Chapter 6

There was little emotion in Robert's dark, shadowed eyes, but his pupils looked like inky, bottomless pools. This was the expression he wore only when he was angry or disgusted.

Myra deliberately shifted her hips. Only then did Julia notice that Robert had an arm around Myra's waist, practically holding her against him. They might as well have announced to the entire world that they were the real couple.

Having also spotted Robert and Myra, Yvonne was disgusted beyond words.

In an attempt to get under Robert's skin, she remarked with a sneer, "What a joke. Does he really think he's such a great catch that Julia can't live without him? Who'd want to be with someone who drops his pants whenever a random woman comes onto him? I'd be sickened!"

Yvonne's words were crude, and her voice was loud. The other people in the restaurant immediately looked over, and their eyes lifted to the second floor as well.

Most people were able to put two and two together.

Robert prided himself on his strict upbringing. He certainly wasn't going to trade insults with Yvonne. Nevertheless, Julia saw the way he drew Myra backward a little, using his body to shield her from the curious stares below.

Even when he was suffering the brunt of everyone's contempt, he refused to let any harm come to her. What a devoted man he was.

"Julia Lester! Tell your friend to shut up already!"

Jimmy cared a great deal about his reputation. The fact that they had a spectating crowd humiliated him. Since he couldn't afford to offend Yvonne, he could only pick on the weaker target.

"If you let her keep running her mouth, you'll pay for it when Robert gets angry!" he added warningly.

"If he's shameless enough to have a kid with his mistress, why am I not allowed to talk about it?" Yvonne retorted.

With how furious she was, there was no way she'd shut up now.

"You think it's embarrassing now? Why didn't he think about how embarrassing it'd be when he chose to take his pants off then?"

"Yvonne." Julia tugged on her arm.

When she turned back to Jimmy, she saw the smug look on his face, as if he knew he'd made the right threat.

He was certain that Julia was the same spineless coward she'd always been—she'd do anything to win Robert's favor. He could probably tell her to kneel and apologize, and she'd drop to her knees without any hesitation.

Julia knew exactly what was going through Jimmy's mind. She had once tried to please Robert because she was grateful to him for giving her a home. But now, a man who had given his heart to someone else was dead to her.

Turning back to Yvonne, she said, "Only fellow humans can understand what you're saying. Beasts can't speak our language."

"Oh, you're right!" Yvonne exclaimed.

With that, she linked arms with Julia and strode past Jimmy, who looked as though he'd just swallowed a fly.

Although their celebration had been ruined by Robert and his entourage, Julia wasn't upset about it. Instead, she took Yvonne to a children's clothing store to buy new clothes for Emmy.

Julia usually bought all of Emmy's clothes herself, but Emmy had been growing so quickly lately that she wasn't sure what size to get. She had no choice but to ask Isaac, and the two of them spent quite some time trying to push the task onto each other.

Isaac was always busy doing something important. Neither of them dared bother him with such a trivial matter.

Even the fearless Yvonne, who dared to talk back to Robert, turned into a complete coward in front of Isaac. She justified herself by saying, "If I offend Robert, I've still got Uncle Isaac to back me up. But if I offend Uncle Isaac, my own mother will disown me."

In the end, being the biological mother, Julia was forced to send Isaac the message. He responded in no time, his answer brief and to the point—which matched his personality.

"She's 3'7'' tall and weighs about 35 pounds. She's quite slender, so get a smaller size."

Julia and Yvonne started looking at the clothes, only to spot Robert and Myra entering the store together.

"The clothes here are so pretty! Robbie, come help me pick a few outfits!"

Standing side by side, they looked just like an ordinary married couple doing some shopping together. Every now and then, Myra's voice drifted over, sounding a little troubled.

"I can never get Katie's size right."

"She's 3'8'' and weighs 45 pounds. Just get the normal size for her age," Robert replied.

Isaac knew Emmy's measurements because he had devoted himself entirely to helping her with her condition over the past few years. He had lived and eaten with her, rarely letting her out of his sight.

So what about Robert?

Myra had noticed Julia, too, yet she turned away as though she hadn't seen her.

In a soft, sweet voice, she said to Robert, "You're so much more attentive to Katie than I am. No wonder she loves sticking to you. Ever since she was little, she refused to go to sleep unless you held her. Even after she got older, she still wanted you to read her a bedtime story every night."

So that explained everything.

Julia could've already imagined how much Robert loved Katie, but once she heard it with her own ears, her heart ached for Emmy.

Both girls were Robert's daughters, yet he hadn't even been willing to look at Emmy's ultrasound scans.

In his eyes, Emmy, the child born from Julia's womb, was worthy of nothing but his contempt even from the moment she was conceived.

Myra, on the other hand, was still an angel in his eyes, even though she was his friend's widow. Even a child from her womb was a priceless treasure to him.

Meanwhile, Myra's voice continued to drift over.

"To be honest, I was terrified when I gave birth to Katie. Thank goodness you stayed with me the entire time, Robbie. You took care of everything. The moment I felt the slightest cramp, you arranged for a team of 60 people to be on standby around the clock!"

"You were afraid I wouldn't be able to bear the pain, so you had them give me an epidural early. Each injection cost tens of thousands, and I had several. Thanks to you, I didn't feel even a hint of pain when giving birth to Katie."

Every word tortured Julia to no end.

Robert willingly forked out tens of thousands for each epidural injection for Myra, yet he had begrudged Julia one that cost just a thousand dollars.

Myra could give birth without any pain, while she had to endure the pain for three days and nights. There were times when the pain had become so unbearable that she could only keep herself going by slamming her head against the nearest surface. She'd hit her head so hard her blood covered the headboard.

Robert had arranged for a team of 60 people to attend to Myra and Katie. But when Julia suffered a massive hemorrhage, he had left her alone in the hands of Lexi, his cold and heartless assistant—all because he wanted to enforce their equal expense-sharing arrangement down to the last detail.

Yvonne heard every word as well. She clenched her fists tightly, looking like she was ready to charge over and start a fight.

Julia grabbed her arm and held on tight. "Don't do it!"

Even if they dredged up the past, Robert wasn't going to regret what he did. It would only make Julia seem like an even bigger joke, and she'd been made a laughingstock because of Robert more than enough times already.

Yvonne was also afraid of dragging Emmy into the mess. No matter how furious she was, she could only swallow her anger and back down.

Nevertheless, they'd ended up drawing attention to themselves, and Robert's gaze drifted over. Myra also acted as though she had only just noticed Julia.

"Are you shopping for clothes here as well, Ms. Lester?"

Robert was still holding a piece of children's clothing. Myra deliberately took hold of one corner, making the two of them look even more intimate, like a real married couple.

Her gaze slid from Julia's face to the racks behind her. "Planning to try for another baby?"

The maternity products section was right behind Julia.

Myra's lips curved into a perfectly timed smile, her eyes glinting with mocking pity. She was mocking Julia for being so pathetic that she actually thought she could use a child to tie down a husband who had long since fallen out of love with her.