Chapter 1

Cherie's POV

However, my son, Aster Clayton, shook his head and said determinedly, "No. Daddy promised me he'd be here."

I sighed helplessly. Aster really did take after Mitchell Clayton when it came to being stubborn.

So, I had no choice but to wait with Aster, but the only phenomenon we witnessed was the guests all leaving the party one after another.

Before long, there were only the maids left with us. They told us that the guests had all left our party to attend Stacy Padilla's party instead.

Aster stood in the corner, his eyes red-rimmed as he huffed and complained, "Why does she always have to compete with me? Why won't she even leave me and my birthday party alone? If Dad—If Uncle Mitch sees nobody turning up for my party, he's going to be really upset!"

I didn't know how to comfort him when I saw how anxious and upset he was. After all, the "Uncle Mitch" he kept mentioning hadn't just abandoned him but had also gone to attend Stacy's party as well.

In fact, Mitchell had also taken along with him the only birthday present Aster had received.

I just didn't dare to tell Aster about it.

So, I forced a smile on my lips and led him over to the table so he could cut his birthday cake. Still, Aster refused to do it because he wanted to wait until Mitchell was back.

I had no other choice but to call Mitchell and ask, "Aster's been waiting for you to come home. How much longer are you going to take?"

When faced with my question, Mitchell simply answered calmly, "If I said I'd be there, I'll be there."

Suddenly, a woman's voice came from the other end of the line.

"Who's that, Mitchie?"

His voice softened at once as he chuckled and replied, "One of the maids at home."

My hand froze around my phone.

This was the seventh year I was married to him, and also the seventh year that he refused to acknowledge me and Aster in public.

The reason he gave was that he had married me before making a name for himself, and now, he didn't think that I was good enough for him anymore. However, the other reason was also that he still couldn't forget his ex-girlfriend, Bianca Winters, who was also Stacy's mother.

By the time I snapped back to my senses, the phone had already gone dead.

I turned around and was met with Aster's dim eyes.

"Mommy, is Daddy really not coming after all?"

I forced another smile and gently ruffled his hair. "He said that he'd be here."

Aster's face lit up at once.

Meanwhile, I stared at the tightly shut front door, feeling my heart lodged in my throat. I really hoped that Mitchell would keep his promise and not let Aster down.

Yet, he still didn't show up when it was already past midnight.

Aster leaned against the glass windows, fighting to keep his eyelids from drooping.

I couldn't stand it anymore and immediately went out, heading toward Stacy's birthday party, arriving just as the party ended.

Mitchell personally opened the limo door as he looked at Bianca and Stacy who were waiting at the hall entrance. Bianca was dressed in a beautiful gown, and Stacy was also all dolled up like a princess.

They looked like a beautiful family of three when standing together like that.

I thought that I had already grown numb to this, but I still found myself frozen to the ground at the sight.

"Mrs. Clayton?"

Bianca suddenly looked at me, and Mitchell's expression darkened immediately. He glanced around, making sure that all of the other guests had already left, before walking over and addressing me in a low, deep voice, "Who told you to come here, Cherie Hudson?"

Mitchell never allowed me to make any public appearances in the seven years we'd been married. His handsome face made him especially popular amongst the elite young women in his social circles, and that was very useful for business.

When he first started his company, he had obtained plenty of resources by just getting close to a tycoon's daughter. Now that his company had expanded so much, he no longer needed anyone's help. Yet, he still refused to reveal my true identity to the public.

The reason was that Bianca had come back into his life again. She alone was more than enough to replace all of the other women that Mitchell had been in contact with.

At that thought, I turned to leave, not wanting to say another word to him.

Suddenly, Stacy picked up a pebble from the ground and threw it at me.

"Stacy!" Both Mitchell and Bianca chided her at the same time.

However, Stacy didn't seem the least bit intimidated. She put her hands on her hips and yelled after me, "You homewrecker! How dare you and your stupid bastard son steal Daddy away from me!"

Bastard son? Daddy?

I immediately whirled around and stared at Mitchell in disbelief.

He avoided my gaze and instead turned to Stacy, saying, "I've already told you many times not to call me 'Daddy' in public, Stacy."

After that, he started toward me. "Let's go home.

However, he'd only just said that when Stacy suddenly began to cry and throw a massive tantrum. Bianca hurriedly tried to comfort her, but Stacy shoved her aside and cried even harder.

Bianca shot Mitchell a troubled look, and he immediately turned back and picked Stacy up in his arms.

My heart stopped beating when I saw that. I didn't wait for him anymore and went straight home.

When I arrived, I saw that Aster was already fast asleep by the window. Yet, he was still mumbling softly.

"Daddy…"

It nearly made my suppressed emotions burst forth at that moment, but I didn't dare to cry out loud.

I was afraid that I'd wake him up. I was afraid that he would rub his sleepy eyes at me and ask me if Mitchell still wasn't back.

I didn't know how I would answer his questions.

Just then, the property agent, Zoey Kaiser, sent me a few property listings to pick from. I chose one randomly and immediately signed the contract for it before purchasing flight tickets there in three days.

At this point, I didn't care about anything anymore. I just wanted to take Aster with me and leave this house that no longer belonged to us as quickly as possible.

In just three days, Mitchell would finally be free from us.