Chapter 3

That day, I cried tears of joy, grateful to have such a gentle, considerate woman. I silently vowed to give her a grand wedding once I could afford it. Two months ago, I found an excuse to take her for wedding photos, secretly planning the wedding. I intended to surprise her on the wedding day, but now it's unnecessary.

The lawyer prepared the divorce agreement, and I forwarded it to Adeline. Her call came quickly, demanding, "What do you mean? Are you really divorcing me?"

I answered calmly, "Yes, I am." My cold attitude seemed to scare her. She explained, "Don’t misunderstand. Lachlan and I were just playing around."

I stayed silent as Lachlan's voice came through. "Oh, he can’t be serious, can he? Adeline and I are just friends. He can’t even take a joke."

"He's always controlling you, giving you no freedom," Adeline’s voice turned cold. "I tell you, Declan, I have the freedom to make friends. You can’t control me!"

I simply replied, "Alright, if the divorce agreement looks good, just sign it." She paused before saying, "Fine, let’s divorce. Don’t regret it!" Then she hung up.

A few days later, Adeline came looking for me, ringing the doorbell continuously. I opened the door to her unhappy face. "Why did you change the lock? If you weren’t here, I’d have to wait all day!" I ignored her complaints, calmly asking, "Did you sign the divorce agreement?"

She pulled out a document from her bag, coldly saying, "I want custody of our daughter. You’ll pay child support monthly." I carefully reviewed each clause and signed my name once I confirmed everything was correct.

She watched my actions and sarcastically said, "Afraid I’ll trick you? As a man, can’t you have some decency? I don’t get why I liked trash like you."

She yanked the divorce papers from my hand and stormed out. City Hall was efficient; it took less than half an hour to complete the process. After the thirty-day cooling-off period, we’d be officially divorced.

As she drove away with Lachlan, her car left only exhaust in its wake. A few days later, Adeline called again. "My dad’s birthday is coming up. They want you to come. Come back for a visit."

Adeline’s parents always treated me like a son, never looking down on me for being poor. After thinking it over, I decided to visit them. On the way, she messaged, warning me not to mention the divorce to her parents.

They treated me well, and I didn’t want to upset them. As soon as I entered, Adeline’s mom warmly pulled me inside, smiling at me.

A few days after the call from Adeline, I received an unexpected message from her.

"My dad's birthday is coming up soon, and they would love for you to visit. Can you make it?"

Adeline's parents have always treated me like a son, never looking down on me despite my financial struggles.

After giving it a lot of thought, I decided to make the trip.

While on the way, Adeline texted me, cautioning me not to mention our divorce to her mother, as she hadn't disclosed it yet.

I simply responded with "okay." They have always been kind to me, and I didn't want to cause them any distress.

As soon as I arrived, Adeline’s mother warmly welcomed me, pulling me inside with a beaming smile.

"Alex, you look like you've lost weight. What have you been up to? Come and eat something nice."

I quickly obliged, greeting all the relatives and helping to set the table.

My daughter, Rosalie, was thoroughly enjoying herself playing with Lachlan, completely ignoring me. I glanced over at them.

Adeline, somewhat uneasy, explained, "Rosalie insisted on playing with Lachlan, so I brought him along. Please, just go along with it."

I nodded, feigning indifference, though it pained me inside.

It's hard for any parent to see their child growing close to someone else.

At the dinner table, the adults were engaged in lively conversation, while Rosalie clung to Lachlan.

She didn't even look at me, her biological father. Adeline's mother noticed and couldn't refrain from saying,

"Rosalie, come sit with your dad. He’s finally here; you should spend some time with him."

Rosalie shot me a glance and turned away irritably.

"He's not my dad. My dad's right here," she declared, happily clutching Lachlan's arm.

Adeline's mother gave me an awkward smile and gently tried to pull her up.

"What are you saying? Lachlan isn't your dad. That's your dad."

Rosalie resisted, loudly crying, "He divorced my mom. He's not my dad anymore!"

The table fell silent, the atmosphere unbearably tense.

Adeline hurriedly went over to calm her daughter, awkwardly laughing it off.

"She's just a kid, saying things she doesn't understand. Please don't mind her."

Rosalie protested, "I'm not lying; I saw them divorce."

I stood up, bowing to Adeline’s parents with an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry, Mom. Rosalie’s not wrong. Adeline and I are indeed divorced."

"I'm sorry to bring this up today. I didn’t mean to dampen the mood."

Our families have been closely connected, always happily supporting our little family.

Now, hearing about our divorce, Adeline's mom was visibly upset, clutching her chest.

"How could you suddenly be divorced? Rosalie is so young. What will happen to her?"

Adeline's dad frowned, clearly displeased.

"I don't agree with your divorce."

Rosalie broke away from Adeline’s grasp and ran to Lachlan’s side.

"Grandma, don't worry about me. Uncle Lachlan will soon be my dad! Look, I have proof."

She grabbed Adeline's tablet, opened the photo album, and confidently showed us a picture.

"Uncle Lachlan and my mom are together. They'll get married and have a baby soon."

"Once they’re married, Uncle Lachlan will be my dad! No one can stop me from watching TV and eating snacks anymore."

The photo clearly spoke for itself.

Rosalie spoke with innocent excitement, unaware of the adults’ discomfort.

Adeline’s face turned pale. She snatched the tablet, deleted the photo, and scolded Rosalie.

"When did you take my stuff? You shouldn’t look through my album without permission!"

Frightened, Rosalie hid behind Lachlan, speechless.

Lachlan remained expressionless, softly comforting Rosalie and saying to Adeline,

"Alright, stop scolding her. She's young and doesn’t understand. It wasn't intentional."

Adeline could only glare at Rosalie, anxiously trying to grab my hand to explain.

"Asher, please don't misunderstand. I was drunk that day and mistook him for you..."

"Believe me, I never betrayed you. You're the only one I love."

I avoided her hand, speaking calmly.

"You don't need to explain. We’re divorced. You’re free to be with whoever you want."

In her panic, she revealed her true feelings.

"I never intended to divorce you. I just wanted to scare you into caring more about me."

"Isn’t there a thirty-day cooling-off period? We’re not officially divorced yet."

I remained silent, just looked at her coldly.

She suddenly broke down, yelling at me.

"Why didn't you come to comfort me! You always did when I was angry. Why are you divorcing me now?"

"If you hadn’t divorced me, I wouldn’t have drunk, and nothing would've happened."

"This is all your fault! You have to take responsibility. You can't treat me like this."

Finally, someone spoke up, unable to hold back any longer.

"Even though I'm your relative, I can't side with you on this. Blaming others for your own mistakes? You're not money; not everyone has to adore you."

"You have a child but act like a spoiled girl. Divorce is the right choice."

"And you, not even acknowledging your real dad and treating a stranger like treasure? You're an ungrateful brat. You'll regret it when you grow up."

The mother and daughter were left humiliated. Adeline's mom sighed, making a strong statement.

"After doing something so disgraceful, don’t come back once you leave this house. I'll pretend I never had you as a daughter. From now on, Asher is my only child."

Her words hit hard. Adeline's face changed, her legs giving out as she collapsed, crying without tears.

Since graduation, she never worked and relied on her family for support.

After marriage, I supported her, and she never faced any hardships.

I wouldn't give her money anymore, and if her mom truly cut ties, what would she do?