Chapter 4 The Scandal

"Kristine Iglesias is pregnant with Zayne Nightwood's child!

Yes! She was in love with his rival, Edric Carton, but their breakup led to a twisted one night stand where she is now pregnant with Mr. Nightwood's baby.

Is it for revenge or a beginning of a new bond that is yet to find out. We are waiting to hear further from Miss Kristine and Mr. Nightwood.

Are they going to keep the child? Stay tuned with us to find more!"

The headline glared at me from every digital billboard in the city. Two weeks. That was all it took to drop the bomb of the scandal.

We were the new hot topic, a vicious headline plastered across every digital and print tabloid. I knew it was an incredibly low blow, but wrath had blinded me.

I sat in Zayne's high-rise office, legs crossed elegantly, watching the news cycle churn, indulging in the rage unfolding.

SMASH.

The remote shattered against the massive LED screen on the wall. He turned, his blue eyes burning with a cold but terrifying fury.

"What the hell is this, Kristine?"

"Who told you not to wear a condom?" I shrugged my shoulders.

"You are telling me," He stepped closer, his voice dropping to a dangerous hiss, "That after one night, you are carrying my child?"

"Biology is a funny thing," I smiled coldly.

He glared for a long time before regaining his composure and pinching the bridge of his nose, loosening his collarbone before snatching the file from my hand.

"Look at the reports yourself, check the date, two weeks after our sweet time,"

The reports were a masterpiece. A hefty bribe to my doctor had shifted the gestation date from five weeks to two.

On paper, this baby was a Nightwood. In reality, it was that motherfucker's.

After confirming, he threw the papers away outrageously, "Shit!"

Running his fingers through his silky locks while loosening his tie, looking undeniably heart-throbbing by these gestures as he leaned against the table.

We both were staring at each other. He was attempting to decrypt my intention but failed to do so I kept an innocent expression.

After a piercing silence, Zayne finally asked in a sigh.

"What do you want?" He finally asked, leaning over the desk until he was inches from my face.

"I want a father for my child," I said, my voice steady, like the obvious thing before hesitation brimmed in my chest.

"And I want a husband who can help me burn Edric Carton to the ground. I want him to watch us together, grovel and lose everything, including his dignity,"

Zayne's eyes narrowed, jaw clenching, "So, I am just a weapon to you against him? An asset?"

"... Maybe,"

The second I trailed off, he snapped his fingers twice and pointed at his door dominantly.

"Out,"

"Huh?"

"Get the fuck out of my office, Kristine Iglesias. I am not a pawn in someone's revenge fantasy." He declared, eyes sharply narrowed at me with disgust.

I returned the same gesture, glaring back at him with contempt.

"Then you should have thought about your actions before, asshole,"

I stood up, smoothed my skirt, and walked out without a word because I knew he would call. Men like Zayne didn't let their 'blood' walk around unprotected.

He would take the responsibility and I would take advantage of that.

Depraved of me, I know.

But, that is life, no one had mercy for the other, everyone was an asset to use for another and I won't let people take advantage of me anymore.

After a tiresome day, ignoring the looks I received during work, I returned home. Too exhausted to discuss things, we both went to sleep.

The next day, humming to myself, I walked toward my car, and a group of women, Zayne's obsessed followers, blocked my path.

"You liar!!"

They were screaming, calling me a social climber, a liar. One of them reached down, grabbed a stone, and hurled it at me.

I braced for the impact, my hands instinctively flying to cover my stomach.

But, the blow never came.

The man with an addictive scent and dominating aura appeared before me, blocking my stomach instinctively to protect me from his fangirls.

Gasping inaudibly, I looked up and saw Zayne.

"Touch her again," Zayne growled at the crowd, sending daggers at them for daring to forget their place, his warning cutting through the air.

"And I will make sure you never see the light of day." A single warning was all it took for him to send them away.

"Zayne...?"

"Are you hurt?" He asked, hesitantly placing his hand over my stomach, gaze softening with a tremble I knew would exist in him.

Forming my lips in a thin line, I nodded, "Yes,"

He didn't say another word. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me back toward my apartment building, not giving me enough time to comprehend.

He shoved his way inside, slamming the door shut behind us.

He didn't give me space to breathe, to register, to speak, he simply pushed me against the door, a large hand clasped my wrist before securing it beside my head.

The atmosphere in the room shifted, from protection to something much more predatory and darker.

Ignoring my question, he stepped dangerously closer, towering over me while taking a strand of my hair between his fingers, caressing it.

"You want your revenge?" He growled, hovering over me that sent an unforeseen spark down my core.

"Fine. I will give it to you. I will give you a wedding that will make Edric choke on his own heart. But, I don't do charity, Kristine."

I blinked, "Come again?"

I knew he would return but didn't expect it to be this early.

"I have my conditions," He demanded strictly.

My heart skipped a beat at his level of seriousness. His features were hardened, holding no place for jest or refusal, seeking nothing but submission from me.

Tensing my shoulder, I stepped back cautiously, "What conditions?"

"Be mine. All mine."

Wrapping his hand around my throat perfectly, he brought me closer, emerging the heat from his hot body into mine.

Possessiveness flickered in his oceanic eyes. With his face adjacent to mine, he gave my throat a gentle squeeze that made me weak to my knees.

"From your emotions to your body, all of it shall belong to me. I will have you whenever, however I want, and you won't resist,"

Surprised to find him needing me so explicitly, I tried to get back but he didn't allow me and pressed me into him, forcing me to maintain the intense eye-contact.

"Why?"

He smirked maliciously, "Offers should be made equal. You will get your revenge and I will get my child and you. Every. Single. Piece."

Tentativeness bloomed, I began to have second thoughts but when I had taken a step forward, giving up became no longer an option.

Inhaling sharply, I held his wrist to remove it from my throat.

"Will you truly help me, Zayne?"

"Yes, I will, Kristine,"

Taking a step back, holding his chin up in pride, he offered his hand to me, making the terms crystal-clear.

I get my revenge.

He gets me.

"Offer your heart, your body, your soul to me, Kristine, and I shall ensure you get anything you want,"

I realized then that I wasn't just making a deal with a billionaire. I was signing a contract with the devil. He had a motive, something darker than just wanting a family.

But I had already stepped into the fire. There was no going back.

My heart picked pace, hands turned cold in anticipation but at the same time, an equal amount of thrill filled me.

Glancing at his handsome face, and back to his hand, I clasped his hand in mine, pleasing him endlessly.

Smirking darkly, I kissed his knuckles, widening his smirk, accepting his offer wholeheartedly.

"From this moment onwards, I am all yours, My Dear Husband,"