133 Tiffany’s Confession
Mara
Tiffany followed me quietly into the left wing. She didn’t say much, but there was something softer in her steps, something open. Like a door slowly creaking wider. She was warming up to me, little by little.
That alone felt like progress.
When we entered the room, she made herself comfortable on the couch and propped her feet up with a sigh of relief.
“They’re killing you?” I asked gently.
A smile tugged at her lips as she nodded. “Yeah. If I don’t keep them elevated, they swell up. Third trimester perks.”
I watched her for a moment, taking mental notes. “Then I guess you’ll be my teacher.”
“You’re lucky, Mara.” Her smile faltered. “You won’t be doing this alone.”
The shift in her expression was subtle but real. I caught it instantly.
“How are things between you two?” I asked.
“He’s trying,” she replied. “Being nice.” But her eyes didn’t match her voice. The smile didn’t reach them.
“What’s bothering you?” I asked, and she blinked, surprised.
“You noticed?”
I nodded. “Your smile didn’t touch your eyes.”
I moved to the couch and sat beside her. Without thinking, I mimicked her posture and swung my legs up onto the center
table.
She giggled. “Not yet, Mara. You’re still early.”
“Might as well start practicing,” I said with a shrug.
Then I looked at her seriously. “Tell me what’s going on, Tiff.”
She hesitated. I could see the resistance in her jaw, the way her fingers tensed.
“I won’t tell anyone-except Lucian, if I absolutely have to. And you know he’s practically mute when it comes to other people’s business.”
That made her smile again, this time a little closer to genuine. “You’re honest,” she said. “That’s why I’ll tell you. You’re not petty. You’ve got nothing to gain from hurting me.”
Her voice got quieter.
“I never planned this. The pregnancy. I thought it only happened when people were… you know, in heat. I’ve had feelings for Darian since we were fourteen. He never noticed. I crushed on him just like you did. But eventually I got brave and asked him out. He didn’t say no. We started spending time together. Martha and my dad encouraged it, and Darian-he
made me believe he was into it too.”
Her gaze dropped.
“But I always knew where his eyes were really looking. At you. Even when he said you two were just friends, I could feel it wasn’t true. I tried to push that aside. We started dating. It felt real… but he didn’t want you to know. Said it would hurt your feelings.”
<133 Tiffany’s Confession
She let out a bitter laugh, but there was no humor in it.
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“I knew then. Deep down, I was just convenient. Something his mom approved of. Maybe something safe while he kept hoping for you. But I was too far in-I wanted to believe he’d eventually choose me. Then came graduation night. After how he treated me at the party, I ended it the next morning. I didn’t even sleep over.”
She wiped at her eyes.
“Two weeks later, I found out I was pregnant. We thought the condom worked… but the baby wasn’t from graduation night. It happened before that-in the car. We didn’t even realize.”
Her voice cracked, but she kept going.
“I wanted to end it. I didn’t want to have a baby for a man who didn’t love me. But my father gave me no choice. He said if I
didn’t keep it-and if I didn’t try to be with Darian-he’d cut me off completely. So I stayed. I thought maybe, just maybe, if
Darian cared at all, he’d step up. Especially now that you’re with Lucian.”
Then the dam broke. She crumpled into tears.
I didn’t say anything. I just stayed there, beside her, feet on the table, feeling the weight of everything she’d held in.
“It wasn’t the rejection that broke me, Mara,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “It was when he denied my baby.
That’s what shattered me.”
Her eyes were puffy, but her gaze burned with quiet pain.
“Look at you-everyone congratulating you. Alpha Vander beaming. And Lucian… Lucian stepped up for Tina. Everyone
knows what she is-how many people she’s fooled-but he still claimed her and her baby like it was nothing. That’s what
a man does.”
She paused, shaking her head like she was trying to erase the memory.
“Darian threw me away like I was trash. He made me feel used, like I was disgusting. He was my first, Mara. The only one
I’ve ever been with. And this is what I get?”
I reached over and gently rubbed her back. She was trembling.
“He’s coming around,” I offered.
She wiped her tears but didn’t look convinced.
“It doesn’t matter anymore,” she said. “I’ve saved up some money. After I have this baby and he gets his damn DNA test,
I’m leaving. For good.”
I stared at her, stunned. “You’re serious?”
“Please don’t tell him. Or anyone. You can tell Lucian-I know you trust him. But make sure he doesn’t breathe a word. I need to get out of this place. Start over somewhere clean. I know the chances of anyone wanting to mate with a single mother are slim, but that’s still better than staying here. Better than raising my child with a man who only ever tolerated
me.”
I swallowed hard, trying to find the right words.
“But he’s trying now, Tiff. He’s showing up.”
She shook her head slowly, the gesture final.
“The damage is done, Mara. You don’t understand what it’s like to cry yourself to sleep every night, wondering what you did wrong. Wondering why you weren’t enough. I begged the moon for a sign, anything-but nothing came. I’ve stopped hoping. I’ve stopped loving him.”
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Her hand moved over her belly, soft and slow. “Now, all the love I have is for this little one. That’s who I’m holding on for.”
I didn’t know what to say. So I asked the only thing that came to mind.
“So you won’t be around to walk me through mine?”
She looked at me then, and for the first time, smiled like she meant it.
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