Elijah never saw the punch coming. Lucas’s fist connected with his jaw, sending him sprawling across the rooftop.
For once, Lucas’s carefully cultivated control shattered completely. Each blow landed with brutal precision. If his security team hadn’t finally intervened, Elijah might not have made it off that roof alive.
Lucas ignored his bloodied knuckles, glaring down at the man gasping at his feet.
“What kind of hatred makes you keep trying to destroy her life?” he demanded.
“Do you have any idea how many people watched her birthday tonight? How many saw your little drone show? What do you think the headlines will say about her tomorrow?”
“Are you only happy when she’s humiliated in public?”
“No, I wasn’t trying to-” Elijah choked out, blood trickling from his mouth as he struggled to sit up.
Lucas shut him up with a swift kick that sent him back to the ground.
“Wasn’t trying what? Listen carefully–if Gloria didn’t still have some misplaced sympathy for you, you would’ve disappeared the day you landed in London.”
Elijah lay there, unable to rise again.
Lucas stood over him, his voice dropping to something dangerous. “Something else you should know–today wasn’t just her birthday. It’s also the day Gloria found out she’s pregnant.”
The words hit Elijah like electricity. His mind went blank as he stared up in shock. “What did you just say?”
Finding some hidden reserve of strength, Elijah staggered to his feet, lunging toward Lucas.
“You son of a bitch! She’s way too young! How could you do this to her?”
Lucas didn’t even flinch as his security team immediately slammed Elijah back onto the concrete.
“How could I? Because we love each other and want this child together. That’s how relationships actually work.”
“Since we’re discussing crossing lines–how about throwing a woman with cold sensitivity into a freezer? Or beating her until she nearly died?”
“Her father trusted you to protect her, and you almost killed her. So tell me again about crossing lines.”
Lucas watched Elijah’s face drain of color before adding coldly:
“Gloria is pregnant. Your little stunt tonight stressed her out and put her at risk. If you have any humanity left, you’ll stay away from her permanently.”
Lucas didn’t stick around for Elijah’s response. He tossed his torn jacket aside and headed back to the estate.
After showering and making sure no trace of the fight remained, he slipped quietly into their bedroom.
Seeing Gloria lying there, one hand protectively resting on her stomach, softened something in him instantly. He carefully gathered her into his arms and drifted off beside her.
When Gloria woke the next morning, she found herself tucked against Lucas’s chest.
Noticing her eyes open, he kissed her forehead. “It’s handled.”
The worry that had kept her awake loosened its grip. She nestled closer with a soft sigh of relief.
With Gloria’s pregnancy still not showing, they fast–tracked their wedding plans. Despite the compressed timeline, they refused to cut corners on anything important.
They flew home for the legal paperwork and took their wedding photos together. Gloria couldn’t help smiling at the thought that their baby was already in those pictures, an invisible presence.
Chapter 20
Their wedding day arrived with surprising speed. Though deliberately intimate, the ceremony spared no expense.
They exchanged vows in a centuries–old cathedral Gloria had always loved. The space was filled with their favorite flowers. Her dress, secretly commissioned by Lucas months before, fit perfectly despite her changing figure. Even the guest favors reflected their personal touch, hand selected and assembled by the couple themselves.
To keep things manageable for the pregnant bride, they invited only those who truly mattered to them.
From the vows to the ring exchange, Gloria and Lucas remained in their own world, focused entirely on each other.
When pronounced husband and wife, they kissed like they had all the time in the world, barely noticing the applause around them.
In that perfect moment, nothing existed beyond the two of them.
The wedding stayed out of the press. Back home, Elijah didn’t hear about it until photos appeared online the following day.
The urge to do something drastic flared briefly, but reality quickly extinguished it.
Every time he closed his eyes, he heard Gloria’s voice from that recording:
“A clean break, no contact–that’s the healthiest ending for both of us.”
Yet he couldn’t make himself let go.
He continued buying gifts she would never receive, clinging to the fantasy that the perfect present might somehow change her mind.
In reality, not a single gift, message, or call ever reached her.
Elijah understood why, but acceptance remained elusive
She had once been the girl who would have given him anything. She had been the person he’d taken completely for granted. How had she moved on so completely while he remained trapped in regret?
His feelings changed nothing.
Ten months later, Gloria gave birth to a healthy baby girl.
Lucas, who had once been devoted solely to his wife, now lavished equal attention on their daughter. Though only weeks old, the baby already had a trust fund most adults would envy. The couple also established a charitable foundation in their daughter’s name.
At the baby’s formal introduction to their social circle, gifts from well wishers created an impressive display.
Back home, Elijah carefully selected something special for Gloria’s daughter, though he knew it would likely be returned.
To protect their privacy, Gloria and Lucas kept their daughter completely out of the public eye. Not a single photo appeared online.
Elijah heard through mutual connections that the baby looked remarkably like Gloria.
Hearing this, something twisted painfully in his chest.
If things had gone differently–if he hadn’t been so blind, if Jenna hadn’t poisoned everything–might he and Gloria have had a future together? Would their child have had her eyes, her smile?
Some questions have no answers.
