Chapter 4

Over the phone, Mom broke down completely.

"Your dad and I were upset when we saw your friend stepping out of the bridal car, but we held our tongues."

"Then Sierra walked right up to your father and announced she was pregnant!"

"Your dad was about to congratulate her when she dropped the bomb—she said it was Logan's baby, and told your dad to treat it as his own grandkid!"

I frantically asked what happened next.

The line went dead.

I burst through the venue doors, and every pair of eyes in the room instantly locked onto me.

The air was thick with tension, but I didn't care.

Just as I started scanning the crowd for my parents, an aggressive shadow lunged at me.

Tyler grabbed my wrist in a vice grip, twisting it so hard I winced in pain.

"You actually have the nerve to show up?"

I couldn't believe my ears.

This was my wedding. Why shouldn't I be here?

"Let go of me," I commanded, my voice ice-cold.

Tyler froze for a second. He was used to me being compliant and soft-spoken.

Then, pure fury flared across his face:

"Good thing you're here!"

"Your lunatic father made a scene in front of everyone, screaming that Sierra is a homewrecking whore!"

"You're going to pay for what he did. Get over there and get on your knees to apologize to Sierra!"

Dad knew everything.

He was a dignified, respectable man.

He would never humiliate anyone in public unless pushed beyond his absolute limits.

And yet, his son-in-law had publicly thrown hands with him just to defend his side piece.

Grief and rage surged inside me.

I wanted nothing more than to find my parents, but Tyler dragged me straight toward the VIP bridal lounge.

Inside, Logan was holding a weeping Sierra, gently stroking her hair with pure tenderness in his eyes.

He had never once looked at me with that much care.

The moment he noticed me, his face hardened instantly:

"We were completely upfront with you. Why did you have to run crying to your parents?"

"Why are you always so damn immature?!"

He let out an irritated sigh:

"Apologize to Sierra right now, and promise you'll get along with her."

"Otherwise, I'm calling off this wedding in front of everyone."

He was still threatening me.

Using his love as collateral.

A humorless laugh escaped my lips. I violently ripped my arm out of Tyler's grip.

"Be my guest."

My heart was already shredded beyond repair.

I didn't even have any tears left to cry for him.

All I wanted was to find my parents and get as far away from these toxic freaks as possible.

Maybe it was how decisively I turned my back on him, but a sudden flash of panic crossed Logan's face.

"I didn't say you could leave!"

He lunged forward, grabbing my arm with brute force.

The momentum sent me stumbling hard into the sharp edge of the marble table.

A blinding, agonizing pain ripped through my lower abdomen.

It felt like something vital was draining out of me.

"Blood!"

"Why is she bleeding?!"

Tyler's terrified scream pulled me back to reality.

My hands shook violently as I pulled the crumpled medical report from my coat pocket.

Four weeks pregnant.

Logan saw it too. His eyes widened in horror, and he snatched the paper from my trembling fingers.

"No... how is this possible?"

His lips quivered as he desperately tried to deny reality: "Is this fake? Did you fake this?!"

I didn't have the strength to argue anymore.

The air was sucked right out of my lungs, and my knees gave out completely.

As darkness crept over my vision, I saw two familiar figures rushing through the doors toward me.

They screamed my name in sheer agony.

I whispered back through the pain:

"Mom... Dad..."

"It hurts so much..."