Chapter 4

_Danica’s POV_

“I don't want to have anything to do with this woman or her child!”

I walked into the Laurent mansion in a blank state, my heart burdened with the crushing weight of Eden's rejection. I had been approached by the secretary of the Cross family matriarch who informed me that he knew who my child's father was. Eden’s grandma was welcoming and wanted me to keep her grandchild but Eden, who turned out to be the stranger I had slept with that night, wanted nothing to do with me.

I knew it would turn out this way, after all, who'd want a random woman just because of a flimsy one-night stand? He most likely saw me as a gold digger or a liar, maybe both. I didn't know him enough or have any bonds with him to be hurt by his words but somehow it did. I had cried my eyes out in the taxi and now, I still hadn't gotten over it.

I pushed open the front door and hoped that no one would see me in this state but my stepmother's uncanny ability to sniff out misfortune like a bloodhound appeared. Her voice cut through the air before I had a chance to step fully into the main living room.

“Look what the cat dragged in,” Celeste’s voice dripped with an artificial sweetness despite her wanting to degrade or say something bad about me.

She stood in the very center of the living room, her arms crossed regally over her chest, a cruel, knowing smirk twisting her perfectly made-up face. Behind her, a few household staff members stood awkwardly, their eyes darting nervously between us, trying to appear busy while clearly soaking in every word.

My stomach clenched hard. I already knew how this was going to go "Celeste, please," I pleaded, my voice thick with exhaustion and a desperate lack to fight.

"I’m not in the mood."

Her smirk didn't just widen; it stretched into a full-blown, predatory grin. “Oh, I’m sure you’re not. Not when your little secret is about to become public knowledge, is it, Danica?” Her gaze swept pointedly to my still-flat stomach.

My eyes widened in shock, how had she known?

“Tell me, dear,” she purred, her voice dripping with mock concern, “how does it feel to be pregnant before marriage? Such a scandal for a Laurent, wouldn’t you agree?”

My face flushed a painful, angry red, my cheeks burning with so much shame. The household staff averted their eyes, but I could feel their collective judgment pressing in on me from every side.

“You have no idea what happened,” I choked out, the words barely being able to leave my mouth. I should be bolder, I know but it was a lot harder than one would think.

“And how did you find out?” I clenched my feet. Did she have someone follow me?

Celeste let out a short laugh, a sound devoid of any humor.

“A little birdy, a very reliable one, I might add, told me all about your little... escapade. A nameless father, a ruined reputation. What will people say, Danica?" Her voice rose, becoming a performance for the hushed onlookers. "The Laurent name, darling, dragged through the mud by you." She took a deliberate step closer, invading my personal space, her voice dropping to a hiss, yet loud enough for every single person in the hall to catch each word.

“I would never do that. I would never drag the family's name through the mud,” I cried. I truly didn't mean for things to turn out this way.

“But you already did,” she chuckled. “Your father will be so ashamed,” she grinned.

“Stop it. I don't want to hear another word from you,” I placed my hands over my ears.

"Your father will disown you, you know. He won't tolerate such a disgrace. Your life, dear, is about to come to a very messy, very public end."

My vision blurred, tears stinging my eyes. I hated that she was right.

My father, so utterly obsessed with appearances, with the pristine, unblemished family name, with a legacy he viewed as his sole possession… he would never, ever accept this. Never. My entire future, every fragile dream I'd ever dared to nurture, my very existence, felt like they were disintegrating before my eyes, dissolving into nothingness. I stood there, rooted to the spot defeated.

“You went through my things, didn't you?!” That was the only way she could have found out.

“And what if I did? Tsk. Do you really have the luxury of thinking about my methods?” She looked at me with scorn.

Wait, I shouldn't act this way, not if I wanted to be in my dad's good books at least. I got down on my knees, swallowing my pride.

“My goodness, what's all this?” Celeste acted surprised with her expression remaining the same.

“Please… don't tell dad,” maybe if I pleaded with her, she wouldn't tell dad. “Just give some time, I'll get rid of the child and everything will be back to normal.”

“Are you really that daft?” She tapped my head with a folded magazine. “Do you think I really care about your well-being or the pregnancy that I'd consider saving you? Pfft. I want to ruin you,” she laughed and I cried even harder. Was this how I get kicked out?

“Please, I'm begging you. Just this once, please…”

Just when I thought I was surely going to sacrifice anything to save myself from being a disappointment to dad, the front door swung open. My head snapped up and standing there behind me was none other than Eden Cross.

He looked different, maybe it was a change in demeanor or that he had suddenly barged in here like this. He was no longer the aloof, dismissive stranger from his grandmother's drawing-room.

His eyes landed on me before darting back at Celeste.

What the hell was he doing here?

Celeste’s cruel smirk didn't just falter, it melted into a fleeting flicker of pure surprise, followed by something that looked like fear.

“I didn't think evil stepmothers still existed in this day and age,” he scoffed.

Celeste’s lips trembled as she recognized the face scattered in every magazine and every news channel each passing day.

“Mr. Cross? It's an honor to have y-you,” She stuttered.

“It's not what you think, I was just scolding her. If you're here for my husband then…”

“That will be quite enough, Mrs Laurent,” Eden raised a hand and she immediately went mute. I never once thought I'd see my stepmom like this. “You must have a lot of audacity to make her want to get rid of my child,” he glared at Celeste who was visibly panicking. The workers were just as shocked as I was. My mind reeled, struggling desperately to catch up with his words. Wasn't he the one who rejected me and his child?

“I-I… I didn't know you were the father,” Celeste’s eyes widened in shock as she tried to defend herself. “I would never try to make her abort a member of the Cross family.”

“As the father of the child, Danica is carrying, I plan to take full responsibility,” he walked towards me and held out his hands to me. I took it despite being utterly confused as he pulled me up. “Furthermore, I will marry Danica. We will be wed as soon as arrangements can possibly be made.”

What?!

Without waiting for a response, he actually took me away.

……….

Later that evening after following him back to his Mansion, I was called to his study. The atmosphere changed once again, it was back to the same Eden I had first met at his grandma's drawing room.

He looked at me, his face devoid of the public performance he had put on a few hours ago.

“Don’t misunderstand, woman,” he began, his voice cool and detached, a contrast to his earlier pronouncements.

“This is not what it seems.”

My stomach tightened. Deep down, I had known.

“This is a contract marriage,” he stated, his eyes fixed on mine. “A temporary arrangement. You will play the role of my wife and the mother of my child, for exactly one year. After that, you will leave. Without the child.”

My blood ran cold. Leave? Leave my child?

“In return,” he continued, as if discussing the weather, “you will receive a substantial sum – $100 million – to kickstart your career. I will also purchase a house for you in New York, a place where you can begin your new life, unburdened.”

“I-I…”

“Think about this rationally, though this isn't a matter subject to your opinion. Go back to your family and be a disgrace or have my child and be duly compensated.”

I clenched my fist at the audacity of this man. How dare he think that of me? That I was some desperate girl who would throw myself at his feet because he offered me 100 million?

I looked him directly in the eye, unwavering as I replied in a calm voice. “Thank you for the offer, Mr. Cross, but I'm not interested in a contract marriage.”