Chapter 2

"Please sign it, okay?"

Dominic wrapped his arms around my legs, preventing me from leaving.

Nancy looked like she was about to faint from anger, repeatedly telling him to get up.

In all our arguments before, no matter how fierce, he'd never knelt down.

They say a man's knees hold gold. Yet here was Dominic, kneeling for a child who had no blood relation to me.

Dominic, do you really care about her that much?

I turned my head to look at the girl hiding in Chloe's arms.

Very pretty. Very well-behaved.

Very much like her.

I laughed at myself and bent down to pry his hands off one finger at a time.

"Stop making a scene!"

Dominic's eyes reddened with frustration, tears falling.

I looked up and surveyed my surroundings.

The obedient child, the angry mother-in-law, the silent crowd.

My kneeling husband.

Somehow I'd become the villain in this story.

All because of a pea-sized birthmark, making demands and threatening divorce over three years of marriage.

"I'll say it again. Divorce."

With that, I left without hesitation.

I went home alone and contacted a lawyer to draft the divorce papers.

I waited until late at night before the whole family finally came home.

They were laughing and chatting, everyone carrying bags full of gifts.

Rosie was surrounded in the middle, the center of attention as they entered.

As soon as Dominic came in, he saw me sitting in the living room.

His smile immediately vanished.

"Honey, the director said she could stay at our house for a few days."

"I know you don't like her. Don't worry—I'll send her back in a few days."

Dominic looked at me carefully. I avoided his gaze.

"No need. Let her stay."

"Really? Honey, have you changed your mind?"

I slammed the divorce papers heavily on the table.

"Sign them."

Dominic shook his head, begging desperately.

"Honey, I'm sorry. If you don't want to adopt her, we won't. Please don't divorce me, okay?"

"I can't live without you. Why, honey? Why do you insist on divorcing me?"

Nancy pulled Dominic away. "Are you seeing someone else? Are you using this to end our family line?"

"Since you married into our family, have I ever mistreated you? When you couldn't get pregnant before, I never said a word, afraid of upsetting you."

"I'm old now. I just want a grandchild around me, someone to call me grandma. Is that wrong?"

Nancy grew more agitated, crying as she accused me.

Chloe walked up to me holding Rosie, then suddenly dropped to her knees.

"Miranda, I know marrying into our family was beneath you. You were born with a silver spoon, a real princess, and we're just an ordinary family."

"You've never experienced life on the streets, but I have. I know what it's like to have no home. It's so painful—I even thought about dying."

"I can't bear to see her go through what I did. Miranda, I know you look down on unwanted children like us. I know you've told Dominic many times that you don't like me. If you take her in, I'll leave this house immediately."

Chloe's words were so pitiful they tugged at everyone's heartstrings.

I slapped her hard across the face and said sternly:

"Don't you have any idea why I won't take this child?"

Dominic suddenly stood up and backhanded me with a heavy slap.

I fell straight off the sofa and hit my forehead on the corner of the table.

Everything spun. Warm liquid ran down from my eye.

"I'm sorry, honey. I didn't... I didn't mean to."

Dominic stared at his hand in disbelief, frantically moving to cover my wound.

I shoved his hand away, grabbed my bag, and headed for the door.

Bob called after me with a threat:

"You dare leave? If you walk out that door, don't ever come back to this house!"

"If we divorce, you won't get a penny!"