Chapter 8: The Truth Behind Pepper's Lie

I stared at the message until the words blurred.

"She lied to both of us."

For a moment, I couldn't breathe.

Beck stood across the kitchen, watching me carefully.

"Rowan?"

I locked my phone.

"It's Camden."

Beck's expression didn't change.

"What does he want?"

"He says Pepper lied."

A quiet pause settled between us.

Beck walked toward me, but he stopped several feet away.

"Do you want to know what he means?"

I didn't answer immediately.

Part of me wanted to throw the phone into the sink and never hear Camden's name again.

Another part of me needed to know.

Not because I still cared about Camden.

Because I refused to let another secret follow me into my new life.

"Yes," I finally said.

I unlocked my phone.

There were three new messages.

"Pepper told you I married her because of the baby."

"That's not the truth."

"The baby isn't mine."

My hand went completely still.

I read the last sentence again.

Then again.

The baby isn't mine.

Beck noticed my face change.

"What did he say?"

I turned the phone toward him.

He read the message.

His jaw tightened slightly.

"Do you believe him?"

I shook my head.

"I don't know."

That was the truth.

Camden had lied to me before.

He'd hidden an entire marriage from me.

He'd stood beside Pepper while she carried his supposed child.

He'd told me that everything would somehow work out.

Why should I believe him now?

Another message appeared.

"I can prove it."

I stared at the screen.

Then a photograph arrived.

It showed a document.

A laboratory report.

At the bottom was a name I recognized.

Camden.

My heart began beating faster.

The report stated that he was not the biological father.

I couldn't look away.

Beck took a slow breath.

"That's a paternity test."

"I know."

"It could be fake."

"I know."

"Then don't let him pull you back in."

I looked at Beck.

"I'm not going back."

He held my gaze.

"Good."

I looked down at the photograph again.

Something about it bothered me.

Not the result.

The timing.

Why would Camden suddenly have proof now?

Why hadn't he known before marrying Pepper?

Why had he allowed everyone to believe the baby was his?

And why was he telling me only after I'd left?

I typed a message.

"If you're telling the truth, send me everything. Not explanations. Evidence."

The response came quickly.

"Meet me."

I immediately typed back.

"No."

Three dots appeared.

"Then I'll come to you."

I blocked the number.

Beck watched me.

"That was probably the right decision."

I nodded.

"I don't want him anywhere near me."

Beck walked toward the kitchen counter and picked up two mugs.

"Coffee?"

I almost smiled.

"You always change the subject when things get too serious."

"No." He handed me a mug. "I change the subject when I think you've had enough for one day."

I took the mug.

The warmth seeped into my fingers.

"Thank you."

"For coffee?"

"For everything."

He looked at me for a moment.

"Don't thank me yet."

"Why?"

"Because I'm about to ask you something."

I raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

He nodded toward the staircase.

"Your room is upstairs."

I blinked.

"My room?"

"I prepared it a long time ago."

I followed him upstairs.

At the end of the hallway, he opened a door.

I stopped breathing.

The room was simple.

Cream walls. A large window. A bookshelf. A desk.

There were fresh sheets on the bed.

And on the nightstand sat a small wooden box.

I walked toward it.

Inside were things I hadn't seen in years.

A friendship bracelet.

An old movie ticket.

A faded photograph.

And two pieces of candy, wrapped carefully in clear plastic.

I stared at them.

"You kept those?"

Beck leaned against the doorway.

"You told me they were your favorite."

I laughed through the tears threatening to fall.

"They've probably expired."

"Definitely."

"You're ridiculous."

"I've been told."

I closed the box.

For the first time in years, memories didn't hurt.

They felt warm.

Safe.

I sat on the edge of the bed.

"Beck."

"Hmm?"

"What if I ruin this?"

He didn't answer immediately.

Then he came over and sat beside me.

"You can't ruin something that we're building together."

I looked at him.

"And what exactly are we building?"

His eyes softened.

"A life."

My chest tightened.

The word sounded enormous.

A life.

Not a wedding for appearances.

Not a family arrangement.

Not a relationship built around someone else's mistake.

A life.

I looked down at my hands.

"I want that."

Beck smiled.

"Then we'll build it."

My phone rang downstairs.

We both froze.

A second later, the doorbell rang.

Beck stood.

"Stay here."

"Who is it?"

"I don't know."

He walked downstairs.

I followed despite his warning.

The door opened.

Beck's body immediately stiffened.

I stepped around him.

And my stomach dropped.

Camden stood on the porch.

He looked exhausted.

His shirt was wrinkled, his hair messy, and his eyes were bloodshot.

But I didn't feel sympathy.

Not anymore.

Beck stepped in front of me.

"You need to leave."

Camden's eyes moved past him.

They landed on me.

"Rowan, please."

"You shouldn't be here."

"I know."

"Then leave."

His expression twisted with desperation.

"I found out the truth yesterday."

"Congratulations."

"The baby isn't mine."

"I saw the report."

"Then you know why I came."

I crossed my arms.

"No. I don't."

He swallowed.

"Because I need to tell you everything before Pepper does."

Beck's voice turned cold.

"She doesn't owe you a conversation."

Camden ignored him.

"Pepper knew the baby wasn't mine before she married me."

I felt something cold move through me.

"How long?"

"Almost six months."

My eyes narrowed.

"Six months?"

"She knew."

"And you didn't?"

"I believed her."

I almost laughed.

"You believed her enough to destroy our wedding."

His face fell.

"I thought the baby was mine."

"And when did you stop thinking that?"

"After the hospital visit."

I stared at him.

"What hospital visit?"

He looked away.

That hesitation made my stomach tighten.

"Camden."

He finally looked at me.

"Pepper had complications during the pregnancy. The doctor ordered tests. That's when I found out."

"And what did you do?"

He lowered his voice.

"I confronted her."

"And?"

"She told me she would destroy my life if I exposed her."

Beck scoffed.

"Convenient."

Camden's eyes hardened.

"You don't know what happened."

"Neither does Rowan."

I raised a hand.

"Enough."

Both men went silent.

I looked at Camden.

"If Pepper threatened you, why didn't you come to me?"

He stared at the ground.

"Because I was ashamed."

The answer surprised me.

Not because it excused anything.

It didn't.

But because for once, he sounded like a man who understood he'd made a terrible mistake.

"You should have told me," I said.

"I know."

"You should have trusted me."

"I know."

"You should have protected what we had."

"I know."

His voice broke.

"I know, Rowan."

I looked away.

A younger version of me would have run into his arms at that moment.

She would have forgiven him.

She would have said they could fix everything.

That girl was gone.

I turned back.

"What do you want from me?"

Camden's eyes filled.

"A chance."

Beck's expression hardened.

I shook my head.

"You had one."

"Rowan—"

"And you wasted it."

He stepped forward.

"I still love you."

The words landed softly.

They didn't hurt.

That was how I knew I was finally free.

"Maybe you do," I said. "But love isn't enough when there is no trust."

Camden wiped his face.

"Then what am I supposed to do?"

I looked at him through the open doorway.

"Live with your choices."

His expression collapsed.

"You're really marrying him?"

I glanced at Beck.

He was standing quietly beside me.

Not demanding an answer.

Not trying to speak for me.

Just there.

"Yes," I said.

"I'm marrying Beck."

Camden looked at him.

Then back at me.

"You don't love him."

I held his gaze.

"Maybe I will."

His face went pale.

"And if you don't?"

"Then I'll learn how to live without love before I ever go back to you."

I closed the door.

My hand remained on the handle for several seconds.

Beck didn't say anything.

He simply placed his hand over mine.

Warm.

Steady.

Real.

Outside, Camden remained silent.

Then his footsteps slowly disappeared down the driveway.

I looked at Beck.

"I thought I would feel something."

"Do you?"

I shook my head.

"No."

He squeezed my hand.

"Then don't force yourself to."

I smiled.

But before I could say anything, my phone buzzed.

This time, it wasn't Camden.

It was an email.

The sender's name made my blood run cold.

Pepper.

The subject line contained only five words.

**You deserve to know who Beck really is.**

I stared at the screen.

Then slowly looked up at the man standing beside me.

For the first time since I arrived at his house, doubt entered my mind.