Mated to My Fiancé’s Alpha King Brother

156 Chapter 186

186 Chapter 186

Damien’s POV

The party was suffocating me

I stood near the refreshment table. Emma’s voice washing over me like white noise Around us, Chicago’s elite mingled and laughed, their champagne glasses catching the light from crystal chandeliers. Everything was perfect. Everything was fake.

Just like this whole goddamn evening.

Li and Adrian were running around with the other kids, their laughter cutting through the adult conversation. At least they were

having fun. At least someone was.

-don’t you think, Damien?”

I had no idea what Emma had just said. Didn’t care either.

But then-

Something shifted. A cold prickle ran down my spine, sharp and immediate. That old instinct, the one I’d honed in years of dealing with

threats and enemies, suddenly screaming at me.

Someone was watching.

My head whipped around, eyes scanning the crowd. Nothing. Just the usual suspects, the usual fake smiles and political maneuvering. I

turned toward the windows overlooking the street.

A sedan sped past. Tinted windows. Gone in a heartbeat.

Nothing else.

Just my paranoia, probably. The stress getting to me.

“Damien? Are you alright?”

Emma’s concerned voice grated on my nerves. I forced my shoulders to relax, unclenched my jaw.

“Fine. Thought I saw someone!”

“Daddy! Daddy, look!” Lily came barreling toward me, her party dress a blur of pink. “I won the ring toss!”

I crouched down, and for the first time all evening, something genuine broke through the numbness. “Did you now?”

She shoved a cheap plastic trophy in my face, beaming with pride. God, she looked so much like her mother when she smiled like that.

My chest constricted.

“That’s amazing, sweetheart”

“I had three cupcakes!” Adrian announced, finally acting like an eight–year–old child, appearing with chocolate smeared across his face

like war paint.

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186 Chapter 186

almost smiled. “I

my handkerchief, wiping his face. These moments–these simple, ordinary moments with my kids–were the only

keeping me sane.

small talk. Forced smiles. Emma playing her role perfectly, laughing

touched my arm,

should never have brought her. But I’d needed someone

stares, the

“Where’s your wife, Damien?”

it true

“Are you getting divorced?”

been a convenient shield.

kept rubbing her eyes, and Adrian’s

played themselves out.

At least they’d sleep well

Emma said, reaching over to

daughter flinched slightly, pressing closer

leave,” I said, checking my watch. Way

thought we might stay for

“The kids are exhausted.”

course.” That smile again.

their party favors like treasure–and I made the obligatory rounds.

they weren’t gossiping about my failed

Let them talk.

stepped outside. Lily shivered, and

want one

wearing yours,

“Oh. Right.” 1

into their car seats, Emma slid into

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186 Chapter 186

seat.

the parking lot before both kids

Lily’s head against the window, plastic trophy still clutched in her little hands. Adrian with chocolate still smeared on

looked so small.

was light.

Toward home.

“Damien.”

voice had changed.

muscle in my body

about today.

for you,” she continued, leaning forward. “Raising them alone. Dealing with everything. You need someone, Damien. Someone who understands your world. Someone who can be there for you

“Emma-”

me not to shake it off violently. “I care about you. I

And I’m good with

The hell they do.

to be there for all three of you. I want to be the person you come home to. The person who helps with

stories. Your partner.”

Partner.

word made bile