Elara's POV
I threw up so hard that my whole body shook.
This was the fifth morning in a row. My stomach felt like it was trying to turn itself inside out. I gripped the edge of the sink and tried to breathe.
"This can't be happening," I whispered to myself.
But deep down, I knew it was. All the signs were there. The morning sickness. The way my body felt different. The strange desire for foods I usually hated.
I was going to have a baby. Kaelen's baby.
My hands moved to my stomach. It was still flat, but I could feel something different inside. Something growing. Something that was half me and half the man I loved.
A knock on the door made me jump.
"Miss Elara?" It was one of the maids. "The Alpha requests your presence in the main hall."
My heart stopped. Kaelen wanted to see me? But yesterday he said goodbye. Yesterday he said everything was over.
Maybe he changed his mind. Maybe he couldn't stay away from me after all.
"Tell him I'll be right there," I called out.
I quickly washed my face and tried to make myself look decent. My image in the mirror showed a girl with messy hair and dark circles under her eyes. But my eyes were bright with hope.
This was it. This was my chance to tell him about the baby. Once he knew, everything would change. He would understand that we were meant to be together. That we were going to be a family.
I practically ran down the stairs to the main hall. My heart was beating so fast I thought it might burst.
But when I got there, I stopped dead in my tracks.
The hall was decked with white flowers and silver ribbons. Chairs were set in perfect rows. At the front, there was an altar covered in roses.
It was set up for a wedding.
For his wedding.
To someone else.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" a voice said behind me.
I turned around to see Cerys Stormveil standing there. She was tall and beautiful, with perfect blonde hair and cold blue eyes. She was wearing a gorgeous silver dress that probably cost more than I had seen in my entire life.
"You must be Elara," she said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I've heard so much about you."
I couldn't speak. I just stared at her.
"Cat got your tongue?" Cerys laughed. "Don't worry, dear. I'm not angry about your little... fling with my future husband."
"Fling?" The word came out as a whisper.
"Oh yes. Kaelen told me all about it. How you threw yourself at him during the opening. How you wouldn't leave him alone. Men have wants, you understand. Sometimes they make mistakes."
Each word hit me like a slap. "That's not what happened."
"Isn't it?" Cerys stepped closer to me. "Tell me, did he ever take you anywhere public? Did he ever introduce you to his friends? Did he ever tell you he loved you?"
I opened my mouth to say yes, but no words came out. Because the truth was, he hadn't done any of those things.
"I thought so," Cerys said smugly. "You were just a temporary distraction. A way for him to get his wild side out before settling down with someone proper."
"You're lying," I said, but my voice sounded weak even to me.
"Am I? Then why don't you ask him yourself?"
She pointed behind me. I turned around to see Kaelen walking into the hall. He was wearing a fancy black suit and his hair was properly styled. He looked like a prince from a fairy tale.
But when he saw me, his face went pale.
"Elara," he said softly. "What are you doing here?"
"I... I wanted to see you," I stammered. "I have something important to tell you."
Cerys wrapped her arm around Kaelen's. "Darling, I was just saying to your little friend here that today is our wedding day. Surely she can wait to tell you whatever it is until after our honeymoon?"
Kaelen's jaw stiffened. "Elara, you shouldn't be here."
"But I need to talk to you," I said desperately. "It's about us. About what we had."
"What we had is over," he said, not meeting my eyes. "Today I'm marrying Cerys. That's all that matters now."
"Please," I begged. "Just give me five minutes. What I have to tell you will change everything."
For a moment, I thought he was going to say yes. His golden eyes softened and he took a step toward me.
But then Cerys spoke up.
"Kaelen, the people are starting to arrive. We need to get ready."
He stopped and stepped back. "You're right. Elara, I'm sorry, but I can't talk right now. Maybe after the ceremony—"
"After the ceremony you'll be married!" I interrupted. "You'll be someone else's husband!"
"Yes," he said firmly. "I will be."
Tears started pouring down my face. "So that's it? You're just going to throw away everything we had?"
"What we had was a mistake," he said, and his words cut through me like a knife. "I should never have let it go on for so long."
"A mistake?" I could barely breathe. "Is that really what you think?"
"I think," he said slowly, "that you need to move on. Find someone else. Someone who can give you what you want."
"What if I don't want someone else?" I whispered.
"Then you'll have to learn to want them," he said coldly. "Because I'm not available anymore."
Cerys smiled proudly. "Come on, darling. We have a wedding to prepare for."
They started to walk away, leaving me standing alone in the decorated hall.
"Kaelen, wait!" I called out.
He stopped but didn't turn around.
"I'm pregnant," I said loudly. "I'm carrying your baby."
The quiet that followed was so complete I could hear my own heartbeat.
Slowly, Kaelen turned around. His face was white as a sheet.
"What did you say?"
"I'm going to have your baby," I repeated, my voice shaking. "Our baby."
Cerys gasped and stepped back from Kaelen like he had suddenly caught fire.
Kaelen stared at me for a long moment. Then he did something I never expected.
He laughed.
It was a sour, cold laugh that made my skin crawl.
"Convenient timing," he said. "The day of my wedding, you suddenly discover you're pregnant."
"It's not convenient!" I cried. "It's the truth!"
"Even if it is true," he said, his voice like ice, "it doesn't change anything. I'm still married Cerys. And you're still going to have to figure out your life without me."
I felt like he had just hit me in the stomach. "But it's your child!"
"Prove it," he said with a wicked smile.
Before I could reply, he grabbed Cerys's hand and pulled her toward the door.
"Congratulations, Elara," he called over his shoulder. "I hope you find someone willing to raise another man's bastard."
The door slammed shut behind them.
I stood alone in the wedding hall, surrounded by flowers and ribbons, with his baby growing inside me and his words ringing in my ears.
Another man's kid.
That's what he called our child. Our miracle.
I put my hands on my stomach and made a promise to the tiny life inside me.
"I don't need him," I whispered. "We don't need him. We'll be just fine on our own."
But as I said the words, I heard noises coming from outside the hall.
Wedding guests were arriving.
And I was about to watch the man I loved marry someone else.