Reading thements, Amara began to shake with rage. Finnian had sat down beside her, and she handed him the phone. "See for yourself." Finnian took it and began to read.


    He scanned the article quickly, his expression turning grim. "Do you know the woman who made the usation?"


    Amara shook her head. "No. She looked like one of Keith''s fans, but we both think that''s unlikely. She was probably just an actress hired by someone to ruin my reputation and stop us from getting married."


    From the sound of it, Amara and Keith hadn''t managed to get their license.


    Finnian should have been happy, but he felt no joy at all, not after seeing the hatefulments directed at Amara.


    "This was definitely a setup. Don''t worry, I''ll help you find the person behind this and make them pay," Finnian said, exiting the news app and taking her hand.


    Of course, Finnian would say that.


    Every time she was in trouble, Finnian was there by her side, promising to find those who hurt her and get revenge for her.


    And every time, he delivered on that promise.


    Even though he was with someone else, he cared so deeply about what happened to her-more than anyone else.


    Amara fell silent, that familiar bittersweet sorrow welling up inside her again.


    Finnian, thinking she didn''t believe him, tilted her chin up, forcing her to look him in the eye. “Amara, I will always protect you. Trust me. I won''t let anyone bully you."


    Amara pushed his hand away. "Finnian, why are you so good to me?"


    She didn''t call him Mr. Everly, but used his first name, asking him on equal footing why he treated her this way.


    Finnian looked into her clear eyes, his heart trembling.


    "Amara, you know the answer," he said softly.


    Amara was suddenly reminded of all the times Finnian had confessed to her, telling her over and over again that he loved her. She fell silent.


    She desperately wanted to ask him: if you love me, why did you go back to Liliana the moment you saw her try to slit her wrists? You''re not the kind of person who is easily moved by pity. But her pride wouldn''t let her ask such a question.


    Amara lowered her head, not wanting to speak to him anymore. She felt exhausted.


    She turned and went back to her room.


    Finnian watched her go. Was it his imagination, or did her retreating figure look incredibly lonely?


    He instinctively took a couple of


    steps to follow her, but then stopped, realizing she probably needed to rest. He pulled out his


    phone again, his eyes darkening as he reviewed the news before calling Will


    BUMS


    ***


    Soon, the story of Amara''s pregnancy being exposed on the day of her marriage registration was a top trending topic. Nearly everyone had heard about it.


    The news was so sensational-even more explosive than their marriage announcement—that the buzz was astonishing. For a moment, Twitter nearly


    crashed.


    Amara was in her room, also reading the news. There was one thing she found strange: all the reports were adamantly iming the baby wasn''t Keith''s. Why?


    Logically, since she was pregnant and about to marry Keith, people''s first assumption should have been that she was carrying his child andk they were getting married because of it. Why was the narrative so different?