Chapter 2

Against all my expectations, the panic in her eyes disappeared in a flash. She continued ushering everyone upstairs.

A message popped up on my phone.

[Go home. Whatever you have to say, say it when I get back there.]

A bitter ache spread through my heart as I teared up while staring at the text.

Even after I caught her red-handed, she still would not give me an explanation or a second glance.

Just then, my phone abruptly rang.

It was Earl Zoeller, Shiloh’s father.

I answered quickly.

“Hey, Easton.”

He had addressed me by the wrong name. Words stuck in my throat.

I did not respond and let him continue to speak on the other end of the line.

“It’s Conrad’s one-month celebration. It’s a shame my condition got worse. I can’t come over and see my precious grandson in person.

“I had the nanny transfer eight thousand dollars to you. That’s for the kid and for you. You’re our family’s hero. Don’t worry about my illness. Cillian is here to take care of me. That’s all I need.”

I clenched my phone so hard that my fingertips turned white. I felt as if I had been struck by a massive wave of absurdity.

Earl also knew about Easton and the child’s existence. He had cooperated with Shiloh to keep me in the dark.

He would always call me a good son-in-law. I had accepted his praise. I willingly became the Zoeller family’s free caretaker.

It was utterly ironic.

After I returned home in the city, the house felt warm and cozy.

There were a couple of photos of us on the walls and an extra pair of slippers by the door just for me. These little things had made me fool myself into thinking I was the luckiest guy in the world.

Meanwhile, Shiloh had spent money on Easton, given him her companionship, and even bore him a child.

To her, I was a total joke.

When Shiloh came home, she simply said, “Cillian, you’ve lost a lot of weight.”

To take care of Earl’s nighttime needs, I set five or six alarms every night. I never once got a full night of sleep.

Sometimes, to make his legs feel better, I had to massage him constantly. I could not even find time to eat.

Sometimes even I was shocked by how withered and gaunt I had become over the years from all the weight loss.

I gave a bitter, self-mocking smile.

“Stop pretending to care about me. Three years, huh? You hid this really well.

“Apparently, I have a one-month-old kid under my name, too.”

Shiloh was stunned for a moment, but she quickly composed herself.

“It was an accident. I don’t want Conrad to be an illegitimate child. I had to name you as the father.”

She paused for a moment.

“You’re an illegitimate child, too. Look at how your mom turned out. She’s a complete mess.”

Her words felt like a knife piercing through my heart.

Back then, my father had secretly gone behind my mother’s back to marry another woman. That made my mother carry the label of “the other woman” for all those years.

My mother, who had always been so proud and strong, became so devastated that her hair turned white overnight. She drove herself insane and had been living in a psychiatric hospital ever since.

Naturally, I became an illegitimate child whom everyone looked down on.

At that time, Shiloh was still a university lecturer. She valued her reputation above all else, yet she accepted me as I was under enormous pressure.

Yet she was the one who called me an “illegitimate child” at that moment.

“That was my parents’ mistake. What does that have to do with you?”

She noticed the hurt in my eyes and realized she had misspoken.

“My bad. That was harsh.”

She then shifted her tone. “But, Cillian, Easton is still just a kid. He’s been under a lot of pressure ever since he found out I was pregnant. So just stop giving him a hard time, alright?”

Just as I was about to speak, her phone rang.

Judging by how she could barely hide her smile, I knew right away it was Easton.

After a while, she cheerfully hung up the phone.

“It’s Easton’s graduation ceremony tomorrow. He specifically asked me to invite you. Do him a favor and show up.”

With that, she left without giving me a second glance.

I almost laughed through my tears as I watched her leave in a hurry.

I had painstakingly maintained this marriage for years, and it was far more pathetic than I had ever imagined.

After wiping away my tears, I dialed the number of the person I once hated the most.

“You once said you wanted to make things up to Mom and me. Well, here’s your chance.”