VALERIA My eyes widened as Giselle ran over to where I was sitting and hugged me tightly. "I missed you so much, mummy." I felt her tears as they dropped on my arm. "I thought something had happened to you." I cupped her face and looked into her eyes, so this was how it felt... To be open about that one thing that belongs to you. Just when I was here thinking about how to explain to her all that had happened in the past years, "I miss you so much, my baby, and I'm sorry for taking this long to get to you." I lowered my head and said, "Mama is so sorry about that." Giselle sniffled her nose as I wiped off her tears. I knew she had a lot to talk to me about. I made her sit on my lap and say, "You don't have to worry about anything anymore. I promise you that no one will hurt you again. As long as I am here, no one will dare cross your path again. But, for tonight...you need to look beautiful tonight, my baby, okay?" I asked, and she nodded her head. "I was scared

NICKOLAS My face remained stern and disgusted by her sight. "I made the worst mistake of my life, believing you from the beginning." My voice echoed throughout the hall. "I reject the day I made you my mate." I expected the shock that was written on everyone's face. Even if I didn't reject her now, I would still do that later. Since she had the heart to throw such a tantrum and made me waste a whooping six years on her, she deserved way worse and a public rejection. Emilia stood up and rushed to me. "Nickolas, what are you saying? You can't reject me... I am your wife and the mother of your child!" she insisted. "Are you mad? Are you insane or about to become insane? The test results showed that you are not Giselle's mother, so what more do you want to hear?" I asked, raising the DNA test results in the air. "How do you explain this? How do you explain that your stepsister is the mother of my child and not you?" "Why didn't you tell me that you had a stepmother

NICKOLAS I held the glass of wine in my hand firmly while I watched and paid attention to everything that was said in the meeting. "Don't you think stripping out Sam's title was too much?" Ragnor asked as prominent lines appeared on his forehead. I glanced at Ragnor, then at Magnus, who nodded his head in affirmation at what Ragnor was talking about. They seemed to be worried about him, and I understood that. "No, it wasn't. He lied to me... he made me look like a fool." My voice echoed throughout the hall. He should have at least told me that Valeria was his daughter... I thought he only had one child because Emilia was the only one he introduced to me. "I understand, but you can't just pull out his title because of that. He has been beta ever since you were growing up, and he has been doing his job so well." Magnus paused. "You have to reconsider your decision." "I have made my decision, and that is final. He shouldn't have made such a mistake. He i

VALERIA Ever since I came into the castle, I made sure Nickolas never skipped any of his meals. I ensured to make his meals myself and made sure he had it all. We visited the hospital again, and I was happy that his condition was no longer critical. He was now on the safe side, and all he had to do was continue with the way I had been treating him. I walked into the kitchen, and my eyes met Miss Sophie's. I couldn't explain the joy I felt in my heart. I heard that she had travelled for some traditional rites some weeks ago. I hastened my steps and hugged her from behind, saying, "I missed you so much." My voice was barely above a whisper. Miss Sophie turned around and cupped my face, her lips curving into a bright smile. "It feels so good to see you again. I thought I'd never see you again." I could feel the eyes of the maids on us while we spoke. I had been the talk of the town ever since I returned. Most of them still couldn't believe that I had become t

VALERIA "How's Nickolas doing now?" Miss Sophie asked as I slumped into the chair. "You look worried. This is unlike you." I had tried to hide away my worries ever since I came back from the hospital. Miss Sophie had known me too well... even on my saddest days, I was certain I didn't look as worried and tense as I was at the moment. My eyes were fixed on the wall as my thoughts drifted far away. My eyes stung so bad, but I tried my hardest to hold them back in. "It's just as if we aren't putting in effort." I placed my elbow on my lap. I lowered my head as I used my palm to support my head. "Everything is going down the drain." "Don't say that... you've tried your best. I am proud of how far you've gone, so don't feel less of yourself." Miss Sophie leaned closer to me and caressed my head. I felt and heard her heart thud loudly in my ears... she was scared and worried as well. All we wanted was for Nickolas to get better, not worse. According to what the doctor told me, I saw no