Chapter 502

Vivian set the water bottle down with trembling fingers, smoothing her dress with deliberate movements. Serena still lingered by the door, her gaze piercing like shards of ice. The air between them crackled with unspoken tension.

"Are you going to stand there all day?" Vivian arched an eyebrow, her voice laced with quiet challenge.

Serena stepped forward, her designer heels clicking sharply against the marble floor. "Morning sickness?" she demanded without preamble. "Tell me you're not pregnant with Adrian's child."

The words hit Vivian like a physical blow. She'd been pushing the thought away for days - the nausea, the fatigue, the strange metallic taste in her mouth. But hearing it voiced aloud made the possibility terrifyingly real.

"That's rich," Vivian countered, forcing a laugh that sounded hollow even to her own ears. "Coming from the woman who couldn't even get him to touch her." She saw the barb land as Serena's perfect composure fractured for just an instant.

Serena's manicured nails dug crescent moons into her palms. "He loved me first," she hissed. "He'll always love me."

Vivian slipped her shoes back on with deliberate slowness. "Love is such a fickle thing, isn't it?" She tilted her head, letting her hair fall in a golden curtain. "Funny how he's the one sharing my bed every night. Tell me, Serena - does it keep you up at night? Wondering what we're doing while you're alone in that penthouse he bought you?"

The ribbon-cutting ceremony loomed ahead, an opportunity Vivian couldn't afford to miss. She needed allies now more than ever, especially with Adrian's attention divided between business in Silverpine and whatever twisted game he was playing with Serena.

"Move," Vivian commanded, brushing past her rival with deliberate casualness. The scent of Serena's expensive perfume - something floral and cloying - made her stomach churn again.

Hours later, in the pristine bathroom of Opal Galleria, Vivian stared at the plastic stick in her shaking hands. The faint second line mocked her, a whisper of possibility that could unravel everything. She googled frantically, her breath coming in short gasps as the search results confirmed her worst fear.

Early pregnancy.

The words blurred before her eyes as the weight of their meaning settled over her like a shroud.