All Chapters of Rejected and Banished; The kids are his.: Chapter 131 - Chapter 140

Eva's POV.I stood beside Nicklaus as we escorted Renna to her waiting carriage. “I can’t thank you enough,” I said, flashing her a warm smile. “For everything.”Nicklaus nodded beside me. “You’ve done more for us than we could’ve asked. I owe you one.”Renna smiled and gave him a wink. “You both don’t owe me anything. But if you insist… throw in some wildflowers the next time I visit.”We all laughed, and then she climbed the small steps into the carriage. She settled into the seat, but before the driver could call for the horses, she turned her head toward me again and made a small gesture with her finger. I stepped closer, bending slightly so she could whisper into my ear.“I don’t mean to be nosey…” she said softly, with that knowing glint in her eyes, “but I heard moans.”My cheeks flushed a deep red. I could barely lift my eyes to meet hers, but I nodded sheepishly and whispered back, “We’ve… done it.”Renna’s smile widened and without hesitation, she pulled me into a warm hug.

Eva's POV. It had been two weeks.Two whole weeks since Aragorn pulled a threat that’s refused to let me sleep through the night. Two weeks of smiling and pretending, of waking up every day beside Nicklaus and pretending everything was normal, pretending I was normal.But I wasn’t.I hadn’t been the same since that day.Not because Aragorn’s words were the most terrifying I’d ever heard, but because he'd said them so calmly. I hadn’t told Nicklaus.Because I didn’t want to ruin what we had. Not when things were finally calm, not when for the first time in what felt like forever, there was peace in our home.But inside me?A war raged.I stood beneath the shower, watching the water wash down my body, trying to will the anxiety away. I let the warmth soak into my skin, running down my back and over my shoulders. My fingers pressed into my temples as I breathed in slowly… and exhaled even slower.You’re being paranoid, Eva, I told myself for the hundredth time.But I wasn’t. I knew I w

Eva's POV. Once I've cried myself to stupor, and some of the tension has left, I quickly stood to my feet and stormed out. Thankfully, Nicklaus hasn't returned home yet. I didn’t even pause to catch my breath, I didn’t care about appearances anymore, or the house workers who looked startled to see me storming through the passageway like a madwoman.“Open the damn window,” I barked at the guards when I reached the dungeon corridor.They hesitated.“Now.”The window was the only channel between the prisoners and the outside world. It was thick-barred and stone-framed, just wide enough to see a face if someone came close. Nobody ever opened the dungeon door. Nobody was allowed to.The moment the iron-barred shutter creaked open, there she was.Lady Isabella.Face pale. Eyes sunken. Lips cracked. Hair a matted mess.Still smirking.And just behind her, leaning lazily against the far wall like he will die the next second, was Alonzo. His shirt was torn, his face bruised, and yet he had

Eva's POV.I spent the whole day waiting.Nicklaus didn’t say much when he left this morning, just mouthed something about having “important things to attend to” and walked out.No smile, no hug.I deserved it very much. After everything that had happened, the lies, the rumors, and me keeping it all bottled up, I understood the distance. I hated it, but I understood. He was angry. Maybe even disappointed. And honestly, I’d be lying if I said it didn’t feel like hell.I kept pacing the room like some restless ghost, replaying every word of our last conversation, over and over. I should have told him earlier. I should have trusted him more. Now, everything felt tense, awkward even.Just when I was about to curl up on the bed again and cry for the tenth time today, a knock came on the door.“Come in,” I said, wiping my eyes quickly.It was one of the maids. “My Lady… his highness asked me to call you, dinner is served.”Wait, what?My head snapped up. “Dinner?”She nodded. “He asked me

Eva's POV.I don’t know what woke me up first, the soft rays of sunlight sneaking through the curtains, the birds chirping outside… or the strong arm wrapped tightly around my waist, anchoring me in place like I belonged there.A smile tugged at my lips before my eyes even fluttered open.I didn’t need to check where I was. The warmth behind me, the steady rise and fall of his chest against my back, the soft sound of his breathing, it said it all.Nicklaus.Memories from last night came crashing down on me like a tidal wave.His lips. His touch. His voice in my ear. The way he kissed me like it was the first time we were kissing, the way he took his time, teasing, devouring, worshiping every part of me like he’d memorized the map of my body in his head. My entire skin warmed as I remembered it all, the way the guards literally fled, the sound of plates crashing on the floor, and how none of it mattered because all I cared about was him.A soft sigh escaped my lips as I turned slightly