Adina’s POV

The doctor’s lips kept moving, but the words didn’t reach me.

My ears rang. My vision blurred at the edges like I’d sunk underwater. The room tilted, the clean white walls pressing in. Only one word reached me, loud and endless, echoing like a curse inside my skull.

Pregnant.

My fingers clawed into the sheet, knuckles white. I wanted to scream, but my throat locked. My lungs wouldn’t work. One word, and my world splintered.

How was this possible? Jackson and I had been trying for months. For months, I had prayed, begged, cried into my pillow while he accused me of being broken. For months I had endured the humiliation of blood-stained sheets, each one proof of failure.

And now—after one reckless, drunken night—Nathan had given me what Jackson never could.

My stomach twisted violently. Images collided in my mind: Jackson’s rage, his betrayal, the fists he clenched when angry, the cruelty in his words when he wanted to wound me. If he ever discovered this truth, it would not only be me who suffered. He would turn on the innocent life already stirring inside me.

My hand slid to my belly. Small. Still flat. Yet it pulsed beneath my palm as though it already carried weight.

Nathan’s child.

Shame clawed up my throat, but a strange feeling coiled with it—protectiveness. My body already wanted to shield this baby, even from its own father’s uncle.

The door creaked. I nearly jumped out of the bed.

Jackson entered, smiling wide, shoulders thrown back like a conquering hero. His scent flooded the room, sharp and suffocating. His arms wrapped me before I could breathe.

“We did it,” he said proudly, pulling back to look at me. His eyes shone with triumph, not tenderness.

“Yes,” I whispered, my lips shaping a smile I didn’t feel. “We did.”

Inside, I whispered the truth: I’m glad it isn’t yours.

He sat at the edge of the bed, taking my hand in his. His thumb rubbed circles into my palm, a gesture that once felt gentle but now burned like a brand.

“This is what I’ve been waiting for,” he said. “My heir. My proof. Do you know what this means for us, Adina?”

His words spilled like a speech, rehearsed and polished. “The elders won’t dare question me now. The title of Alpha will pass to me without dispute. And you…” He paused, smiling as if bestowing honor. “You’ll finally be respected. No one will dare mock you again. You’ve given me what I deserve.”

Every word landed like a chain. He spoke of respect, but not for me…for what my body could deliver to him.

I kept my face still, though my stomach churned. This child is not yours. You don’t deserve it.

“We should announce it,” he went on. “A celebration. Tonight.”

My heart stopped. Tonight? The thought of standing before the pack, lying to them all while the mark on my neck pulsed with truth—it almost made me choke.

I shook my head. “It’s still too early. Let’s wait until after the first scan. Just to be sure everything is fine.” My voice was soft, careful, measured.

His smile dimmed slightly, suspicion flickering in his eyes. “You think something might be wrong?”

“No,” I said quickly, lowering my gaze. “I just… want to be cautious. I’ve waited too long for this. I don’t want to risk anything.”

He became quite. He studied me, his grip tightening on my hand. My heartbeat pounded so hard I was sure he could hear it. I forced myself to breathe evenly, my other hand hidden in the folds of the blanket so he wouldn’t see it tremble.

Finally, he nodded. “Very well. Seven days, then. After the scan.”

Relief trickled through me, thin and temporary. I had bought time. Nothing more.

“I can’t wait for our child,” he whispered, kissing my temple.

The words pierced me. My stomach twisted in on itself. This isn’t your child. It’s Nathan’s.

He stayed with me for nearly an hour, talking of futures I could barely stomach. Names for the baby. How the pack would celebrate. The nursery he would build. He painted it like a picture-perfect story, his voice filled with pride, while inside me every word turned to ash.

At last he left, humming as he went. The room sagged into silence. I buried my face in my hands and sobbed soundlessly, afraid even the walls might betray me.

That night, I lay stiff in his arms. He slept easily, mouth slack, breaths even. My eyes stayed wide open.

Every time I blinked, I saw Nathan. His mouth. His hands. The way my body had answered him without permission. The mark on my neck throbbed beneath the scarf, each pulse reminding me of the truth.

I pressed my palm to my stomach. Heat spread beneath it. My chest ached with guilt, fear, and a shameful feeling I didn’t dare name.

A part of me—lustful, traitorous—wished it was Nathan’s arm around me. I shoved the thought away and curled tighter against the edge of the mattress.

But I knew this much: I couldn’t hide forever. He would have to know. Sooner or later, Nathan had to know about this child.

The thought terrified me. Would he reject me? Claim me? Fight Jackson for me? My wolf whispered that he already knew, that he had felt it the moment the mark began to glow.

Sleep never came. My mind spiraled until exhaustion dragged me under.

Morning light spilled through the window too soon. My head ached from sleeplessness. Jackson stirred beside me, stretching, his smile already fixed in place.

“Good morning,” he said warmly.

“Good morning,” I answered, voice soft, steady. I had practiced my mask overnight. I would not slip.

He reached over and rested a hand on my stomach. The weight of it burned. My body flinched inside, though I forced myself still.

“Our little Alpha,” he said proudly. “A daughter, I can feel it.”

“How do you know?” I asked, feigning amusement, though my throat was dry.

“Because I know,” he said with a laugh.

I smiled faintly. “Then we’ll see, won’t we?”

His gaze lingered, searching, calculating. “I love you, Adina. More than anything. The Moon Goddess blessed me when she gave me you.”

The hypocrisy nearly made me choke. He hadn’t loved me when he was with Gina. He hadn’t loved me when he spat that I was barren. His words were weapons, dressed as vows.

“I love you too,” I said, my jaw tight around the lie.

He kissed my forehead, satisfied. I closed my eyes, not to savor it, but to hide the resentment burning beneath my skin.

“We’ll start the nursery soon,” he said, already planning. “Once I’m Alpha, nothing will harm our child.”

And then…

My wolf stirred. My breath caught.

A scent slipped through the open window, faint but unmistakable. Smoke and pin.

Nathan.

My body stilled, my pulse crashing like thunder. The bond mark flared hot, a brand beneath the scarf. My wolf surged, clawing to answer him.

Jackson kept talking, oblivious.

I forced my face into a smile, but my eyes flicked toward the window. He was near. Watching.

And if I wasn’t careful, the truth would tear everything apart.