Kayden

I stood angrily at the entrance of Leo and Miller’s room, the tablet gripped tightly in my hand as the proposal video played on loop for the third time.

The screen glowed with the beautiful but now disastrous footage: Rhys dropping to one knee on the lantern-lit sand, my tearful acceptance, the fireworks exploding overhead in brilliant bursts of gold and rose, and all of us cheering like fools in the background.

It should have been a private, perfect memory. Instead, it was now public property, spreading across the internet like wildfire.

Leo sat up in bed so fast that the sheet slipped dangerously low on his chest and his eyes widened in pure panic as he stared at the tablet. "Oh my God," he gasped, his voice cracking. "I must have uploaded it last night! I remember fumbling with my phone when the video started playing and I was trying to silence it. I must have hit the wrong button. Shit, shit, shit!"

Miller groaned beside him, rubbing his face with one hand while the other kept the sheet wrapped around his waist. Both of them looked thoroughly debauched, their hair messy, necks covered in fresh marks, and skin still flushed from what was clearly a very active night.

I heaved a deep sigh as I turned the tablet towards them again, my finger jabbing at the screen. "Look at this! Just look! The video has over two million views already and it’s only been a few hours. Also the headlines are insane," I muttered as I started reading them out loud.

"So Kayden Vale is with Rhys Calder?"

"He proposed yet they can’t give answers to the public’s opinion?"

"Is this a real or fake proposal to cover their scandal?"

I scrolled further, my stomach twisting with every headline and then the comments. "Everyone is on fire online. The comments are even worse. Someone wrote, ’This is disgusting. An omega pretending to be an alpha trapped a real alpha.’ Another one says, ’Cute proposal but we all know omegas like him only want the fame and money.’ And don’t even get me started on the ones calling me a gold digger or saying I manipulated Rhys with pheromones. What the hell is wrong with people?"

My hands were shaking as I scrolled through more comments. I had not expected that we would go viral like this and even though Leo had not intentionally posted it, this wasn’t how I had intended to let everyone know.

"The internet is tearing me apart."

"Hey," Rhys appeared behind me in the doorway, his hand gently touching my lower back. "Kayden, breathe," he said softly, his voice calm and steady like it always was when I started spiraling. "You need to calm down."

"I am calm!" I snapped, then immediately heaved a deep sigh and rubbed my temple. "Okay... maybe I am not calm. But how can I be? This was supposed to be private. Now it’s everywhere and people are being horrible about it," I looked at Rhys and lowered my head gently. "What should we do now, Rhys? I haven’t even gotten through the backlash of the reveal and now this?"

Leo climbed out of bed, quickly wrapping the sheet around his waist like a makeshift toga. "Listen, Kayden. I know you are mad, I am too at myself and the damages that I have caused. But first thing first, you two should leave the room so Miller and I can actually get dressed. We will be out in two minutes. Promise."

Rhys nodded and took my hand gently. His fingers intertwined with mine as he pulled me away from the entrance. "Come on, baby. Let’s go."

I didn’t protest and simply followed him. Once we reached the living room, he guided me to the big couch overlooking the ocean and sat down beside me.

The morning light streamed in through the large windows, making the whole space feel too bright, but that was the least of my concerns.

I was fuming with anger over what Leo had done.

"Deep breaths," Rhys murmured beside me, turning to face me fully. "We are going to resolve this. We always do."

I tried to breathe but angrily, I released my pheromones and the reaction I got from Rhys was immediate.

He leaned closer as his nostrils flared slightly then he pointed towards me. "Your... scent has changed. It smells sweeter now and carrying another flavor that..."

I blinked at him, confused about what he was trying to say. "How? What do you mean?"

Before Rhys could answer, Leo and Miller walked into the living room, now fully clothed in shorts and t-shirts.

"I am sorry for the damages that I have caused," Leo started, rubbing the back of his head as he stood at the center of the room. "But I have got news for everyone." He started pacing around.

I gave him a questioning look when he didn’t say anything else and beckoned to him to continue.

"Well, firstly let me apologize again. I had been half-asleep and clumsy last night. I never meant to share the video."

"Oh alright," I responded immediately, curious about what the news he got. "So?" I demanded, sounding impatient even though that was not what I had intended.

I was just in a really bad mood.

Leo’s expression shifted almost immediately with a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "The good news is that my uncle just texted me," he raised his phone up.

"And..." it was Miller who spoke this time, the impatience in his tone louder than mine.

"My uncle finalized the acquisition of the Northern Avalanche. The deal is done and we officially own the team now!"

The room went silent for a second as the words sank in.

I stood up almost immediately, dropped the tablet beside me and walked towards him. "Wait... he owns the Northern Avalanche now?"

Leo nodded, looking proud and also a little nervous. "I didn’t expect it to be this soon. I mean I had expected it would take weeks, even months but he texted me now to tell me that he had gotten it!" He screamed and pumped his fists up.

I let out a gasp and then screamed loudly then I took Leo’s hand and we started jumping around the room. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

The celebration slowly wound down as the morning stretched on, the initial burst of excitement giving way to a more reflective atmosphere in the living room. We had jumped around like children for a solid ten minutes, laughing and shouting about the Northern Avalanche acquisition, but now the reality of what it all meant began to settle over us.

It meant our vacation was over.

Leo stood in the middle of the room, still looking a little guilty but clearly proud of the news he had delivered. He rubbed the back of his neck and cleared his throat before speaking again. "There is something else I need to tell you all. My uncle is arriving in Oak City on Monday. He wants to see both Rhys and Kayden specifically. He said it is important and he wants to discuss the future of the team with you two in person."

Rhys heaved a deep sigh, running a hand through his hair as he processed the information. "That is good news, actually. Meeting your uncle and talking about the team ownership directly will help us get ahead of everything. It is a solid step forward."

I nodded in agreement, squeezing Rhys’s hand gently. "Yes, it is good news. We need to start taking control of our narrative anyway, especially after last night. Meeting him feels like the right move."

Miller clapped his hands together once, a wide grin spreading across his face. "Well, this means the vacation on this island has officially come to an end. We have to head back sooner than we planned and face the real world again."

Everyone’s expressions shifted immediately. Leo let out a dramatic groan and flopped back onto the couch. Miller’s grin faltered as he realized what he had just said. Rhys rubbed his temple and sighed again, while I felt a small pang of disappointment twist in my chest.

"I don’t want to leave yet," I admitted quietly. "This island has been our safe bubble. The moment we step off it, everything gets loud again. The haters are probably going to be on our faces the instant we arrive."

Leo sat up straighter and looked genuinely remorseful. "I am really sorry again for last night. The video leak was my mistake. I was half-asleep and clumsy and I never meant for any of this to blow up the way it did."

I waved my hand dismissively, though the frustration still simmered beneath the surface. "It is alright, Leo. The haters can go fuck themselves. We are not going to let them ruin what we have. This is our life, not theirs."

Leo nodded and then he sniffed the air then he looked at me. "Did you wear perfume? You smell a little bit different today?" he pointed out.

I sniffed myself in response to him. "Rhys pointed it out earlier. It is sweeter now and there is another flavor underneath it. I do not know what it means."

Rhys nodded from beside me. "Yes, I noticed it too. It changed when you got angry, but it has stayed different since then."

Leo’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. He studied me carefully for a moment, his medical brain clearly kicking into high gear. "Interesting. Once we return to Oak City, I am going to run some tests. A full hormonal panel, pheromone analysis, and a pregnancy test to check for any early changes in your endocrine system. In pairings like yours, scent shifts can sometimes indicate implantation or early gestational hormonal surges, especially after a strong bonding moment during your heat."

The room went completely silent as soon as he said that.

I stared at him, my mouth opening and closing without any sound coming out at first. "A pregnancy test?" I finally repeated. "You think I could be...?"

Leo shrugged. "It is just a possibility we should check. Better to know early than to be surprised later. Your scent change is a classic indicator."

Miller let out a low whistle and clapped his hands. "Well, shit. This vacation just got even more interesting."

Rhys pulled me closer to his side, his arm wrapping protectively around my shoulders. "Whatever the tests say, we will handle it together and I will always be here for you."