Chapter 3
Kevin stared at the toddler in my arms. The color drained from his face, leaving his skin a pale, sickly gray.
"This is a prank," Kevin said. His voice cracked. He pointed a trembling finger at Galen. "You hired an actor. You rented a kid to make me jealous."
"I don't need to hire my own husband, Kevin."
Kevin lunged forward. His fingers clamped around my free wrist. His grip burned against my skin.
"We made a vow!" Kevin shouted, ignoring the gasps from the surrounding guests. "We were sixteen, Irene! You swore we would be together forever. You promised me."
I looked down at his hand, then up at his desperate eyes.
"You broke your promise first." I yanked my arm away.
Galen shifted his stance. He placed himself firmly between Kevin and me.
"If you ever touch my wife again," Galen said, his tone dropping to a lethal quiet, "I will ruin you before breakfast."
Kevin stumbled back, hitting a cocktail table. Glasses rattled.
"Let's go," Galen told me.
I adjusted Victor on my hip. The little boy buried his face into my neck, unfazed by the tension. We walked toward the exit.
Before we reached the threshold, Lucy's shrill voice sliced through the silence.
"She planned this!" Lucy wailed, dropping to her knees on the marble floor. "She brought them here just to humiliate me! To ruin Grandfather's night!"
I paused near the doorway, glancing over my shoulder.
In the past, Jason would have rushed to Lucy's side. He would have gathered her in his arms and glared daggers at me.
Tonight, Jason just stood there. His arms hung limply at his sides. He stared at my retreating figure, his brow furrowed in deep confusion.
"She used to be so kind," Jason muttered. The ballroom was so quiet his voice carried straight to me. "When we were kids, she wouldn't even step on a spider. I keep thinking... I feel like we missed something. Something huge."
"We missed a lot," Tom replied. He leaned against a marble pillar, his eyes fixed on the floor. "She made me swear we'd see the aurora together. We mapped out the driving route on my bedroom wall. We never went."
"Stop talking about her!" Lucy screamed, her hands balling into fists. "Comfort me!"
Neither man moved.
I turned my back on them for good. The heavy mahogany doors shut behind us, cutting off Lucy's cries.
The night air felt cool against my flushed cheeks. Galen guided us to the waiting SUV. The driver opened the door, and we climbed inside.
Victor fell asleep the moment the engine purred to life. I rested my head against the leather seat.
"Are you alright?" Galen asked.
"I am."
He took my hand, lacing his fingers through mine. "You didn't even flinch back there."
"They don't have power over me anymore. I just feel tired."
"Rest. I'll handle the fallout."
We arrived at the estate. Jenkins opened the front door, his face impassive as ever. I carried Victor upstairs and tucked him into his bed. He mumbled in his sleep, clutching his stuffed bear tight.
I kissed his forehead and stepped out into the hallway.
Galen stood by the large arched window, a tablet glowing in his hands. His jaw was tight. A muscle ticked in his cheek.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"The news broke."
"We knew it would. A Thorne heir appearing at a Winston party is front-page material."
"It's not just that." Galen handed me the device.
I scanned the screen. The main headline was exactly what we expected: *Galen Thorne Secretly Married to Winston Outcast.*
But the trending articles below it painted a different picture.
*Irene Winston's Double Life.*
*The Unchaste Bride: How the Thorne Heir Got Duped.*
"Read the comments," Galen instructed, his voice clipped.
I scrolled down.
*User499: She was dating Kevin Dawson up until the day she left for Europe. How did she marry Thorne so fast?*
*GossipQueen: I heard she was hooking up with both of them. Promiscuous much?*
*InsiderTruth: The kid is probably Dawson's. Thorne is raising another man's mistake.*
I dropped the tablet onto the hallway table. The screen cracked against the wood.
"Lucy," I said.
"Or Kevin," Galen added. "They are trying to drag your name through the mud to save their own reputations. They are calling you a tramp."
"They are targeting my son." I crossed my arms, a cold fury settling in my stomach. "They can call me whatever they want. But they don't get to question Victor's parentage."
Galen pulled out his phone. "I'll call the legal team. We'll issue a statement and sue the publications."
"No."
He paused, his thumb hovering over the screen. "No?"
"A statement just makes it look like we're on the defensive." I picked up the cracked tablet. "If they want to play dirty, we let them dig their own graves first."
"What are you planning, Irene?"
I met his gaze. "Kevin thinks he can paint me as a cheater. He forgot I kept all the receipts from five years ago. Including the ones regarding his little secret with Lucy."
Galen's eyes gleamed with sudden understanding.
"I need my old laptop," I told him. "The one in the storage vault."
Galen nodded. "I'll have Jenkins retrieve it."
My phone vibrated in my pocket. An unknown number flashed on the screen.
I answered the call.
"Irene," a raspy, familiar voice wheezed through the speaker.
My blood ran cold.
"Grandfather?" I asked.
"They are lying to you," the old man gasped, coughing violently. "Jason... Tom... they don't know the truth about the DNA test."
"What are you talking about?"
"Lucy isn't��" Grandfather choked on his words. A loud thud echoed through the line, followed by the sound of shattering glass.
"Grandfather!" I yelled.
The line went dead.
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