The Devil's Contractual Bride-Chapter 17: Three

Aria’s Pov

I woke up the next morning to a severe headache.

My head felt like someone had taken a hammer to it, and my mouth tasted like a mixture of cotton and sour milk.

I reached for my phone on the nightstand,a habit I had formed ever since I turned into a "celebrity". The screen lit up with a flood of notifications before I could even unlock it.

Breaking news alerts. Dozens of them.

**"Lucian Voss Released on Emergency Bail After Overnight Hearing"**

**"Billionaire CEO Walks Free—Power Play or Justice?"**

**"Voss Arrest: Unconstitutional Release or Elite Privilege?"**

**"Wife’s Viral Confession—Did Aria Thorne Save Her Husband?"**

I sat up so fast the room tilted.

Lucian was out.

I opened the first article. The headline screamed:

**"In a stunning late-night decision, Lucian Voss was granted emergency bail after only hours in custody. Legal experts call it unprecedented. Critics say it’s proof the rich play by different rules."**

There was a photo of Lucian stepping out of the police station at 3 a.m., suit rumpled, his face deviant of a smile nor relief.

The comments were already a war zone.

"Money talks, justice walks."

"His wife probably paid someone off."

"She lied to protect him—typical gold-digger."

"Power play. The system is rigged for men like Voss."

I dropped the phone. My hands shook.

He was out. And he hadn’t called or texted me.Neither has he come home.

The penthouse felt bigger and colder than ever. I stood up on unsteady legs, wrapped the robe around myself, and walked to the living room.

I checked the time. 9:17 a.m.

He should have been home hours ago.

I paced. Made coffee I didn’t drink and I stared at the front door like it might open on its own.

At 10:42 a.m., the elevator dinged.

My heart jumped into my throat.

Lucian stepped out.

He looked exhausted with dark circles under his eyes. He didn’t look at me. He walked straight past the living room toward the master suite like I wasn’t even there.

I stood frozen.

"Lucian."

He didn’t stop.

I followed him. "Lucian—talk to me."

He disappeared into the bedroom. The door closed behind him with a loud jam.

I stared at the wood like it had personally betrayed me.

It was obvious he was ignoring me but I will not take it.Not this time.I banged on the door. "Open the door, Lucian. We need to talk."

Silence.

I banged again. Harder. "You can’t just ignore me after all this drama. You can’t just walk in here like nothing happened."

The door opened.

Lucian stood there, shirt half-unbuttoned, his eyes tired and cold.

"What do you want, Aria?" His voice was flat. He was not angry but it sounded distant.

I stepped inside. "I saw the news. You’re out. You’re home. And you won’t even look at me."

He walked past me to the dresser, started unbuttoning his cuffs. "I’m tired. I need a shower. We can talk later."

"No." I grabbed his arm. "We talk now. You were arrested because of me. You beat Ethan because of me. And now the whole world thinks I’m the reason you’re free. They’re calling me a curse again. And you won’t even say anything."

He looked down at my hand on his arm. Then up at me. His eyes were dark. "You went live without telling me."

I blinked. "What?"

"You went live. You posted evidence. You spoke for both of us without asking me first Aria." His gaze was stern,as if he was holding in a built up rage. "You think you helped? You made it worse."

I let go of his arm. "I was trying to protect you."

"You were trying to protect yourself," he said quietly. "You were scared of what Ethan would release so you spoke first. You didn’t trust me to handle it."

"That’s not true—"

"Isn’t it?" He stepped closer. "I told you to stay put. I told you my lawyers were moving. I told you I’d be out by morning but you just couldn’t help yourself.You went public and now the narrative is out of control."

I felt tears burn behind my eyes. "I thought I was helping."

"You thought you were saving yourself," he said. "And maybe you did. But you also painted a target on both of us."

Silence stretched between us.

I searched his face. "You’re disappointed in me."

He looked away. "I’m disappointed you didn’t believe in me."

The words hit harder than I expected.

I stepped back. "I... I didn’t know what else to do. The world was tearing me apart again and Ethan was threatening me. I thought if I told the truth—"

"You told part of the truth," he said. "And now Ethan has the rest. He’ll twist it, say you’re covering for me. Probably add that we framed him together and because you spoke first, people will believe him."

I felt the floor tilt under me.

"I didn’t mean—"

"I know," he said quietly. "But intent doesn’t change consequences."

He walked past me toward the bathroom. "I need a shower. We’ll talk after."

I watched him go and close the door behind him

Then the room tilted,my vision blurred.My knees buckled like I was no longer in control of them.

I knocked over the vase that stood by the door .I didn’t know what was happening but I could see Lucian rushing out of the room. He caught me before I hit the floor.

"Aria?"

Everything went black.

***""

I woke to white walls and beeping machines.I was in the hospital.

A doctor stood over me, smiling gently. Lucian was beside him, holding my hand, eyes red-rimmed but steady.

"You’re awake," the doctor said. "Good. We ran some tests."

I tried to sit up. Lucian seeing that, stretched forward and helped me as I relaxed myself on the hospital bed frame.

"What happened?" I whispered.

"You collapsed," Lucian said. " I’m guessing it’s from stress or exhaustion."

The doctor smiled wider. "And congratulations, Mrs. Voss."

I blinked. "What?"

"You’re pregnant."