Pregnant For The Man Who Ruined Me

The ballroom was filled with fake smiles, wealth, and power. Champagne was freely flowing from the tables of the high-paying New Yorkers, and crystal chandeliers twinkled from the marble floors. One reason for such a packed audience in the big hall tonight was that it was a gathering of politicians, celebrities, billionaires, and investors. Alexander Vance: My husband was named the most feared CEO in New York City, who appeared with a cut in a perfectly fitting black suit, just as powerful and untouchable as the billionaire the world loved. Cold, controlled, and dangerously beautiful. I was standing near the stairs, thinking about the flash bulbs going off, what I would do with the champagne glass in my hand. Alexander and I had been squabbling pretty much all these past few months. The late nights, the cold stars, the lack of touch, and the silence were more painful. I felt I was slowly losing him for some reason I didn't understand. “Be more cheerful.” I glanced my head in the direction of the sound of my familiar voice. Vanessa Laurent; Elegant. Perfect. Poisonous. Her delicate dress fit her body perfectly; it was flattering and revealing, her lips were smiling, but her eyes weren't. “Already people are saying something,” she whispered. I wanted to put a smile on my face to mask my nervousness. “Well, it’s good I don’t care what people think.” A bit of her smile hardened. “Oh, Aurora?” she whispered. “You really should.” When there was a movement about the entrance to the ballroom, I did not have time to say even a word to get everyone's attention. Alexander was at full steam; his surroundings changed around him without him having to think about it. The great thing about Alexander Vance was that it was easy for Power to be his natural follower. Glancing around, his eyes fell on me. It was dark. He had a look on his face that was unreadable, then it vanished. As is customary these past few days, my chest constricted and tightened a lot, and it was painful. We were startled when Damian Russo suddenly came toward us at a brisk pace, his usually calm expression on his face. “Alexander, everybody, get close to the stage,” he whispered. All of a sudden, the lights went dark in the ballroom. The discussion began to tap off as people began to tune into the big screens around the room. Alexander was a natural actor, putting his cufflinks on before speaking on the microphone. “Thank you to everyone who came out tonight.” The screen behind him flickered violently, and then just sorta changed. Like it couldn't decide what it wanted to be. Alexander stopped speaking immediately, and my stomach dropped right to the floor. Confidential company files suddenly filled the screens, all neat and terrible and too clear, private accounts, internal transactions, confidential acquisitions, and at the center of every single document, My Name. The ballroom erupted instantly. “What the hell?” “Isn’t that Aurora Hale?” “Oh my God…” My kinda breathing stopped, like it was embarrassed to keep going. No. No, this wasn't possible. Not in a way that made sense. More files appeared one after another: leaked negotiations, missing funds, illegal transfers. Every single trail pointed directly toward me, as the whole room had already decided. My vision blurred slightly, just enough to hurt. Someone had framed me. I looked toward Alexander desperately. But he wasn't staring at the screens anymore; he was staring at me. And the expression in his eyes shattered something inside me instantly. “Alexander…” I whispered weakly, as my voice could sneak past the truth. Beside me, Vanessa gasped dramatically. “This can’t be real.” Fake b***h. Board members were already crowding around the stage while reporters whispered excitedly among themselves, too close together, too eager. “Mr. Vance, is your wife involved?” “Did Aurora Hale leak confidential information?” “Is this corporate espionage?” Cameras immediately turned toward me. Flashes blinded my eyes, and I couldn't even tell if they liked what they saw or just needed a story. I forced myself forward through the crowd until I stood directly beneath the stage, looking up at my husband. “Alexander,” I said shakily. “I didn’t do this.” Silence. Not even the kind where you can breathe in it. The entire ballroom waited for his answer. Alexander descended the stage slowly, his face unreadable, too unreadable. That terrified me more than the files ever did. When he finally stood in front of me, his dark eyes searched mine carefully, like he was trying to judge the shape of a lie. Like he was deciding, right there, whether I was telling the truth. The thought alone broke my heart. “Aurora…” “No.” My voice cracked painfully, “Look at me and tell me you actually think I betrayed you.” Silence again. Then Alexander finally spoke. “I don’t know what to believe anymore.” Those words hit me harder than a bullet. Pain erupted through my chest, so violently that I physically struggled to breathe. Board members started talking over each other right away, like a wave that never ends. “This scandal will wreck the merger.” “She needs to be removed immediately.” “We need damage control, now.” Vanessa lowered her gaze beside us, like she was quietly devastated for him. I wanted to slap her. Alexander stayed silent for a long time before saying it, coldly “The meeting is over.” Then his eyes came back to mine, and whatever tiny hope I still had died instantly because in his gaze there was nothing warm left, not even a little. Nothing. “We’ll handle this privately.” I let out a broken laugh almost by accident. “Privately?” I whispered. “You already ruined me out loud, publicly.” Something flickered across his face, but it was gone just as fast. Then the sentence arrived, the one that tore up my whole life. “Perhaps this marriage was a mistake.” The ballroom lit up with noise, and my entire body went numb. I stared at him like I didn't recognize the man in front of me anymore. My husband. The man I loved more than my own skin, and yet he had just humiliated me in front of everyone. I swallowed hard, refusing to cry here. Not in front of these people, not in front of Vanessa, nor in front of him either. So I stepped back slowly, then took another step as my feet weren't sure they should cooperate. Alexander moved toward me on instinct but stopped himself, and that hurt more than anything else. I gave a small nod, even though my chest felt like it was collapsing inward, right then. “Okay,” I whispered, like it was nothing, like it wasn’t huge at all. Then I turned around and walked away while cameras flashed wildly around me; every whisper was like a knife tearing my heart. By the time I reached the ballroom exit, my vision was completely blurry from unshed tears that wouldn't quit. I fumbled into the empty hallway outside, trying to breathe but doing it wrong, over and over. Everything was gone: my marriage, my reputation, and my life. My phone started ringing inside my clutch, suddenly loud. Unknown Number. I almost ignored it, as I could hide from it, but I didn't. With shaking hands, I answered the call weakly. “Hello…?” “Mrs. Vance?” a gentle female voice asked from the other side. “Your test results came back.” My brows pulled together slightly, even through the tears. “What…?” Then she spoke again, and the rest of the night just stopped. really stopped. “Congratulations. You're pregnant.”