My hands were shaking so badly I nearly dropped the pregnancy test onto the bathroom floor, because those two pink lines didn't just mean I was pregnant.

I shoved the test behind the cabinet and opened the door.

Liam stood there holding two mugs, his eyes moving straight to my face.

He knew me too well.

"Emma.

Talk to me."

"I'm fine.

Just tired."

He didn't move.

"You've been in there twenty minutes."

I took the coffee and looked away.

My hands were still shaking.

Then his voice dropped.

"Is it him?"

I froze.

"Liam—"

"Alessandro Vitali." He said the name like it tasted wrong.

"Emma, I warned you.

I told you that night was a mistake."

"You don't understand what that night was."

"Then explain it to me." His jaw tightened.

"Because I've been covering for you for six weeks.

Every time his name came up in the news.

Every time you went pale.

I let it go." He set his mug down hard.

"I'm not letting it go anymore."

I opened my mouth — and then his phone buzzed on the counter.

We both looked down at the screen.

The name on the notification stopped my heart cold.

It wasn't a stranger.

It wasn't a number I didn't recognize.

It was a name I had spent two years running from.

And somehow, they already knew where I was.

---

What Emma saw on that screen changes everything — and the real reason she was at that gala is darker than anyone expected.

"You and Adrian can rent somewhere smaller," he said.

My husband sl@pped me across the face in front of his entire family, poi...

My husband sl@pped me across the face in front of his entire family, pointed toward the front door, and shouted, "Get out of my ho...

My sister looked me directly in the eyes before kicking my six-month pre...

My sister looked me directly in the eyes before kicking my six-month pregnant belly.

Click the link below to read the full story.

⬇️

Chapter 2: The Name on the Screen