All Chapters of The Bet That Ruined Us : Chapter 121 - Chapter 130

[LOS ANGELES SUPERIOR COURT, THURSDAY MORNING] The courthouse steps were swarming with people. Reporters with cameras and microphones. Protesters with signs. Curious onlookers hoping to catch a glimpse of the infamous Melissa Hale. The security presence was massive, police officers lining the perimeter, barricades keeping the crowd back. The noise was deafening, a wall of sound that pressed in from all sides. Grayson's black SUV pulled up as close as the security would allow. He stepped out first, then reached back to help Shayla. The moment she emerged, camera flashes went off like lightning, reporters shouting questions that blurred together into meaningless noise. The flashes were blinding, strobing in her face. Grayson kept his arm around Shayla, shielding her as much as possible as his security team formed a barrier around them. Ruby was right behind them, holding Ayven's hand tightly. Ricardo brought up the rear, his hand resting protectively on Ruby's back. They pushed throu

"Do you still see him in your sleep?" Shayla leaned back in the comfortable leather chair in her therapist office and smiled. A real smile, not the forced ones she had been giving everyone for weeks. "Nope. I have been sleeping well too. No nightmares for the past week." Mrs. Copper looked at her over the rim of her reading glasses, studying Shayla's face the way she always did. She was a woman in her late fifties with kind eyes, soft heart and graying hair pulled back in a neat bun. Her office smelled like lavender and had soft instrumental music playing in the background. "That is impressive progress, Shayla," Mrs. Copper said, making a note on her pad. "You look different today. Brighter." "I feel different." Shayla shifted in her seat. "I have been eating better. Sleeping better. I even gained back some of the weight I lost." It was true. The hollowness in her cheeks had filled out. Her eyes were clear instead of bloodshot. Her skin had color again instead of that terrible gra

[EXCLUSIVE BAR - VIP SECTION] Ivan sat sprawling on one of the leather couches, a bottle of expensive whiskey in one hand and a stripper draped across his lap. He poured the amber liquid directly onto her stomach and leaned down to lick it off, laughing when she squealed. Jake had two women flanking him, one on each side, their hands wandering around every part of his body. He seemed completely unbothered by it. Grayson sat across from them, nursing a single glass of whiskey that he had barely touched, his phone in his other hand. He was smiling at the screen, his thumbs moving as he typed out a response. "So you are really serious, huh?" Ivan said, looking up from the stripper's body. "You are actually getting married? You are no longer single?" "I was never single, idiot," Grayson said without looking up from his phone. Another video notification came through. Shayla had been spamming him all night with clips from her own bachelorette party. Ruby had rented out some upscale lou

Grayson's security team burst through the doors behind Monica, their hands already reaching for their weapons before they realized the threat was not physical. Not in the traditional sense anyway. They flanked the entrance, confused, waiting for orders that were not coming because Grayson was frozen at the altar. Their eyes darted around the room, looking for the danger their training had prepared them for, but finding nothing they could fight with their hands or their guns. Shayla felt the air leave her lungs. Felt her knees go weak. Felt her heart, which had been so full just seconds ago, shatter into a thousand pieces. The bouquet slipped from her fingers and fell to the floor with a soft thud, the white roses scattering across the marble. The sound of it was distant, muffled, like she was hearing it from underwater. No. No, no, no, no, no. This could not be happening. Not now. Not today. Not when she was this close to finally being happy. Not when she had finally let herself be

The words blurred. Grayson read them again. And again. This could not be right. There had to be a mistake. His eyes traced over the numbers, the percentages, the scientific jargon that spelled out his doom. "What does this mean?" Grayson asked the doctor, even though he knew exactly what it meant. "You are reading this wrong. Run it again." "Mr. Cross, the results are conclusive. She is your biological daughter." "I do not believe you. Run it again." The doctor looked uncomfortable. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "Sir, I have already run this test twice to be thorough. The results are identical." "Fucking run it three more times!" Grayson yelled, his voice echoing through the hallway. The sound bounced off the walls, harsh and desperate. Ayven flinched. Tears started running down his cheeks again. Ruby pulled him closer, covering his ears with her hands, her face pale with shock. "You think I would play sick games with you, Gray?" Monica said from her seat by