Love You, Forever and Always

The morning after their night together, Harper Sullivan froze with a sudden, sickening realization—Ryan Delgado hadn't used protection.

Fear coiled tight in her chest, sharp and suffocating. But Ryan just smirked, his voice smooth, teasing, as if this were some kind of game.

"Our families are enemies. A baby changes that. Your father would have to accept me. Then I could marry you—properly."

Heat rushed to her cheeks. She should have pushed him away, should have demanded answers—but his touch still burned through her resistance, and she gave in to him.

Then, like a knife to the ribs, she heard his friend's voice from the next room, laced with cruel amusement. "Ryan, that's genius. Get her pregnant, then dump her. Harper would never recover from the scandal. And her family? Total disgrace."

Ryan let out a cold, satisfied laugh. "Serves her right. She stole Olivia's spot as valedictorian, broke her heart, drove her overseas. I'll make sure she pays—this is for Olivia."

Harper's body went rigid. Three years. Three years of stolen moments, swallowed secrets, letting him touch her in the dark while her family believed her loyal. And it had all been a lie.

Rage and humiliation crashed over her, so violent she nearly choked on it.

Her phone buzzed in her trembling hand. Fighting back tears, she answered.

"Dad… I'll take the engagement."

"You didn't use one this time?"

Harper Sullivan sipped the warm milk in silence, her eyes falling to the floor where only one wrapper lay discarded. But tonight, Ryan Delgado had taken her three times.

Her face went pale.

"How… how could you forget? What if I end up pregnant?"

But Ryan didn't look the least bit worried. In fact, he smiled, reaching beneath the thin, sheer fabric that barely covered her.

"I did it on purpose," he whispered, biting softly at her earlobe, teasing. "If you get pregnant, I'll marry you. We'll have a grand wedding. I'll give you and our child a proper name. Even your dad will have to accept me. How about that?"

Harper's face flushed scarlet. She quickly covered his mouth before he could say anything more outrageous.

Ryan loved her most in this state—flustered, embarrassed, and just a little angry.

"Why are you always like this…"

He buried his face in the soft curve of her neck, inhaling deeply. His voice turned hoarse. "Let's stop using anything, alright? If you get pregnant, I'll finally have a reason to ask your father for your hand."

Something stirred in Harper's heart.

The Sullivan and Delgado families had been locked in a ruthless business rivalry for years. Yet she, always obedient and proper, had been secretly dating Ryan for three years behind her parents' backs.

Maybe… if she had a child, her parents' hearts might finally soften.

Sleepiness crept in like a tide. She drifted off, barely conscious.

But it didn't last. A sharp, twisting pain in her stomach jolted her awake. She stumbled to the bathroom and vomited up all the