POV: Jasmine
The press had been relentless since the trial victory, but the pregnancy added fuel to their fire.
"BLACKWOOD BROTHERS' SHARED GIRLFRIEND PREGNANT," screamed the headline on my phone screen. I scrolled past it to the next one: "WHO'S THE DADDY?" demanded another with tabloid glee, complete with side-by-side photos of all three brothers like some twisted game show lineup.
My favorite was the one that called me a "modern polyamorous pioneer" like I'd set out to revolutionize dating instead of just falling in love with three men who happened to be brothers.
I walked into Cadence Records with my shoulders back and my head high, because fuck them. Fuck all of them.
The whispers started before I made it past reception.
"Did you see the Post this morning?"
"I heard she doesn't even know which one—"
"Can you imagine? Three brothers? At the same time?"
Different whispers than before. No longer accusations of sleeping my way to success—those had died when the trial proved Adelyn's sabotage. Now it was speculation about my unconventional family arrangement. Like my uterus was public property up for debate.
I made it to my desk without incident, but the victory was short-lived. Linda Chen from HR appeared at my door before I'd even turned on my computer, wearing that particular expression of manufactured concern that meant nothing good.
"Jasmine, do you have a moment?"
"I have several. Come in."
She settled into the chair across from my desk, smoothing her pencil skirt with practiced precision. "I wanted to check in about your... situation."
"My situation."
"The pregnancy." Linda's smile didn't reach her eyes. "We're all so happy for you, of course. But given the circumstances, the board has some concerns about your workload."
"My workload is fine."
"You should take maternity leave early." The suggestion came wrapped in false sympathy. "For the baby's health."
"I'm ten weeks pregnant, not dying."
"Still, the stress of the work environment..." Linda gestured vaguely at the glass walls, at the office beyond where people were definitely still watching us. "The media attention, the speculation. It can't be good for the baby."
"The only stress is this conversation."
Linda's smile flickered. "I'm just trying to help—"
"No, you're trying to remove me quietly so the board doesn't have to deal with the PR headache of a pregnant woman whose personal life makes them uncomfortable." I leaned forward. "I know my rights, Linda. I know exactly what constitutes pregnancy discrimination, and I have three very motivated lawyers who would love nothing more than to add another lawsuit to our recent legal victories."
The silence stretched between us like a wire about to snap.
"I'll let the board know you're feeling well," Linda said finally, standing. "But if you change your mind about leave—"
"I won't."
She left without another word.
The brothers had circled protectively since the pregnancy announcement, but I could feel the distance growing between them like cracks spreading through ice.
Asher threw himself into work with grim determination, arriving before dawn and leaving after midnight. We'd barely spoken since the DNA results. Since he'd called me a convenient fuck and walked out. He'd apologized through Liam—too cowardly to face me directly—but the words still lived under my skin like splinters.
Finn's jokes had an edge of desperation now, the humor sharp enough to draw blood. He'd make some quip about baby names or nursery colors, and his eyes would go hollow halfway through, like even he didn't believe the performance anymore.
Only Liam remained steady. But the weight of carrying everyone was clearly wearing on him. I caught him staring into space during meetings, saw the exhaustion he tried to hide behind his golden retriever smile. He was holding the family together through sheer force of will, and the cracks were starting to show.
At lunch, Nora materialized at my desk like she'd been summoned by my misery.
"Conference room. Now. I brought tacos and truth bombs."
I followed her to the small meeting room on the third floor, the one with no windows where people went to cry or have affairs. She'd already spread out food from my favorite truck, but her expression said this wasn't a social call.
"You look like shit," she announced, sliding a container toward me.
"Thanks. Very supportive."
"I'm serious." Nora crossed her arms, fixing me with that fierce stare that had intimidated opposing counsel into settlements. "You're letting this happen to you. The whispers, the HR ambush, all of it. You're just taking it."
"What am I supposed to do? Fight everyone individually?"
"You need to address this. The office rumors, the brothers pulling apart, all of it." She jabbed a finger at me. "Silence is letting everyone else control your narrative. You're the victim of your own story right now, and that's not the Jasmine I know."
"The Jasmine you know is exhausted and pregnant and watching her family fall apart in slow motion."
"Then fix it." Nora's voice softened slightly. "You've survived worse than this. Foster care. Leo's debt. That psycho Adelyn trying to destroy your career. You didn't let any of that break you."
"This is different."
"How?"
"Because this time I actually have something to lose." The words came out raw. "Before, I was fighting for survival. Now I'm fighting for a life I actually want, and that's terrifying."
Nora reached across the table and grabbed my hand. "Then fight harder. Stop letting the press write your story. Stop letting HR push you around. Stop waiting for the brothers to figure their shit out." She squeezed once, hard. "Own your narrative before someone else steals it."
"What am I supposed to say? 'Yes, I'm pregnant by one of three men who all consider themselves the father, and no, we don't think that's weird'?"
"Actually, yes." Nora's expression went fierce. "Exactly that. Say it loud, say it proud, and watch everyone choke on their own judgment."
I stared at her, something shifting in my chest. She was right. She was absolutely right, and I'd been too tired to see it.
That evening, I found Liam in the living room, staring at his laptop without really seeing it. The sunset painted everything gold, and he looked beautiful and broken and mine.
"Hey." I settled onto the couch beside him. "I need to talk to you about something."
He closed the laptop immediately, giving me his full attention. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong. Something's right, actually." I took a breath. "I want to give an interview. Tell our side. All of it—the scandal, Adelyn, the pregnancy. Everything."
His eyebrows rose. "An interview?"
"Nora's right. We've been letting everyone else control the story." I reached for his hand. "But I want to do it with just you."