One Night Mistake… Now I Carry the Mafia Heir

Chapter 57: 57/The Question of Betrayal

Chapter 57

Stephanie’s Point of View

I couldn’t believe my ears. Had I turned into a mere doll they were debating over who gets to take to their room? I felt the blood boiling in my veins as Mr. Victor rose from his seat, slamming his hand onto the table and shouting in a rage: "What insolence, Cedric!"

Alex stood up suddenly, his muscles tightening as if he were about to pounce, but I quickly extended my hand and stopped him, saying in a firm tone: "You will not move."

Cedric laughed mockingly. "Why are you all acting like this? Why do you treat Alex and Stephanie’s marriage as if it’s real? Alex is just a substitute for me, and I will be her man inside this house!"

Every word that came out of his mouth stabbed at my dignity and made me feel ashamed. Mr. Victor shouted at his face: "Do you realize what you’re saying, Cedric? Have you lost your mind?"

Alexander growled in a low voice, thick with rage: "She is my wife inside the house and outside of it. Do you hear me?"

Cedric took a defiant step toward Alex. "Have you set your sights on her that quickly? Aren’t you ashamed of yourself, looking at your brother’s girl?"

Alex was about to explode. "Listen, Cedric..."

But I interrupted them with a sharp voice that shook the room: "Stop this!"

A sudden silence fell, and everyone looked at me in shock. "I don’t want you to treat me as a mere object with no opinion," I said, my voice trembling from the intensity of my emotion. "You talk about me as if I’m not a human being!"

Cedric tried to soften his tone as he took a step closer. "Stephanie, I didn’t mean that."

I pointed my index finger at his face and said sternly: "Do not talk to me, and do not talk about me! I will not allow you to belittle me. Yes, you are the father of my twins, and that’s where the story ends. I am not your property, and I am not your ’girl’."

Alex turned toward his brother and said in a calm but deadly voice: "Cedric, you need to understand this."

I directed my fiery gaze at Alex. "I am not anyone’s property here. Not yours, not his, not anyone’s!"

Alex froze in place, looking at me with shock and a slight trace of heartbreak that I didn’t care for. Mr. Victor stepped in to end the dispute with his imposing authority: "Let us end this discussion here. I don’t want this repeated. Stephanie is Alexander’s wife, and I want no more arguments about this. Is that understood?"

Silence reigned out of respect for the Grandfather’s final word. I turned toward Mr. Victor and said with feigned dignity: "Excuse me, I want to go up to my room."

Mr. Victor nodded in approval. I turned and walked quickly upstairs. I opened the door to the room and entered, but before I could close it, Cedric rushed in behind me, saying passionately:

"Stephanie, what’s wrong with you? Why are you doing this?"

My body stiffened as I pointed toward the door, my hand shaking with rage. "Cedric, get out of my room this instant!"

He didn’t budge. He took a step forward, his voice becoming more insistent. "I won’t leave until I understand what happened. Why are you angry with me?"

"Get out, Cedric!" I screamed at him, tears nearly escaping my eyes.

He rushed toward me and grabbed my arms gently, looking into my eyes with a sincerity that made my heart flutter. "I wanted to marry you, but my grandfather didn’t allow me to cancel the engagement. I swear to you, Stephanie, you are the only girl in my heart."

I felt a chill run through me. Was this true? Was everything I thought about him wrong?

At that moment, the door burst open and Alex entered. His features hardened the moment he saw Cedric in the room. He growled in a terrifying voice: "What are you doing here?"

I looked at Alex. I needed to hear the truth from Cedric. "Alex, I’m going to talk to him," I said in a faint voice. "Give us five minutes."

Alex’s eyes widened in shock. He took a step back as if I had stabbed him. "What?"

"Please, go outside," I repeated pleadingly. "I’m going to talk to him."

I caught the glint of annoyance and jealousy burning in Alex’s eyes, but he exhaled in frustration and walked out, slamming the door hard behind him.

I turned toward Cedric and said sharply: "You say your grandfather didn’t let you cancel the engagement. Why?"

He wiped his face with his hand nervously. "Stephanie, my fiancée is the daughter of a major Mafia boss. Our engagement was made for family interests only. I don’t love her, and I don’t even go near her!"

My defensive walls began to crumble. Was this engagement a shackle he couldn’t control? I asked him bitterly: "But if you were engaged, why did you sleep with me that day? Why did you tell me to be your girlfriend?"

He lowered his head, showing signs of devastation as he whispered: "Because I felt so weak for you that I chose to forget I was engaged."

I felt my heart break. Did he truly love me and want me, while I thought he preferred someone else? Cedric started to say: "Stephanie, listen..."

Suddenly, his speech cut off. His entire body went rigid, and his jaw clenched tightly as he stared at the floor with a gaze as sharp as a sword. I followed his gaze, and a coldness swept through my limbs. He was looking at the torn white wedding dress lying on the floor.

He walked toward it with heavy steps, bent down, and picked it up with a hand that had begun to shake with extreme rage. Then he turned to me, his eyes burning with a fire of jealousy and madness, and asked in a choked voice:

"Did you fuck my brother?"