Chapter 15

(Julia’s POV)

I took a deep breath, trying to get a handle on my wildly beating heart. I needed to stay calm if I was going to convince Ronan this was no big deal. “It’s like the doctor said. It’s a trait the baby inherited from Kevin,” I smiled. “He’s allergic to almonds, too. This is nothing to worry about.”

Ronan’s look of concern evaporated as soon as I said Kevin’s name, and his eyes got colder with every word I spoke. “Really, Ronan, you shouldn’t make a big deal about this. It’s just something the pup got from Kevin, so—”

“This is ridiculous.” Ronan cut me off. “You’re pregnant, and it’s like you don’t even care. You’re not taking care of yourself.” He ran a hand through his hair distractedly, then let out a deep breath. “You’re moving in with me.” I raised my eyebrows. “What? Ronan, I can’t ju—”

“You’re moving in with me.” His voice had taken on a steely edge that told me he wasn’t going to accept my refusal. “And I’m hiring a nutritionist for you and the baby so we can avoid unfortunate situations like this in the future.”

I clenched my hands into fists, working to keep my frustration in check. “Ronan, I understand your concerns, but you can’t make me move in with you. It’s not part of our contract. Please, just drop this.”

Instead, Ronan’s eyes just got impossible darker. “Fine. Fine! We’ll make it part of the agreement. I’ll even let you add a clause to the contract. Whatever you want, no questions asked.”

I hesitated. On the one hand, I could get Ronan to agree to a clause that would mean he could never try to take custody of our baby. But on the other hand, wouldn’t insisting on such a condition just make him suspicious of the pup’s true father?

“No.” I shook my head gently. “No, Ronan, I won’t do it.” He looked away from me, his face creased into a worried frown. “I understand,” he finally said. “But I don’t accept it. Think about it a little more before you give me your final answer.”

He stood up quickly. “I’m going.” I blinked up at him. “Oh, o-okay. I guess I can just call a cab, and—” Ronan waved me off. “The car will take you home. I’ll see you at the office.” And with that, he was gone.

After accepting some medicine for the rash from the doctor and getting back to the car, I was glad to arrive at home. I had just changed out of my dress and into some pajamas when the door burst open.

“Oh, good, you’re awake!” Sandy marched towards me, the straps of her party dress slightly askew. “You know, sis, I was wondering what exactly you fill your time with when you’re not at the office. Like, tonight, for example,” she said casually. “Where were you tonight?”

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Sandy was so transparent. She clearly wanted some kind of information, but why would my location tonight mean anything to her? But then I remembered — Sandy had said she was attending a special Alpha event. Could she have been at the party Ronan and I just left? Did she see me?

“Nothing too exciting,” I said, sitting down on the end of my bed. “I wasn’t feeling well earlier, so I actually ended up going to the hospital for a quick check-up.” Most sisters would have asked if I was feeling better now, but not Sandy.

Her shoulders dropped, like she was relieved to hear it. “Of course. I forgot you were a total wimp who overthinks every last cough because you don’t have enough excitement in your own life.”

“I knew it couldn’t have been you,” Sandy added quietly, almost like she hadn’t meant to say it out loud. “Just because your backs looked the same…I was being completely ridiculous to even think such a thing.”

“Well, if that’s all…” I pushed myself off the bed and headed towards the bathroom. Before I could make it, Sandy’s hand locked around my arm. She was staring at my neck and I followed her gaze to see what she was looking at.

I tried not to groan. I had forgotten to take off the necklace Ronan had picked out at the boutique earlier, a simple gold chain with a large ruby charm hanging off of it. It was obviously expensive, which meant I really couldn’t talk my way out of this one.

I looked back up at Sandy, who’s eyes were a mix of angry suspicion — and some serious jealousy. “God, you’re pathetic,” she sneered, dropping my arm and pushing me away. “I know Kevin dumping you for me was hard, but you’ve really let yourself go.”

“First, you hook up with some guy with an expensive car who was definitely just using you as some sort of plaything,” Sandy said. “Then, you sell your body for an ugly necklace, just so you can feel desirable. You’re disgusting!”

“Why don’t you just shut your mouth?” My voice got louder, but I didn’t care. “You don’t know what you’re talking about! You don’t know anything about me, so why don’t you—” I was interrupted by the sound of the bedroom door opening.

“Julia, what are you making all that noise about at this hour?” Our mother stood in front of us, looking upset. Our dad was close behind her. “Why are you yelling?” I pointed at Sandy. “She’s been saying absolutely terrible things about me, all because she’s je—”

“Julia is sleeping with some rich loser for perks,” Sandy cut me off. “Look at her necklace if you don’t believe me.” Our parents glanced at the chain around my neck, then back at me, disappointment in their eyes.

“Oh, Julia,” Dad said. “How could you?” I was furious now, but tried to stay calm. “Dad, look, she’s lying, okay? I didn’t—”

“We knew the break-up with Kevin was hitting you hard, but now…” Mom shook her head. “Julia, were you cheating on him with this other man? Is that why you stopped spending time with him? Is that why he broke up with you?”

I felt a stab of hurt in my heart. “How could you even think that, Mom? Sandy is the one who took advantage of the fact that I was busy with work to seduce my mate. She stole him from me, and she’s never even said sorry!”

With that, Sandy burst into tears. “Don’t you see?” she wailed. “She’s always been jealous of me, and now she’s making up lies to try and make you all think poorly of me!” My parents rushed to her side, comforting her.

“Julia, why are you doing this?” Mom asked. “I know you and your sister have had your issues, but this is taking it to a new level.” Dad added, “You need to change. You need to show your sister some basic respect, or — or you can’t stay here.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but hesitated. I had been so sure that staying at home was the right move when Ronan ordered me to move in, but now? Now, a change of scenery seemed like just the thing.

“Fine,” I said. “That’s just fine.” I grabbed my phone from my nightstand and texted Ronan. I will move in with you. Please send a car to come pick me up right away. I paused, then added, Thank you.

(Third-person POV)

Julia’s family were gathered outside of her closed bedroom door. Her mother still had an arm wrapped around Sandy’s shoulders. “She’s just being a drama queen,” her father said. “She’s stubborn, you know that. As soon as she realizes she has nowhere to go, she’ll come crawling back.”

A few moments later, the bedroom door swung open to reveal Julia, holding two duffel bags. “Goodbye,” she said simply, then went downstairs. The rest of the family followed her as she walked out the door.

They were about to point out to Julia, in her flustered state, that it was impossible to find an Uber driver at this hour, calling out her earlier tantrum.

To their surprise, a shiny black car was idling at the curb. As Julia neared it, a man in a suit got out of the drivers’ seat, took her bags, loaded them into the car, then opened the door for Julia, who climbed in like it was second nature.

“Where do you think she’s going?” Her mother asked quietly. Sandy gritted her teeth and snarled, "It’s definitely Julia begging her sugar daddy in tears. Just wait, she’s about to be tossed aside any minute now."