Mr CEOs revenge bride

Chapter 4: Public opinion

Sierra's POV

"Oh my God."

The words left my mouth before I could stop them.

My eyes stayed glued to the phone screen.

Tara wasn't moving.

Reporters rushed toward her.

Someone screamed.

The crowd surged forward.

Then the video cut off.

Silence filled the suite.

Heavy.

Uncomfortable.

I couldn't stop staring at the blank screen.

A few seconds ago Tara had been standing.

Crying.

Running toward Alex.

Now she was lying on the ground surrounded by strangers.

My stomach twisted.

I should have felt satisfied.

After everything she had done to me, maybe I should have.

Instead I felt sick.

Because no matter what happened between us, there was still a baby involved.

An innocent baby.

One that didn't deserve any of this.

I looked up at Martin.

"What happened to her?"

"I don't know."

His voice was calm.

Too calm.

I pushed away from the desk.

"What if something happened to the baby?"

Martin's expression hardened.

"Sierra."

"What?"

"Your first concern shouldn't be the woman who spent eight months sleeping with your boyfriend."

I flinched.

Because he wasn't wrong.

But somehow I still felt sick.

"In as much as we're no longer friends I don't want anything bad happening to her or the baby."

Martin studied me for a moment.

Then shook his head.

"You're a better person than most."

"I don't feel like one."

My phone suddenly exploded with notifications.

Again.

Messages.

Calls.

News alerts.

Everything at once.

I glanced at the screen.

Immediately regretted it.

ALEX ANDERSON DECLARES LOVE FOR OUTSIDE WOLFE SUITES

Another headline appeared.

LOVE TRIANGLE SCANDAL TAKES SHOCKING TURN

Then another.

WHO WILL SIERRA CHOOSE?

I wanted to throw my phone through the window.

Instead, I opened social media.

Big mistake.

The comments were brutal.

Alex is fighting for her.

That's real love.

She should forgive him.

Poor Tara.

Sierra loves attention.

More comments continued appearing before the screen disappeared.

Thousands of them.

Each one worse than the last.

Alex deserves a second chance.

She's probably jealous of Tara.

Poor pregnant woman.

Someone even posted a side-by-side picture comparing me and Tara.

People were voting in the comments.

Choosing who they liked better.

Who deserved sympathy.

Who deserved love.

As if our lives were some reality television show created for their entertainment.

I swallowed hard.

None of these people knew me.

Yet somehow they had already decided who the villain was.

And judging by the comments, it wasn't Alex.

It wasn't Tara.

It was me.

I closed the app immediately.

My chest hurt.

Nothing mattered.

Not facts.

Not truth.

Just whatever story people preferred.

****

A knock sounded at the door.

Martin frowned.

Another knock.

More aggressive this time.

Then Claire entered without waiting for permission.

"Sir."

Martin turned.

"What happened?"

Claire looked unusually concerned.

"There are reporters downstairs."

"How many?"

"About thirty."

I blinked.

"Thirty?"

Claire nodded.

"And more are arriving."

Wonderful.

Just wonderful.

Martin pinched the bridge of his nose.

"What do they want?"

Claire looked directly at me.

"You."

"Of course they do."

I laughed.

The sound came out hollow.

A few days ago, nobody cared I existed.

Today I was apparently the public opinion.

A humorless laugh escaped me.

Yesterday nobody cared where I was.

Nobody cared if I was happy.

Nobody cared that my boyfriend had betrayed me.

Now suddenly everyone wanted a piece of the story.

A quote.

A photograph.

A reaction.

The worst part?

They didn't actually care about me.

They cared about the scandal.

And I just happened to be standing in the middle of it.

"What exactly are they saying?"

Claire hesitated.

Then handed me her tablet.

I looked.

Instantly regretted it.

A livestream was playing.

Alex stood directly outside Wolfe Suites.

Still holding the stupid sign.

Still surrounded by cameras.

Still refusing to leave.

"I love you, Sierra Bennett," he announced dramatically.

Reporters practically melted.

"I made mistakes."

You think?

"But she's the love of my life."

I almost choked.

The love of his life.

Interesting.

Considering he'd gotten my best friend pregnant.

My anger returned immediately.

Hot.

Painful.

A reporter shoved a microphone toward him.

"Are the rumors true?"

Alex nodded sadly.

"I'll do whatever it takes to win her back."

The crowd erupted.

I stared at the screen.

Completely speechless.

Then something occurred to me.

"This is deliberate."

Martin looked at me.

"What is?"

"He's turning himself into the victim."

Claire nodded immediately.

"That's exactly what he's doing."

The realization made me furious.

Alex wasn't apologizing.

He was performing.

For cameras.

For sympathy.

For attention.

The same way my mother cried for reporters.

The same way Tara posed for photographs.

Everyone was rewriting the story.

Everyone except me.

Because nobody cared what I had to say.

Maybe that was what hurt most.

Not Alex.

Not Tara.

Not even my mother.

It was the fact that everyone seemed determined to tell my story for me.

The heartbroken girlfriend.

The jealous ex.

The runaway bride.

Every headline created a different version of Sierra Bennett.

And none of them were me.

Nobody asked how I felt.

Nobody asked what really happened.

They just picked the version they liked best and ran with it.

A new notification appeared.

I clicked it.

Then froze.

The article contained photos.

Pictures from last night.

Martin holding my hand.

Martin standing beside me.

Martin looking at me.

The headline sat directly above them.

BILLIONAIRE STEALS BRIDE BEFORE PROPOSAL

I nearly laughed.

"This is insane."

Martin glanced at the screen.

Then his expression darkened.

"They're painting you as a villain."

"No."

I swallowed.

"They're painting us as villains."

For the first time, I realized what this meant.

Not just for me.

For him too.

His reputation.

His company.

His life.

All because he helped a crying stranger at a bar.

Guilt settled heavily in my chest.

"I'm sorry."

Martin looked surprised.

"For what?"

"This mess."

I gestured helplessly toward the tablet.

The articles.

The photographs.

The headlines.

"You helped me for one night."

My voice cracked slightly.

"And now they're dragging your name through the mud too."

His eyes held mine.

And for a second the room felt strangely quiet.

"You didn't create this mess."

His voice softened.

"The people who betrayed you did."

Something inside my chest tightened.

Dangerously.

Because nobody had defended me in a very long time.

Then Claire's phone rang.

She answered immediately.

Her face changed.

Fast.

"Sir."

Martin stood.

"What now?"

"The media had gotten past the building's main gate."

Claire's phone rang again.

She answered immediately.

Listened.

Then swore under her breath.

Martin's eyes narrowed.

"What again?"

"The reporters just got past the reception lobby."

"What?"

Claire lowered the phone.

"They are inside the hotel now, maybe looking for this suite."

Martin was already moving.

His entire demeanor changed instantly.

Cold.

Controlled.

Dangerous.

Then he started barking orders to Claire.

"Call the head of the security department."

Claire nodded immediately.

"Yes, sir."

"I want a barricade on every floor leading here."

His voice was calm.

Deadly calm.

"Close down all elevators."

Claire was already typing.

"Done."

"Lock down the stairwells."

"Done."

"And get every reporter out of my hotel."

Something in his tone made even me straighten.

Claire nodded again.

Then Martin added,

"Find a way to collect anything Sierra might need."

I frowned.

"What?"

Claire paused.

Martin looked at her.

"Clothes. Personal items. Essentials."

Claire blinked.

Then nodded.

"I'll take care of it."

Before I could ask what was happening, she was already heading toward the door.

My pulse hammered against my ribs.

I looked at Martin.

"What exactly is going on?"

He walked toward me.

Slowly.

Purposefully.

Like he'd already made a decision.

Then he stopped directly in front of me.

His blue eyes locked onto mine.

"Claire will pack whatever you need."

I frowned.

"What? Why?"

His expression didn't change.

Not even slightly.

But the next words changed everything.

"Because you're moving into the Wolfe Penthouse."