Amelia’s birthday party arrived in the blink of an eye.

The Zuckerberg family hosted the event at the most expensive and luxurious hotel in Lunova, inviting the elites from both the business and political worlds.

An elder from the Hughes family and Daniel stood on stage, making a grand announcement. “This is Amelia Edwards, the younger daughter of Catherine and Porter Zuckerberg.”

The crowd was in an uproar.

“Didn’t Catherine pass away? How did she end up having another daughter with Porter?”

“She’s gorgeous! She has the same elegance Catherine used to have.”

Amelia stepped forward with a smile. “Hello, everyone. I’m Amelia Edwards.”

Not to be outdone, Landon added, “I’m Amelia’s husband.”

“My brother’s nervous,” Kayla teased from the audience.

Tuff said dotingly, “If it were me, I would be nervous too. The Hughes and Zuckerberg families are serious heavyweights.”

“Exactly. They’ve got my back. You should be nervous. If you ever cross me, they could wipe out the Prescott family,” Kayla said, laughing.

“I’m always nervous,” Tuff replied.

He squeezed Kayla’s hand tightly, wishing he could rip his heart out and show it to her. ‘If only she could see how much I care,’ he thought.

Not far away, Joyce, disguised as a waitress, shot a jealous look their way.

‘So what if you have all those powerful backers, Kayla? You won’t be riding high for long. I’ll take Tuff back one day,’ Joyce thought.

“Ms. Lambert.”

A waiter walked up to her.

“Mr. Lambert wanted me to let you know: It was Tuff who hurt Kayla’s face.”

“What?” Maggie blurted out, totally stunned.

“It’s your move now, Ms. Lambert,” the waiter said before melting into the crowd.

Joyce’s heart was pounding so hard she could barely catch her breath.

‘So that’s what happened… Now I know what to do!’ she thought.

The party was already halfway through. As one of Lunova’s most influential figures, Tuff was busy making rounds, toasting, and mingling with everyone.

When he finally made it back to his seat, he snuggled up to Kayla, looking completely satisfied. “Honey, you’re the only one I love in the world.”

“Come on, have a drink with me,” Kayla said, pouring him a glass.

Tuff was a little tipsy, but he still remembered Kayla couldn’t drink. He suddenly looked at her with concern and blurted out, “Honey, you can’t drink, can you?”

“I’ve got my stand-in,” Kayla said with a playful wink.

Tuff paused for a second, then cracked up. “Bring it on!”

They clinked their glasses, and Tuff knocked back both drinks himself.

The whole fancy party faded into the background as they laughed and drank together.

Tuff and Kayla only saw each other in their eyes. The whole world just faded away. It wasn’t until Giovanna came over to talk about Kayla’s surgery that they snapped out of it.

“Hope you didn’t drink, right? Your surgery’s set for tomorrow morning, and we’ll get you to the hospital tonight,” Giovanna said.

“Alright,” Kayla agreed without hesitation, a spark of excitement in her eyes.

‘Finally, I’m getting my looks back!’ Kayla thought, her heart racing.

“I’ll go with you…” Tuff said.

“Go with her? Go home and be with your son,” Giovanna teased. “Don’t you trust me with your wife?”

“Of course, I trust you. I just can’t stand the thought of my wife being in pain. I want to stay by her side the whole time,” Tuff replied, his words a little slurred, but his eyes full of love.

Giovanna made a gagging gesture. “You’re so mushy! Wait till your wife gets even prettier. You’ll be even more head over heels.”

“She’s already smitten with me,” Tuff said with a cheeky grin.

Kayla blushed, a little embarrassed. She said, “Go home and take care of Landen. If you get bored, drop him off at the Zuckerberg family. I’ll be back in a few days after the surgery.”

“Alright!” Tuff agreed, looking like a lovesick puppy.

Giovanna rolled her eyes and stood up. “Alright, I’m outta here! I can’t handle all this lovey-dovey stuff.”

“Hey, Tuff,” someone suddenly called out.

Kayla glanced over and didn’t recognize the guy. She looked down at her phone instead.

She’d had all the social training growing up in the Kingsley family, but right now, she couldn’t be bothered by strangers.

“Tuff, is this the girl whose face you messed up?”

Kayla’s head shot up, staring at Tuff in disbelief as his face went pale with guilt.

The guy kept going, “Damn. The stray bullets do a number. One second she’s a knockout, next she’s only got half her looks…”

“Shut up! Get lost!” Tuff snapped.

Tuff barked out a furious order, and the grinning guy scurried off without another word.

Kayla fixed her gaze on Tuff. “Was it you? Were you the one who hurt me back then?”

“Kayla, hear me out…” Tuff pleaded.

“Was it you?” Kayla pressed.

“Yes.”

Tuff hung his head, clutching the tablecloth like a kid getting scolded.

“So, did you marry me because you felt guilty?” Kayla asked, her voice steady but cold.

“No!” Tuff jerked his head up, his voice sharp, like he’d been burned.

“Honey, I love you. Nothing else matters! I’ve got blood on my hands, but I’d never try to make up for my guilt by marrying you—I love you, that’s it…” he said, his voice shaking with emotion.

“Alright,” Kayla said, letting out a sigh of relief.

She stepped closer, leaned in on her tiptoes, and pressed a kiss to Tuff’s lips.

Tuff was speechless.

“That’s all I needed to hear,” Kayla said with a light laugh, her eyes sparkling with mischief like a young girl.

Tuff was scared out of his wits.

Even Landon had no idea he was the one who scarred Kayla’s face. Tuff thought he could keep that secret buried forever.

Who could’ve guessed he’d run into one of his old war buddies at Amelia’s birthday party, and the guy would blurt it out right before his wife?

He was paralyzed with shock.

Those two or three minutes felt like the end of the world.

“Honey, I didn’t do it on purpose…” Tuff said, his voice low and full of regret.

“It’s alright. You had no way of knowing I’d be among the enemy,” Kayla replied gently, her tone calm and forgiving.

Tuff fell silent again, nervously wringing his hands.

Kayla frowned. “Wait, did you know it was me?”

“Yeah,” Tuff murmured. “I caught a glimpse of you, but things were so chaotic. I only had time to call Landon. By the time he got there, you were already gone…”

Kayla felt a storm of emotions swirling inside her–bittersweet, regretful, overwhelmed all at once.

She had been so close to her family, closer than she ever realized.

Just one missed moment, and she’d end up trapped with the Kyle family, suffering under Jonny’s torment, wishing she were dead, ‘If only I hadn’t missed that chance…’ she thought, her mind spinning with regret.

“Kayla, I’m so sorry…” Tuff said, his voice trembling with fear.

Kayla had never cared much about her looks, but what haunted her was that ugly chapter of her life.

‘She’s going to be furious, isn’t she?’ Tuff thought, his heart pounding with dread.