Chapter 118

Kayla

If I thought the media frenzy was bad before, then it was relentless now.

Ever since Nicholas had declared the night Anna’s baby had been born that our wedding wouldn’t be delayed, the press had been in complete and utter chaos, dissecting every word, every gesture, every moment of our lives.

When it started, we all avoided the news like the plague. Even Jade and Emma refused to turn on the television, and leaving the house was practically unheard of. It was easier to just hide away, as we had learned from our first media frenzy. Hide away until the storm passed.

But then, to make matters worse, eyewitness statements had surfaced about Noah and me hugging at the hospital the night Anna’s baby was born.

The headlines were brutal: “Luna Kayla’s Secret Affair with her Fated Mate?” “Alpha Nicholas’s Fiancee Caught in Compromising Position.” “Is the Wedding Finally Off?”

It was exhausting, and we knew we couldn’t run anymore. It needed to be handled before it got worse.

But to my surprise—and probably everyone else’s—Nicholas and I had become a good team when it came to handling the media. We stood side by side at a press conference the following morning, our smiles unwavering as we answered questions with practiced ease.

“No, the wedding is not off,” Nicholas said firmly, his strong arm wrapped tightly around my shoulders. “Kayla is my mate, and nothing will change that.”

I nodded and added, “Noah is a dear friend, and he was simply comforting me during an emotional time. There’s nothing more to it.”

“So you admit it?” a reporter suddenly called out. “The birth of Nicholas’s child was emotional for you?”

Nicholas tensed ever so slightly, barely noticeable aside from the faint flex of his muscles against my skin, but I replied with ease, “A birth is an emotional time for anyone. And considering the circumstances of this birth, of course I was emotional.”

“But,” I went on, “I have nothing but the utmost respect and support for Anna. I truly wish her the best in motherhood, whether the baby is Nicholas’s or not.”

“And we both intend to be there for her,” Nicholas added.

The reporters ate it up, their cameras flashing as they scribbled down every word. But just as we thought we had the situation under control, the initial paternity test results came out.

Nicholas was the father.

The news hit the world like a bombshell, and sent the media into even more chaos. Anna, ever the saintly figure, made a single public statement with the child in her arms: “I hope the father of my child will do the right thing.”

Her words were obviously carefully chosen, designed to paint her as the victim and Nicholas and me as the villains if we didn’t support her. The press lapped it up, their headlines becoming even more sensational.

“Alpha Nicholas’s Love Child?” “Luna Kayla’s Heartbreak.” “Will the Wedding Go On?”

Of course, we were pretty certain that the baby wasn’t Nicholas’s. Marcus’s friend, the nurse who had selflessly taken the sample to test in secret, was still working on the results. But Nicholas insisted, behind closed doors, that the baby wasn’t his.

I wanted to believe him, truly. I wanted more than anything to put this all behind us, to expose Gray’s involvement in the situation once and for all. I wanted to believe our hunch that Anna was being paid or manipulated by Gray into doing this.

But we still couldn’t be sure. And for that very reason, I kept my distance.

Deep down, I couldn’t stop picturing that night in my haven, when Nicholas had clamped that star charm onto my wrist and brushed his lips against mine. I wanted him to finish what had been started, but we couldn’t.

Because if the baby was his after all, I would still stand by my decision. I wouldn’t get involved. Not romantically, at least.

Not that it was an easy feat to put physical space between us. Honestly, it was nothing short of maddening, but I didn’t have time to dwell on it. We had a baby shower to plan.

The idea had been mine, a way to combat the negative press and show that we were handling the situation with grace and dignity. Nicholas had been surprised by the suggestion, but he agreed that it was a good idea.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” he asked one evening as we sat in his study, going over the guest list. “You don’t have to do this, Kayla. I know how hard it was on you having Anna move in before, and I don’t want to put you through anything like that again.”

His concern warmed my heart, and I felt my cheeks flush. But I waved my hand. “I’ll be fine,” I assured him. “This is the right thing to do, not just for the media, but for Anna. She’s still a single mother, and I want to show my support.”

Nicholas glanced up at me. “Why?”

I shrugged. “Just trust me on this.”

“If you say so, firecracker.”

I grinned impishly and excused myself to bed.

Jade and Emma, for their part, made no attempts to hide their discomfort with the whole situation. “This just seems so unnecessary, Kayla,” Jade said as we picked out decorations for the party: pastel-colored streamers and balloons. “Anna’s probably being paid by Gray to pretend the baby is Nicholas’s.”

Emma nodded in agreement. “Even if he were the father,” she said, earning a withering glare from Jade, “you still don’t need to do this. Are you sure it won’t just hurt you even more?”

I pursed my lips but shrugged. “Maybe she is being paid. But what if she’s just accepting Gray’s deal out of desperation? What if she’s just trying to survive? She’s still a single mother with a newborn to care for.”

Jade and Emma exchanged skeptical glances, but they didn’t argue. They had learned not to lately. I’d learned not to argue with myself, too, if I was being honest. Of course I knew that this might hurt, especially if the second DNA test came back with the same results as the first.

But I knew that my mother would have wanted me to be kind. And I knew Ava wanted the same, or so she’d said when I had talked to her on the phone last night. She’d praised me, saying that I was doing the right thing, that the Moon Goddess would return the favor to me tenfold.

Whatever that meant.

“You’re too nice, Kayla,” Jade finally said, shaking her head. “But I guess that’s why we love you.”

I smiled, but I didn’t want their praise. I wasn’t doing this for recognition or to prove some kind of point. I was doing it because it was the right thing to do. And maybe for a little good luck from the Goddess for once.

The day of the party finally arrived on a Saturday afternoon, and I was in my room, putting the finishing touches on my makeup, when someone knocked on the door. I called out, but no one came in. With a sigh, I flung the door open, and my foot nudged something sitting on the floor: a gift box. A rather large one, at that.

Curious, I picked it up and opened the note attached to it: “Wear this tonight. x Nicholas.”

My heart skipped a beat as I opened the box, and my breath caught as I saw what was inside.

It was a dress.

A beautiful, elegant dress in a soft shade of lavender, with delicate lace detailing and a flowing skirt.

It was… perfect. And utterly unnecessary.