Revenge of the Ruined Heiress

Darla pov “That’s not my baby.” His voice echoed through the room, I stared at him with wide eyes, hoping I’d misheard. “What?” The word barely escaped my lips. He didn’t even flinch. “That is not my baby,” he repeated, louder, as if to make sure everyone, his family would hear. “Do you think you can trap me with this?” Trap him? I felt the words hit like stones, twisting in my stomach. This was Roy, my fiancé, the man I’d been with since college. We’d dreamed together, talked about the beach wedding I’d always wanted, set for three months from now. We had planned a future. He was my first love, the man I’d given everything to. I remembered that night so clearly—the night I gave myself to him, the promises he’d made to me. He’d told me he wanted to make me the happiest woman alive, that all I had to do was show him how much I loved him by giving him my body. It was the best night of my life and now I am beginning to think that it was just a nightmare. “Son, what is going on?” Mr. Claus stepped up beside him, a stern look on his face. Roy sneered, not even sparing me a glance. “This b*tch thinks she can sleep around and then pin the baby on me.” I felt the heat of every gaze on me, as if I’d suddenly become someone they barely recognized. Roy grabbed his father’s arm, his face twisted in disgust. “You always taught me to find a woman who’d keep herself for her husband, right? Well, I thought I had.” He turned, his eyes cold, filled with contempt as they bore into mine. “But I guess I was wrong. How am I supposed to uphold the family image when she’s trying to ruin it with a b*st*rd child?” My heart pounded so hard it felt like I was floating, as if my body couldn’t keep up with the humiliation coursing through me. The people around us, friends, family, stared at me with judgment. “Roy, what is the meaning of this? You know this is your baby. You were the one who—” I began, my voice trembling, barely able to piece my sentence together. But before I could finish, his hand struck my face and I staggered back, my cheek stinging as the room seemed to spin. I looked up in shock, holding my cheek, trying to understand how the man I loved had just hit me. “Get this woman out of my house,” Mr. Claus’s voice rang. My legs gave way, and I crumpled to the floor. Roy tossed his ring onto the floor with a cold, final gesture, his back already turned to me. Without a single word, he walked away. In that moment, with the engagement ring lying on the floor between us, I understood that it was over. The life I’d dreamed of had shattered in an instant. Before I could gather myself, I felt a sudden, sharp tug at my hair, pulling me down. I was dragged across the cold floor. Mrs. Claus’s face above me, her eyes unforgiving, it was the last thing I saw before she shoved me out and slammed the door in my face. I stayed on the ground for what felt like an eternity, crumpled and sobbing. Three minutes passed, and it still wasn’t enough to process what had happened. But I knew I couldn’t stay there. I had to get out before something even worse happened. “Need a ride?” A voice came from behind me, startling me. I turned, wiping the tears from my eyes, and saw Ethan standing there, watching me with a steady gaze. He held a glass of wine in one hand, his other casually tucked in his pocket, as if he’d been there all along. My first instinct was to decline. I’d been humiliated enough, and the last thing I wanted was for Roy to accuse me of running off with his best friend too. But before I could say anything, Ethan opened the door to his car and leaned against it, waiting patiently. I got in, feeling too broken to argue. As he drove, I sat silently in the passenger seat, tears streaming down my face. Ethan didn’t say a word, just kept his eyes on the road, respecting the quiet that was now my only refuge. I couldn’t bring myself to explain anything, and he didn’t press. He just let me cry, the only sound in the car the steady hum of the engine and my own muffled sobs. How I cried all the way to my house wasn’t new to me, I have a cursed ability of breaking down at every little interval and this wasn’t new to me. I stepped out of the car, wiping my tear-streaked face, trying to gather myself before facing my family. I couldn’t bear the thought of them knowing what had just happened to me. Taking a deep breath, I glanced back at Ethan, ready to thank him. He waited for me to get into the house before he drove off.