登入With his desperate words hanging in the air, Damon collapsed to his knees, groveling at my parents' feet like a broken man. His powerful Alpha frame looked pathetic now, reduced to nothing more than a shell of his former self."Enough," my father cut him off, his voice cold and absolute. He raised his hand and waved Damon away like he was nothing more than filth beneath his shoes. "I don't want to hear another damn word from you. I've held back from completely destroying the Reed pack out of respect for our families' long history, but if you keep pushing your luck..."He leaned forward, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper that made even the security guards tense. "Let me remind you, this isn't your territory anymore. This is my ground. And if you don't walk away now, you might not walk away at all."His stare was full of barely contained fury. My mother's expression was no kinder. She looked at Damon like he was something diseased, something that had crawled out from under a roc
When we finally got back to the house, I helped Alexander to the couch and grabbed the first aid kit from the kitchen cabinet. My hands trembled slightly as I opened it, the adrenaline from the confrontation still coursing through my veins."I'm sorry," I said quietly, gently dabbing the cut above his eye with antiseptic. "You got dragged into this mess because of me. If you want to press charges, I have the security footage from the front door. I'll stand by your side."Alexander winced slightly but didn't pull away. "Oh yeah? You'd really stand by my side?"I met his gaze, my voice firm despite the chaos of emotions swirling inside me. "Of course. Between you and Damon, I'd much rather have you any day."Something shifted in Alexander's expression—a tenderness that made my heart skip erratically. His hand reached up to cover mine, stilling my movements as I tended to his wounds."I meant those words I said out there, Aria," he said softly, his voice carrying a weight that made me fr
Damon's eyes widened as he took in Alexander's presence, his Alpha pride bristling at the interference. The air between them crackled with tension, two powerful men facing off over me—though only one of them had earned the right to be here."This is between me and my mate," Damon snarled, trying to pull free from Alexander's iron grip."Ex-mate," I corrected coldly, stepping back. "We've been separated for over a month, Damon. I'm not your mate anymore."The word 'ex' hit him like a physical blow. His face crumpled with pain, but that vulnerability quickly transformed into something darker, more dangerous, as he turned his full attention to Alexander."Who the hell are you?" Damon snapped, his voice dripping with Alpha authority. "I'm talking to the mother of my children. So back off before I make you."Alexander didn't flinch under Damon's intimidating glare. Instead, he stepped closer, his own presence radiating a quiet, controlled power that was somehow more threatening than Damon'
But Damon didn't move toward the door. Instead, he stayed frozen in place, his tear-streaked face desperate and wild."Aria, wait," he said, his voice breaking. "There's something else. Something I need you to know before you shut me out forever."I paused, my hand still on the doorknob. "What could you possibly have left to say?"He took a shuddering breath, wiping his face with trembling hands. "The baby. Sophia's baby. I... I wasn't the father."The words hung in the air between us like a bomb waiting to explode. I turned slowly, studying his face for any sign of deception."What did you say?""I never touched her, Aria. Not once. I couldn't have gotten her pregnant even if I'd wanted to." His voice was raw, desperate. "I know how that sounds, I know you have no reason to believe me, but I swear on our children's lives—I never slept with Sophia."I felt something cold and bitter rise in my chest. "Are you seriously going to stand there and lie to me? After everything? That's not tr
I had barely made it inside when his voice reached me through the heavy oak door—broken, desperate, completely shattered."Aria, please! I know I'm a fool and I don't deserve mercy from you, but please hear me out. Please, just let me explain everything."His words were punctuated by something I'd never heard from him before—the sound of Damon Reed, the powerful Alpha, sobbing like his world was ending. Which, I supposed, it was."I can't control my tears anymore," he continued, his voice muffled against the door. "I haven't been able to stop crying since I realized what I'd lost. What I threw away. Aria, please—I'm begging you. Just five minutes. That's all I ask."Part of me wanted to ignore him, to let him suffer outside while I focused on my treatment tomorrow. But another part—the part that had once loved him more than life itself—couldn't bear to hear him break down so completely.Against my better judgment, I handed my twins to my mother and walked back to the door.When I open
Alexander looked at me with worry in his eyes, filled with a kind of tender concern that I didn't quite know how to respond to.Uncomfortable, I avoided his gaze. I couldn't understand why someone I barely knew from college would care so much about my wellbeing. We'd shared maybe a handful of conversations during our university years, yet here he was, going out of his way to help save my life.But I also couldn't reject his help—not now. When you're staring death in the face, your pride becomes the least important thing. I had people who needed me—my twin babies, my parents. I couldn't just give up and leave them to pick up the pieces of my broken choices.Amazingly, within days, the top rheumatologist had returned to Meridian City. Dr. Helena Vasquez was a legend in the lupus research community, and somehow Alexander had managed to convince her to take my case personally. Under her aggressive treatment plan, my condition began to stabilize—even the date for my kidney biopsy and poten







