Chapter 2

Early the next morning, I arrived with two copies of the divorce agreement.

It happened to be the time Nathaniel was taking Hazel to preschool.

I crouched down in front of her. "Hazel, if Mommy and Daddy get divorced, who do you want to live with?"

An unreadable flicker crossed her little eyes. After a long silence, she said coldly, "Excuse me, ma'am. Daddy is taking me to school. Please move out of the way."

The answer was painfully obvious. I stepped aside.

I followed quietly behind them.

Once our daughter was safely inside the gate, I pulled out his copy of the divorce agreement. "It’s signed. Here."

He took it with an arrogant smirk. "I told you. You’re just embarrassing yourself."

I ignored his sneer. "I’ll explain things to my parents. Just take good care of Hazel. I’ve already booked the court appointment. Bring our marriage license in thirty days, and we’ll finalize it."

With that, I turned to leave.

"Evelyn, is it really worth throwing everything away over words meant to comfort a toddler?"

I let out an incredulous laugh. "Nathaniel, you cheated on me first. How do you have the audacity to claim you were just humoring a kid?"

"Hazel likes her, and Chloe and I are completely innocent! I just didn't want to ruin the kid's mood on her birthday. Stop making a scene out of nothing!" His brow furrowed coldly, his tone laced with irritation.

"Then what about this divorce agreement you prepared in advance? Since when did you become so indecisive, Nathaniel? Or are you just reluctant to lose my family's financial backing while refusing to let go of your high school sweetheart?" I stepped closer, studying the man I could no longer recognize.

He hurled a venomous parting shot: "You're going to regret this!"

Then he stormed off.

He sounded just like I had yesterday.

He left, but I stayed behind.

I walked into the preschool office to ask the director about the day Hazel went missing.

The director explained that Hazel had claimed to have a stomachache and insisted on calling her dad.

The teachers called him right away, but he took forever to show up.

Taking advantage of the chaotic pickup rush, Hazel slipped out unnoticed.

The entire staff went frantic looking for her, until a gorgeous young woman brought her back.

Shortly after, Nathaniel arrived and drove both of them away.

I nodded, thanking the director for her time.

Standing by the front gates, my heart ached. Hazel, just how much do you love your father?

It seemed no matter what I did, you would never love or accept me.

Yet no matter what mistakes your father made, you forgave him simply because he was your dad.

Standing at the boarding gate, I couldn't resist dialing my daughter’s smartwatch.

The call connected. "Hello, who is this?"

"Hazel... it's Mommy."

"Oh. Are you leaving?"

"Yes. Hazel is so smart."

"I told you everything this morning. Why are you calling me again?" Her voice dropped significantly lower.

"Mommy just wanted to promise you... if Daddy is ever mean to you, Mommy will come take you home whenever you want." I spoke every word with absolute sincerity.

Her voice grew even smaller, thick with an odd strain. "Who asked you to care? I'm going to have a much better mommy anyway! If you want to leave, just leave! Don't ever call me again! I don't need you in my life!"

She abruptly hung up.