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Sabrina's POV

"Leave Nicholas! Because soon he will reconcile with his ex-wife!"

My body jerked in shock, and my eyes widened in disbelief at what my mother-in-law had just said.

I am a twenty-three-year-old woman squeezing the blue party dress I am wearing.

"W-what do you mean by that, Mom?" I asked in a choked voice.

My mother-in-law smiled sarcastically, her eyes staring at me with a sharp gaze.

"Don't you realize? Since the beginning of your marriage until now, Nicholas has never loved you!" said the glamorously dressed middle-aged woman. "Because Nicholas's true love is only Hazel!"

I was silent, with mixed feelings. I wanted to refute, but my tongue felt numb because I knew my mother-in-law was right. My husband never loved me. My heart was beating fast; fear and confusion engulfed my mind. I never expected that Nicholas's relationship with his ex-wife was still unfinished. I felt like I was kicked from a height, my trust shattered into pieces.

"You see there!" said my mother-in-law, pointing towards a pair of humans who were chatting intimately in the middle of the party. "Don't they look very harmonious? Has Nicholas ever been that warm with you?"

I swallowed hard. Those words stabbed at me, tearing my heart apart cruelly.

I couldn't take my eyes off my husband, who looked so different tonight.

Nicholas, my husband, a tall, handsome man in a black tuxedo who was currently carrying his little son, was having a warm conversation with his ex-wife, Hazel.

The smile on Nicholas's face was the first time I had seen it in the three years I had been married to him.

"You should wake up, me. You will never be worthy of being with my son."

After saying that sharp sentence, my mother-in-law left, leaving me alone as if to confirm that I had no one to defend me. Disappointment and heartache engulfed me. I felt like I was let down by the person I had always trusted. I didn't know what to do; my heart was broken, and despair began to creep into me.

"Will Nicholas really reconcile with her?" I thought bitterly. My chest felt tight, as if a knife had stabbed my heart.

"Mommy...!"

The loud scream of a boy broke my reverie. I saw my stepson crying while running towards me.

I forced a smile and immediately hugged the tiny body warmly.

"Why are you crying, honey? Daddy is here," I said while carrying Charlie.

"I don't like it! Charlie doesn't like that auntie!" Charlie shouted, pointing at Hazel, his biological mother.

I tried to calm the boy down and decided to approach Nicholas and Hazel, who had been trying to chase Charlie.

Hazel greeted my arrival with a deep gaze and a sweet smile on her thin lips. Her hand slipped quickly to hold Nicholas's arm.

"Hi. You must be me, right?" Hazel greeted, still with the same friendly smile. "I'm Hazel.”

I nodded after being silent for a moment, observing Hazel's actions. "Hello, I'm Sabrina," I replied awkwardly.

"Nice to meet you, Sabrina. I came here at the invitation of Nicholas's parents; they know I just came back from Canada yesterday," Hazel explained with a beaming face while looking at Nicholas, who was standing next to her.

I could only give a thin smile when I saw Nicholas not pushing Hazel's hand away.

"I'm also glad to meet you, Hazel."

Nicholas glanced at his son, who was hugging my neck tightly. He approached me and tried to persuade Charlie, but his son got angry instead.

"No way!" Charlie shouted in refusal.

"Honey, Hazel is your mother too," Nicholas coaxed, rubbing the top of his son's head.

"No! She is not my mother!"

Charlie’s shout made Nicholas sigh, tired of coaxing his son, who had been refusing all this time.

Seeing that, I tried to meditate. "It looks like Charlie is sleepy; that's why he's being fussy," I said while tightening my hug around Charlie's body, who was already leaning comfortably in my arms.

Hazel's facial expression suddenly changed to one of deep sadness. The woman looked at her son, who was comfortable and calm, closing his eyes in my arms.

That envious gaze... I could feel it.

"You're so lucky, Sabrina. You have a husband like Nicholas, who is very warm and caring," Hazel said with a bitter smile. "And you can also win Charlie's heart."

I could only remain silent.

Hazel then smiled a little, approached me, and patted her son's head before her gaze shifted to Nicholas.

"If I hadn't prioritized my education, maybe we would still be together and be a happy family..." Hazel's voice sounded hoarse. "I really want to feel what it's like to be loved by my biological son," she said while sobbing.

Right in front of me, Nicholas suddenly gave Hazel a handkerchief to wipe away his ex-wife's tears.

A little attention that I had never received from that man.

"You can meet Charlie at my house anytime," Nicholas said. "You are his mother."

Hearing that, a feeling of happiness radiated clearly from Hazel's face. Her two hands held Nicholas's hands warmly.

"Thank you very much, Nicholas! I will visit often until Charlie is close to me."

Everyone stared at the two of them and started whispering, especially when they saw me being ignored.

I could only lower my head, suppressing the sadness in my heart. I realized I was not the woman my husband had wanted all this time.

I hugged Charlie, who was sleeping in my arms, and decided to take him up to the second floor in Nicholas's family residence.

My steps felt uncertain. From the beginning, this marriage based on my grandfather's will had never been colored by happiness. And now, everything was on the brink.

When I had just laid Charlie's tiny body on the bed, the bedroom door suddenly opened, and Nicholas appeared, immediately going inside.

"I will stay here; go home with the driver," Nicholas said without looking at me, as I sat on the edge of the bed.

I stared at my husband's sturdy back as he stood in front of the dressing table, taking off his watch.

I wanted to ask why, but I felt that doing so would only make my husband angry. So I just said, "Okay. Can I take Charlie?"

"No. My mother wants to sleep with her grandson tonight," Nicholas said in his usual cold tone. "Go home by yourself; don't take my son."

I swallowed hard and squeezed my cold fingers. It felt like being pierced with thorns in my heart.

Tonight would be the umpteenth night that I slept alone without Nicholas because usually, we only sleep together when my husband wants warmth from me.

I approached Charlie, who looked sound asleep on the bed.

"Mommy, come home, honey. Charlie, don't be naughty," I whispered, kissing the boy's cheek gently.

After that, I grabbed my warm coat and bag from the nightstand. I stood looking at Nicholas, who was now giving me a flat look.

"If Charlie cries, take him home," I asked. I said that because I was the only one who could calm Charlie down, and Nicholas knew that.

However, there was no answer from Nicholas. He just walked away, leaving me.

When I arrived downstairs, I saw Nicholas in the middle of a party with his mother and Hazel. They seemed to be having a warm and close conversation.

Seeing that togetherness, I felt as if my presence was a barrier for Nicholas and Hazel.

I pressed my aching chest. "What... What do I and this marriage mean to you, Nicholas?”