66 Chapter 66 Truth Burns Bright
The color drained from Roxanne’s face as if I had physically struck her. We had sworn never to speak of this, especially not where Elena might overhear.
Her face brightened with pure joy, and that radiant smile made every sacrifice worthwhile. I set her down gently and told her I needed to clean up first.
My thoughts inevitably turned to Seraphina. How was she coping with everything? I couldn’t reach her anymore. She had shut me out completely after what I had done. I despised myself for marking her without permission. I resented her for abandoning me, and I wasn’t sure I could ever forgive that betrayal. But I also knew I couldn’t survive losing her again. I needed her back. I could only hope I hadn’t destroyed every chance we had.
Her theatrical performance had finally pushed me past my breaking point. I was done with her constant accusations and manipulations. It was time to speak the truth we had both agreed to bury.
Julian’s POV
I lifted her up and held her close, breathing in her innocent sweetness. “Hello, my little
star.”
“Daddy!” she squealed with delight, abandoning her toys to rush into my arms.
Desperation crept into Roxanne’s expression. “Why wasn’t I ever enough for you? I gave you everything I had. I tried to be the perfect partner, the perfect luna. I loved you with every part of myself.”
Her composure cracked, and she pulled herself up straighter, her voice hardening with resolve. “Fine. If that’s truly how you see things, then I’m done. I’m leaving this place, and Elena comes with me.” The threat didn’t surprise me. She had been building toward this moment for weeks.
I headed straight to Elena’s room, where I found her already awake, sitting cross-legged on the carpet with her building blocks scattered around her.
I met her gaze steadily, knowing that any interruption would only escalate this further. “I never forced you to stay, Roxanne. The only reason you remained was because of Elena. Don’t try to rewrite history to make it something it never was.”
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66 Chapter 66 Truth Burns Bright
Roxanne moved closer, her voice dropping to a venomous whisper that somehow felt more threatening than her earlier shouting. “In all these years together, Julian, did you ever feel even an ounce of love for me? I stayed by your side. I helped you through your darkest moments. I was there when you needed someone most.”
“You knew the reality from the beginning, Roxanne,” I said, my voice deadly quiet. “You knew Seraphina was my fated mate. You knew I was planning to build my future with her before you trapped me with your pregnancy lie.”
The door closed behind me with a soft thud, sealing me inside with the storm I knew was brewing. The silence lasted barely a heartbeat before Roxanne’s rage crashed over me like a tidal wave. I could sense her fury radiating through the hallway before she even appeared, but today I had no patience for her dramatics.
I didn’t give her the chance to respond. I walked away, leaving her standing there with whatever combination of heartbreak and rage she was feeling. I had stopped caring which emotion dominated.
“I have always cared about Elena,” I replied without flinching. “She has always been my first concern.”
“Where were you last night, Daddy?” she asked, tilting her small head with curiosity. Move Elena completely. She is my daughter in every way that matters. I would never risk losing her over a fight with Roxanne.
When I first learned of Roxanne’s pregnancy, I had resented the idea of this child, seeing it as the final destruction of my future with Seraphina. But the moment Elena was born, I was desperate for something to anchor me to this life, something that could be truly mine. The disappointment when I realized the truth had been crushing. “Well, I’m speaking of it now because I’ve reached my limit,” I told her firmly. “I’m exhausted by your constant attempts to make me the villain in your story. I am a devoted father. But being a good father doesn’t make me naive or weak. If leaving is what you want, then do it. But if you choose to stay, then you keep your mouth shut and let me make my own decisions about my life.”
Roxanne stared at me with the look of someone whose world had just collapsed. “We promised each other we would never speak of this again,” she whispered, as if I had committed the ultimate betrayal.
My calm response only fueled her fire. Her eyes blazed with indignation. “Now you
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66 Chapter 66 Truth Burns Bright
suddenly care about Elena’s wellbeing?”
“Don’t pretend to hold the moral high ground here,” I continued relentlessly. “I have raised Elena every single day since her birth, knowing full well she isn’t my biological child. I have never loved her any less because of it. I have never revealed that truth to anyone. So don’t push me any further.”
I drew in a slow breath, steeling myself for the battle ahead. “Lower your voice, Roxanne. Elena is somewhere in this house. She doesn’t need to witness another one of our fights.” Her constant need for confrontation was exhausting, but I refused to let our daughter suffer for it.
“You want to leave? Then go,” I said with complete indifference. “I won’t stand in your way. You deserve to find whatever happiness you’re searching for. But Elena stays here
with me.”
A wolf’s instincts don’t lie. I knew she wasn’t mine the moment I caught her scent, but it no longer mattered.
“How could you do this, Julian?” Her voice cut through the air as she emerged from the shadows, her face twisted with anger. “How could you betray everything we built?”
In my bedroom, I closed the door and finally allowed myself to breathe. The adrenaline was fading, leaving behind a wave of regret. I shouldn’t have brought up Elena’s paternity. What if she had been listening? What if she heard even a fragment of that argument? That fear haunted me more than anything else.
“I had some important business to handle,” I said smoothly, the lie coming easily. “But I’m here now. How about we make breakfast together, just you and me?”
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