. “I made a mistake. And I’m sorry. But I need you to understand, I never wanted to hurt you.”

I couldn’t hold back the tears that welled up in my eyes. “I don’t know if I can trust you anymore, Jillian. I don’t know if I can believe anything you say. You’ve lied to me about the most important thing—about our future. How can I trust you now?”

He stepped closer, his face etched with pain. “Please. I’ll do anything to make this right. I’ll work every day to prove to you that you mean more to me than anything. But I can’t fix it all in one moment. I need time, and I need you to let me earn back your trust.”

I swallowed hard, wiping away a tear that had escaped. “How do I even begin to believe you?”

He didn’t answer right away, but when he did, his voice was low and full of emotion. “Give me a chance. Please. I’ll make it right.”

I opened my mouth to respond, but before I could speak, the door to my room flew open, and there she was—Alyssa. She stood there with a triumphant look on her face, her eyes gleaming with that same calculated expression that made my blood boil.

“Did I interrupt something?” she asked sweetly, though the sarcasm in her tone was unmistakable.

I stiffened, my hands tightening into fists. “What the hell do you want, Alyssa?”

She sauntered into the room, her gaze flicking to Jillian before landing on me. “Oh, nothing. I just thought I’d stop by and see how the happy couple is doing.”

Her gaze lingered on Jillian for a moment longer than necessary, and I felt the unmistakable stab of jealousy pierce my chest. I was sick of her—sick of her presence, sick of her interference.

“Why don’t you go back to where you came from?” I shot at her, my voice laced with venom.

She chuckled, her smile smug. “I don’t think you’re in any position to tell me what to do, Christy. But if you want to know… I’m here because I need to talk to Jillian.”

I felt my stomach turn, and before I could stop myself, I spoke through gritted teeth. “I think you’ve said enough.”

Alyssa’s gaze flicked to Jillian, and she raised an eyebrow, as if silently daring him to step in. But to my surprise, he said nothing. He just stood there, silent, watching the exchange unfold.

I could feel the tension between us thickening. It was like being stuck in the middle of a storm, the thunder and lightning threatening to tear everything apart. The more I tried to pull away, the tighter the grip between us seemed to get.

“Well, I’m not going anywhere,” Alyssa said, her voice dripping with sweet malice. “And neither are you, Christy. Not until this is all settled.”

I looked at Jillian, waiting for him to say something. Anything. But instead, he just stood there, not meeting my eyes.

And in that moment, I knew. He had never truly picked a side. He was stuck in the middle, torn between his past and the life he had with me. And as much as he might want me to believe in him, I wasn’t sure he could make a choice without the world falling apart around him.

I turned away, feeling my heart break all over again.

“Get out,” I whispered, barely able to get the words out.

The door slammed shut behind me, and I was left standing there, alone with my thoughts. Alone with the man who had lied to me, and the woman who would never let me forget it.

And as the storm raged on, I realized—this fight wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.