Kaida


    The next morning, I sat in the formal dining room, hands folded in myp, staring at the massive oak table where we used to share meals. It felt wrong to be sitting here waiting for awyer to finalize the end of my marriage, the end of everything I thought my life would be. I had barely slept the night before, my mind reying the moment I signed those divorce papers over and over again.


    I nced at the clock on the wall. Kaelen waste, of course. Typical. He never had to deal with the fallout of his actions... no, that responsibility was always mine. Even now, I was the one sitting here, waiting for the axe to fall, while he took his sweet time.


    Thewyer, Mr. Price, a middle-aged man with thinning hair and a thick briefcase, sat across from me, flipping through documents without much regard for the emotional weight of the situation. His presence was cold, clinical, like everything in my life had be in the past twenty-four hours.


    "We''ll get started as soon as Kaelen arrives," he said, not looking up. His tone was detached, business-like, as though this was just another transaction to him.


    I nodded stiffly, feeling the tension build in my shoulders. My thoughts drifted, unbidden, to the night before. I will have to walk out of our home - no, his home now - without telling him about the pregnancy. I couldn''t bring myself to after what he''d said. And now, sitting here, that secret felt like a burning coal lodged in my throat. He didn''t deserve to know. Not after what he''d done. But still... He was the father.


    My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the front door opening. A momentter, Kaelen walked in, followed closely by a woman I had never met before but recognized immediately. Her. The so-called fated mate.


    ra Snow.


    She was beautiful, of course. Tall, willowy, with silver-blonde hair cascading down her back in soft waves. Her eyes were pale blue, almost icy, and her lips curved into a smile that didn''t reach them. As they entered, she clung to Kaelen''s arm as if she were staking her im on him, her touch possessive.


    "Kaida," Kaelen said, his voice void of emotion. "This is ra Snow."


    I stood, forcing a smile I didn''t feel. "Nice to meet you," I said, my voice steady despite the storm of emotions raging inside me.


    ra''s smile widened, a mockery of politeness. "Kaelen''s told me so much about you. It''s wonderful to finally meet you in person." Her tone was sugary sweet, but I could feel the venom lurking beneath.


    I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. "Likewise."


    "Shall we begin?" Mr. Price interrupted, clearly eager to move things along.


    Kaelen and ra took their seats across from me, their hands intertwined. The sight made my stomach churn. I clenched my fists under the table, willing myself to remainposed. This was just another hurdle. I could get through this.


    Mr. Price cleared his throat and opened the file in front of him. "As we discussed, Kaida, this meeting is to finalize the divorce agreement and announce the settlement."


    I nodded numbly, my eyes flicking briefly to Kaelen, who was staring at the table as if this was all just another pack duty he had to get through. The man I had loved... and still love, the man I had married, was a stranger now. How did ite to this?


    "The divorce settlement is as follows," Mr. Price continued, adjusting his sses. "Kaida Ashwood will inherit seven million dors from the Darkridge estate as part of the divorce settlement. Additionally, the divorce can be revoked under one condition - if Kaida is found to be pregnant with Kaelen''s child or children."


    The words hung in the air, thick and suffocating. My breath caught in my throat. Revoked? If I''m pregnant? The universe had a twisted sense of humor.


    ra''s eyes gleamed with something malicious, her lips curling into a smug smile. "Well, we don''t have to worry about that, do we?" she said, her voice dripping with false innocence. "Kaida can''t even have children."


    The words hit me like a p to the face. My heart thudded painfully in my chest, and I felt a surge of anger boiling up inside me. She had no right to say that... she absolutely had no right to make assumptions about my life, my body, my pain.


    I opened my mouth to respond, my voice shaking. "That''s none of your business, ra."


    Kaelen immediately tensed beside her, his eyes narrowing as he turned to me. "Don''t start, Kaida," he warned. "ra didn''t mean anything by it."


    I stared at him in disbelief. He was defending her? After everything she had just said?


    "I think we both know what she meant," I snapped, my anger bubbling over. "She doesn''t get to sit there and make judgments about my ability to have children."


    ra gave me an innocent look, but there was a glint of satisfaction in her eyes. "I was only pointing out the facts. There''s no need to get upset, Kaida. It''s just the truth."


    I bit my tongue, trying to rein in the anger coursing through me. If I let it out, it would only make things worse, and that was exactly what ra wanted. She was testing me, pushing me to break.


    "Let''s stay civil, please," Mr. Price interjected, clearly ufortable with the tension in the room.


    I took a deep breath, forcing myself to stayposed. It didn''t matter what ra


    said. I knew the truth, and soon, they would know too. Or maybe never.


    The rest of the meeting passed in a


    blur. I barely heard Mr. Price as he went over the final details of the divorce, my mind was too upied with the burden of what had just happened. Seven million dors. A divorce that could be revoked if I had children. And ra''s smug, hateful words ringing in my ears.


    When the paperwork was finally signed, I stood, barely managing a goodbye before heading toward the stairs. My vision blurred as I walked, my body moving on autopilot. needed to get to my room, tobe alone. It seemed like everything was pressing down on me, suffocating me. ra''s words echoed in my mind, over and over.


    Kaida can''t even have children.


    But I could. I was. The secret I had held close to my heart since the doctor''s appointment yesterday felt like it was burning a hole inside me. They didn''t know. And maybe part of me didn''t want them to know. Not yet.


    I reached the top of the stairs, my hand gripping the railing for support as a wave of dizziness washed over me. My vision swam, ck spots dancing in front of my eyes. I tried to take a step forward, but my legs buckled beneath me, and thest thing I remembered was the sensation of falling - falling into darkness.


    When I opened my eyes, the first thing I noticed was the sterile smell of antiseptic.


    I was in a hospital bed, the soft beeping of machines filling the quiet room.


    Confusion washed over me, and I tried to sit up, but a hand gently pushed me


    back down.


    "Easy, Kaida."


    I blinked, my vision focusing on the familiar face of Dr. Cooper. He smiled down at me, a clipboard in hand.


    "What... what happened?" I asked, my voice weak.


    "You fainted," he said calmly. "Stress, most likely. But don''t worry, you''re both perfectly fine."


    "Both?" I echoed, frowning in confusion.


    He chuckled softly. "Yes, Kaida. Both. You''re carrying twins."


    Twins. The word sent a shock through me. Twins. Not just one life inside me, but


    two. I stared at him, the shock of the revtion settling over me like a tidal wave. Two children. My children.


    "Congrattions again," Dr. Cooper said, his voice kind. "You''re going to be a mother of twins."