Reclaimed By My Alpha (Natalia and Andrei) novel Chapter 175

Chapter 175

Natalia & Andrei

Natalia

Over the following days, I still allowed Andrei to keep his visitation rights, simply because I knew the twins wanted to see him and I was trying to be reasonable. Perhaps a small part of me also hoped that if I let him see them enough, he wouldn’t try to do anything legally.

It was during one of these visits that he found out about the fashion show.

“Daddy, guess what!” Jane blurted out before I could stop her. “We’re going to be in a family fashion show!”

I was in the kitchen making dinner, and I could feel Andrei’s eyes on me before I even turned around.

“A fashion show?” he asked.

“Yeah!” Jane grinned. “Mommy and Uncle Damon are going to be in it too!”

Fantastic. I had hoped that I could at least get through the fashion show without Andrei knowing; of course he would find out after, but at least it would be over before he could have a chance to intervene.

“It’s for charity,” I said calmly, wiping my hands on a dish towel and turning to face him.

“And Damon’s participating.”

“Yes.”

“As their father?”

I set the towel down on the counter. “As their publicly acknowledged father, yes.”

“I’m their biological father.” Andrei frowned. “Natalia, let me be the one in the show with you and the twins. Not Damon.”

“That’s not possible.”

“Why not?”

“Because it would cause a scandal.” I moved to the stove and stirred the pasta sauce, needing something to do with my hands. “Everyone knows Damon as their father. Everyone knows me as his Luna. If you suddenly appear in a family charity event with us, people are going to ask questions.”

Andrei was quiet for a long moment. “So that’s it? I’m supposed to just accept that Damon gets to play father in public while I’m relegated to secret afternoon visits?”

“For now, yes.”

“For how long?”

“I don’t know. Maybe forever. You have Lilith to think about now. And your baby. Building a family with her.”

Something flickered across his face when I mentioned the pregnancy. Not joy or anticipation like I would have

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expected from a man about to become a father. Something darker. Almost like regret.

“What’s wrong?” I asked before I could stop myself.

“Nothing’s wrong.”

“You made a face when I mentioned the baby.”

“I didn’t make a face.”

“Yes, you did. Why don’t you seem happy about it?”

Andrei was quiet for so long I thought he wasn’t going to answer. Finally, he just shrugged. And for the rest of the night, I didn’t get any clarification.

Over the next week, Catherine sent me all of the details for the charity fashion show. The photo shoots would be the following weekend, with the actual show scheduled for the weekend after that.

The day of our first photo shoot, we were all getting ready in my bedroom. Jane was twirling in her little dress while I applied mascara. Max was sitting on my bed, already dressed and fidgeting with his bow tie.

“Do I have to wear this?” he complained for the tenth time.

“Yes,” I said firmly. “And stop pulling at it or you’ll wrinkle your shirt.”

Max groaned and jumped up from the bed, but his foot caught as he leapt up. He went down hard, and his knee connected with the sharp corner of the bedframe. He cried out, eyes going wide and immediately filling with

tears.

“Max!” I started toward him, but he was already running.

And instead of running to me like he always had when he was hurt, Max bolted past me and out of the room.

“Daddy!” he called out.

I followed him down the hallway and found him launching himself into Andrei’s arms.

Andrei

“Daddy!”

I had just stepped through the front door when I heard Max’s little voice coming from upstairs. Before I could react, he had barreled down the stairs and directly into me.

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