After One Night with the Alpha (Brad and Elle) novel Chapter 10

**The Billionaire Who Claimed My Heart and Who Broke Fate for Me**

I found myself standing in the living room, caught in the crosshairs of Grace’s piercing gaze. Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps broke the tension, drawing both of our attentions. Mom appeared from the back room, her weary eyes widening with surprise and concern as she laid eyes on me. Trailing closely behind her was Megan, her ever-critical stare locking onto my hospital attire as if it were a crime scene.

“Elle!” Mom exclaimed, rushing toward me with a mixture of relief and worry etched across her features. She enveloped me in a warm embrace that felt both comforting and suffocating. “I’ve been so worried about you! I called your apartment multiple times—last weekend, I even went there, but no one answered.”

As she pulled back, confusion knitted her brows together. “But why are you wearing hospital clothes? Are you sick? What on earth happened to you?”

Megan leaned casually against the doorframe, arms crossed, a smirk playing on her lips. “Probably caught something in that fancy part of town where she works. You know, all those werewolves carrying who knows what kind of diseases.”

I inhaled deeply, my heart racing like a wild drum in my chest. This was the moment I had dreaded the most, the moment I had rehearsed in my head countless times. How do you break the news to your family that you are unexpectedly pregnant with the child of a werewolf Alpha and are about to become his mate?

“I need to talk to you all about something important,” I began, my voice surprisingly steady despite the turmoil inside. “It’s… complicated.”

Grace huffed impatiently, her arms crossing over her chest. “Well? Spit it out. Who was that man who brought you here? Another one of your poor choices in men after Jason left you?”

“He’s… a colleague. Sort of,” I replied, rubbing my forehead as a headache threatened to bloom. “Look, a lot has happened in the past few weeks.”

Mom gently urged me to sit on our old, worn-out couch, her face a mask of concern. “You can tell us anything, honey. Whatever it is, remember we are family.”

I nodded, steeling myself for what I was about to reveal. “I’m… I’m pregnant.”

The silence that followed was deafening, a heavy weight that seemed to freeze the air around us. For a moment, it felt as though time had stopped, and everyone had turned to stone. Then, chaos erupted.

“You’re WHAT?” Grace’s voice sliced through the silence like a whip, sharp and accusatory. “After everything we’ve done for you! This is how you repay us? By bringing shame to this family! Is it that Jason boy? Did he leave you with a bun in the oven before running off?”

Mom sat frozen beside me, her face drained of color, her mouth opening and closing in shock, but no words came out. Finally, she managed to whisper, “Oh, Elle. How… how far along are you? Have you seen a doctor?”

Megan’s reaction was exactly what I had expected—a mean-spirited smirk spread across her face like a cat who had just caught a mouse. “Who’s the lucky guy?” she asked, feigning curiosity. “Who would even look at Elle? Probably some old, ugly, short, hideous balding man, right? Or maybe one of those desperate human janitors from your building?” She laughed at her own joke, the sound grating on my nerves. “God, Elle, couldn’t you at least try to find someone with prospects?”

“It’s not like that,” I protested, my voice shrinking under the weight of their scrutiny.

“Then what is it like?” Grace demanded, her tone sharp and unforgiving. “Some one-night stand? A werewolf from work taking advantage of you? Did you really think that spreading your legs for your boss would get you promoted?”

Her words cut deeper than she could possibly know. I winced, and Grace immediately picked up on my discomfort.

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