Chapter 4

Caleb's face went white as a sheet. "This kid... is she..." He seemed to realize, then immediately rejected the thought. "No, that can't be! She's not yours!"

"Aubrey, this is all some kind of trick, right?"

"You told me I was the only man you'd ever marry! How could you do this—marry someone else and have a kid?"

Caleb stared at me, begging for denial. But I just stared back coldly. "Caleb, the second you chose Brianna over me, you lost any chance of being my husband."

Brianna, who'd been quiet, suddenly piped up with a fake smile. "Aubrey, your daughter's already so big. When did you have her? Before you left the country?"

It was obviously a lie, but Caleb ate it up. His face turned red with anger. "Aubrey, you two were together this whole time? Had a kid together?"

"I knew it! That's why you left without a word—because of *him*!"

"How could you do this to me?"

Hearing him insult my family made my blood boil. "This is my husband and daughter. Show some respect."

That only made him angrier. "Am I wrong? He's just some homewrecker!"

I was ready to snap, but Lily beat me to it. She wriggled out of my arms and ran at Caleb, biting his hand and hitting him. "Don't talk about my daddy like that! He's not a bad guy!"

"I hate you! Go away!"

Caleb shoved Lily to the ground, enraged. "You little brat!" He raised his hand to hit her, but I tackled him away and scooped her up. "Don't you dare touch my daughter! You've crossed the line!"

Caleb stumbled back, hitting his elbow on the wall hard enough to draw blood. "That's the second time you've attacked me for them!" he snarled.

Brianna helped him up, shooting me a dirty look. "Aubrey, your kid started it! Why aren't you punishing her instead of hitting Caleb?"

"Look at him—he's bleeding! You should be ashamed!"

Brianna's words pushed Caleb over the edge. His eyes went bloodshot as he pointed at us. "You did this on purpose! I'm calling the cops!" He pulled out his phone, hands shaking.

The police showed up fast. Caleb immediately waved his injured hand at them, practically hysterical. "Officer, they attacked me on purpose! You have to arrest them!"

Caleb sobbed as he twisted the story, claiming our whole family had ganged up on him. A crowd gathered quickly, whispering and staring as they listened to his act. I could feel their judgmental eyes on us.

"How could anyone hit a kid like that!"

"Pushing a little girl—disgraceful!"

"There’s probably more to the story…"

Caleb ate up the attention, sneering at me quietly. "You made me do this, Aubrey. But if you apologize and leave him, I’ll tell the cops it was all a misunderstanding…"

Manipulating me, even now?

I ignored him. Caleb huffed and crossed his arms, clearly enjoying watching me squirm. The officers, having heard his side, turned to me for my version.

"Ms. Aubrey, Mr. Caleb claims you assaulted him. Is that accurate?"

"No. Because Liam and I are legally married."

I pulled out our marriage certificate and handed it over. Caleb froze when he saw it, then scoffed. "That could be faked! Anyone can photoshop these things now!"

But the officer just shook his head. "I’m sorry, sir, but this certificate checks out. They are legally married. Now you need to explain why you pushed their child."