Page 44 of Alpha-Ex Wedding Ruse
My phone beeped, signaling the end of the five-minute countdown I’d set. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them.
Two red lines.
Positive.
I was pregnant.
I stared at the test, my lips slowly pulling into a wide grin. A thrill ran down my spine. Excitement curled in my belly. I picked up my phone, thumb hovering over the screen as I started to type out a message to Luca, but stopped.
This wasn’t the kind of news you broke over text.
No. I wanted to see his face. I wanted to remember that moment forever. His expression. His reaction. The way he’d probably pull me close and whisper something that would make me cry.
It had to be in person.
And what better time than at the Vaughn Industries twenty-year anniversary gala? Luca had personally asked me to come, even had an extravagant dress made for me.
He’d said I’d be meeting his father for the first time. That I needed to make a solid impression. I planned to do just that.
And more.
The next morning, everything felt normal.
I woke up nauseous, but that was expected. I made my usual stop at Elvis Cafe and picked up two cups of boba—one for me, one for Luca. He’d pretend he hated it, but he always finished it first.
I even hummed a little as I entered the building, feeling a euphoria of excitement I’d never felt in my life. The revolving doors spun open with that familiar whoosh of air conditioning. It wasn’t until I stepped into the lobby that I noticed it—the tension, like the static in the air before a thunderstorm. People weren’t hurrying around as they normally did. They were whispering. Faces were drawn tight. Phones were clutched a little harder. Security guards were standing straighter.
A few people looked up when I passed. Then quickly looked away. Others didn’t bother hiding their stares. Their eyes followed me, cold and unreadable.
I offered a polite nod to Janice at the reception desk. She didn’t smile back. Weird.
I kept walking, forcing my spine straight, my steps steady, even as the energy prickled against my skin.
The elevators opened on my floor to more of the same. A group of junior designers who normally greeted me with laughter went dead silent when I entered. One of them whispered something under her breath.
Another nudged her and muttered, “Don’t. She’s right there.”
My pulse kicked up.
I wanted to ask what was going on? Why was everyone acting like I was the ghost of a scandal no one wanted to be caught looking at? But I didn’t.
Instead, I went to my desk and logged in for the day. I went to check on Luca, but he wasn’t in his office. Noon came, and he still hadn’t come in.
I texted him.
No response.
I tried to tell myself he was just busy. An important board meeting.Some kind of pack issue. But I felt it in my bones—something was wrong. All my meetings got rescheduled. My team got reassigned.
I texted Luca again. Twice. But it was the same. No response.
By six p.m., I was still at my desk, both boba cups untouched. His line went straight to voicemail when I tried to call him. My chest tightened with every second of silence.
I still had the invite to Vaughn Industries’ anniversary gala that evening.
So, I dressed up. I needed to see Luca, to speak to him, to tell him the delightful news of our pregnancy.
I wore the gleaming silver dress he’d chosen for me. The one that hugged my body like it knew it was meant to impress. The one he’d said would make an unforgettable first impression when I met his father.
