The Devil's Contractual Bride-Chapter 20: Ethan et Lucian

Aria’s pov

I froze.

The words hung between us like smoke that refused to disintegrate.

"I love you, Aria."

I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out.

My heart was hammering so hard that I feared a rib might crack. My hands felt cold and my stomach twisted partly due to fear and something softer that I didn’t want to name.

I took a step back.

"I... I need space," I whispered.

Lucian’s face changed,it was just a flicker but clearly noticeable. Something raw and wounded flashed in his eyes before the mask of the ruthless and heartless devil snapped back into place.

He nodded once."Okay," he said. "Take all the space you need."

I turned and walked fast toward the guest room. My bare feet slapped against the cold marble but I didn’t look back.

The guest room door closed behind me with a hard click.I leaned against it breathing hard,tears already burning behind my eyes.

He loved me.

Lucian Voss—the man who’d caged me and even called me a whore loved me.

And the worst part is that some stupid, traitorous part of me wanted to believe him.

I slid down the door until I was sitting on the floor, my knees curled up to my chest, arms wrapped tight around myself like that could hold everything inside.

The baby was ours. Six weeks of what was meant to be transactional had brought to existence something I never imagined would happen.

I pressed a hand to my stomach,There was no sign of life yet but it was there. A tiny heartbeat I couldn’t hear but knew existed.

My phone buzzed on the nightstand.

I crawled across the floor and grabbed it.

It was Andre.

I answered before I could talk myself out of it. I had been avoiding him for a while now but I needed someone to talk to.Not someone,I needed him,so I sent him a text immediately I got into the guest room and I couldn’t be happier he called.

"Aria?" His voice was thick with worry. "It’s two in the morning. Are you okay?"

"No," I whispered. "I’m not."

"Talk to me Aria."

I swallowed. "I’m pregnant."

Silence. Then a sharp inhale.

"I heard the news Aria. That’s why I have been trying to reach you. Is it Lucian’s?"

"Yes."

"Are you... keeping it?"

I closed my eyes and tears slipped free.

"I think so," I said. "I want to but Ethan is threatening to challenge paternity. He wants to take the baby.What if something goes wrong? And Lucian... Lucian just told me he loves me.I don’t want my child to go through all this drama."

Andre exhaled slowly. "Okay. Breathe Aria.First, congratulations babes and secondly,Ethan is bluffing. What matters here is whether you believe Ethan.Do you?"

"I don’t know," I said. "Every time I start to trust him, he does something that reminds me why I shouldn’t, so I just don’t know."

"Then we come up with a plan," Andre said. "We protect you and the baby. And we bury Ethan so deep he never sees daylight again."

I laughed. "I like that plan."

"Good. I’m coming over tomorrow. We’ll go through everything.Whatever it takes."

"Thank you," I whispered.

"Always, babe. Get some sleep. You’re growing a human and you need rest."

I hung up.

I stayed on the floor for a long time, my hand still on my stomach listening to the silence.

Then I stood.

I walked to the door and opened it in my body to go get coffee downstairs.

Lucian was sitting on the floor in the hallway,his back against the opposite wall.

He looked up when I stepped out.

I froze in shock, how long had he been sitting there.

He didn’t speak and neither did I.

I walked over slowly and sat down beside him.

"I heard you," he said quietly. "On the phone."

I nodded.

"You’re keeping it."

"I think so," I said. "Yes."

He leaned in and placed his head on my shoulder "Thank you," he whispered.

We sat there in silence for a long time until he eventually shifted. His hand found mine and he slid his fingers between mine.

"I meant what I said earlier," he said. "I love you."

I looked at him."That changes nothing, Lucian," I said softly.

He searched my face.

"I don’t expect you to say it back," he said. "Not yet or even ever but I needed you to know."

After another prolonged silence,we eventually stood and walked to the master bedroom together.

He pulled back the covers,I slid in and he slid in behind me.

He didn’t touch me like I expected or maybe even wanted,he just lay there, close enough that I could feel his warmth.

I fell asleep listening to his breathing.

***

The next morning we woke to the sound of the rather annoying doorbell.

It rang once,twice then continuously in a pattern.

Lucian sat up first. "Stay here."

I shook my head. "No,it might be Andre.I’m expecting him."

"Okay",he muttered as he rose from the bed.

We walked to the door together and he opened it.

A courier stood there with an official-looking envelope in hand.

"Mr. and Mrs. Voss?"

Lucian nodded.

"Court order," the courier said. "You are hereby mandated to submit to a conception dating test within seven days. Failure to comply will result in immediate custody proceedings initiated by Ethan Caldwell."

He handed over the envelope and Lucian took it.

Lucian closed the door immediately the courier left.We stared at the thick white envelope.

Inside was the official document,adorned with a judge’s signature and a date for the test.

A single line in the document made my blood run cold:

**"Pending results, for public purposes,the defendants are prohibited from announcing the unborn child as that of the first defendant, here in known as Lucian Voss"**