"How could everything go so wrong?" I whispered to myself, pacing back and forth in my bedroom. My heels clicked against the hardwood floor, and I clenched my fists tightly, my nails biting into my palms, and forming a crescent line mimicking the ends of my nails. No matter how many times I replayed the last few days in my head, the outcome did not change. Dominic knew. He knew he was the father of Samantha’s twins, and now, he could not seem to stay away from them.
This was not how it was supposed to be.
I sank onto the edge of my bed, burying my face in my hands. Every breath I took felt shallow with each exhale carried with frustration. I had imagined this going differently, so differently. I thought Dominic would be angry. Furious, even. I thought he would storm into Samantha’s life and rip her apart for hiding the truth from him. And I thought he would be grateful to me for showing him the light, for helping him uncover the truth.
But instead... instead, he turned all his focus onto them. Those kids. And her.
I ran my fingers through my hair, tugging slightly as tears pricked at the corners of my eyes. “He was supposed to choose me,” I muttered with a cracking voice. “After everything I have done, he was supposed to choose me.”
I felt invisible now, like I did not even exist in Dominic’s world anymore. All his attention, all his care, it was for them. The twins and Samantha. Not me. Never me. My stomach churned as a sick, twisted ache settled in my chest. I could not believe this. I wouldn’t believe it.
The door creaked open, and I stiffened, quickly wiping my eyes as my father stepped inside and his eyes immediately landed at me.
“Olivia,” he uttered with a mix of sternness and concern. “I have been hearing you pace like a caged animal for the past hour. What is going on?” he asked.
I glared at him, my anger bubbling to the surface. “What’s going on?” I repeated bitterly. “Everything is falling apart, that’s what’s going on.”
He raised an eyebrow, stepped further into the room, and closed the door behind him. “Be specific, sweetheart. What exactly is falling apart?”
I let out a sharp, frustrated breath, gesturing wildly with my hands. “Dominic! He does not care about me anymore, Dad. All he cares about are those stupid kids and that woman. He knows they are his, and now he can’t stay away from them!”
My father’s expression hardened after a flicker of surprise on his face. “That’s not possible,” he said firmly. “The twins aren’t his.”
My throat tightened as panic surged through me. The words tumbled out before I could stop them. “But they are his.”
His eyes narrowed sharply. “What did you just say?”
I froze for a moment, my breath catching in my throat. I knew my father would be furious to learn this, but there was no point in lying now. The truth was out. Dominic had been his golden boy prepared for me, and he did all he could to get him, for me. Yet now, everything seemed to be crumbling down.
I swallowed hard, my voice trembling as I admitted, “The ritual. We performed a ritual to confirm their paternity, and it revealed that Dominic is their father.”
For a moment, my father did not say anything. He just stared at me, his jaw clenching as he processed what I had just said. When he finally spoke, I could sense the underlying fury in his voice. “You performed a ritual?”
I nodded, my stomach twisting painfully. “I had to,” I said quickly, trying to justify myself. “I needed to know the truth. Dominic needed to know the truth. But I did not think it would end . I thought he would be furious at Samantha. I thought he would take the kids away from her and finally...” My voice broke. “Finally, see me. I thought he would be grateful to me, that he would choose me!”
“And instead, he is running back to her,” my father finished for me.
Tears welled in my eyes again, and I bit my lip to keep them from falling. “He doesn’t even look at me anymore, Dad. He is so focused on them. On her. I do not exist to him.”
My father let out a slow, measured breath, and I could see the shift in his expression, from worry to a threatening darkness. “Do you realize how reckless this was, Olivia?” he uttered, he sounded calm but I knew it was laced with anger. “Do you understand the position you have put yourself in? You have handed Dominic a reason to reconnect with those children and that woman, and now you are surprised that he is acting like a father?”
“I did not think he would choose them over me!” I cried, my voice rising. “I thought he would see what I did for him and be grateful. I thought he would hate Samantha, not... not run back to her!”
My father’s gaze softened slightly as he sat down beside me, but there was still an edge to his voice when he spoke. “Listen to me, Olivia,” he spoke firmly. “It does not matter how much Dominic cares for those children. It doesn’t matter how well he treats them or how much time he spends with them. At the end of the day, they are not his kids.”
“But they are his kids,” I insisted.
“Not in my eyes,” my father replied sharply. “And not in anyone else’s unless we allow them to be. Do you understand me?”
I stared at him, my chest heaving as I struggled to breathe. “What... what are you saying?”
“I’m saying,” he continued, “that this is not over. Dominic might think he has a claim to those children, but he doesn’t. You made a mistake, Olivia, but it is not one we can’t recover from. I will handle this.”
His words sent a chill down my spine. I knew my father, he could be ruthless, and I was very much aware of the connections he held for the benefit of the pack. “You’ll handle it?” I asked cautiously.
“Yes,” he said, standing and straightening his suit jacket. “You do not need to worry about the how. Just trust me. Everything will be fine.”
As he walked out of the room, I sat frozen. How are you going to handle this, Dad? I wondered with dread curling in my stomach. Whatever his plan was, I knew one thing for certain: it would not end peacefully.