Chapter 2

I froze in place, glaring at Isaac. I never imagined he knew all along and had joined everyone else in keeping it from me.

Isaac glanced at me, a flicker of guilt flashing in his eyes. But just as quickly, he broke into a smile. He then took a piece of gummy from his bag and handed it to Douglas before turning to me.

"Agnes, Douglas is the most well-behaved child I've ever met. Lana has better genes than you, so you should be grateful to have a godson like Douglas."

Grateful? I let out a cold laugh.

I was only 15 years old when our parents passed away, but I gritted my teeth and did everything I could to raise Isaac. He was the only family I had left, so I devoted myself to giving him the best of everything.

I put him through school, supported him until he graduated, and even got him a job. Yet now, he was telling me to put up with Patrick's infidelity and be grateful for having a godson like Douglas.

My phone buzzed. Professor Massey had just sent me a message.

"I've arranged jobs for you both overseas after the wedding. Send me your personal details again. Do you have any family members?"

I replied, "No. I'm an orphan."

After sending the message, I glanced at Isaac again.

I was done with him. He was no longer my brother.

I got to my feet, intending to leave. But the moment I stood up, Patrick stepped in front of me.

"What are you doing?" he muttered unhappily. "Is this really worth getting so worked up over? Dad has always thought you were sensible and understanding—do you really want to upset him by acting like this? He has a heart condition, so you'd better not cause a scene at Thanksgiving dinner."

I shot Patrick a puzzled look. "I'm the one making a scene?"

He furrowed his brows and let out a sigh. "Fine, I admit I handled this badly. I should've told you beforehand. I'm sorry, okay? I know this might be hard for you to accept.

"But we're registering our marriage in three days, and then I'll be entirely yours. Do you really have to hold it against Lana, who doesn't even believe in marriage, just because of a child?"

I looked around the table at everyone present—my fiancé of six years, the future parents-in-law I had treated like my own parents, and the younger brother I had raised.

Every single one of them had kept Douglas from me. And now that the truth was out, they looked at me not with guilt, but irritation. They were annoyed that I couldn't accept the situation as happily as they did.

I took a deep breath and looked at the big, happy family gathered around me. Suddenly, I felt too exhausted to even pretend I wanted to be part of them.

I smiled and said, "Douglas is indeed a lovely child, but he isn't mine. You all enjoy being a family. I'll be taking my leave."

The moment I turned around, Patrick shouted after me, "Agnes, stop right there!"

Mr. Underwood slammed his hand against the table. "Let her go. She's getting far too full of herself. How dare she make a scene at our Thanksgiving dinner?"

Patrick chased after me anyway. He grabbed me by the wrist, but I yanked my hand free.

Suddenly, Douglas came charging at me from behind.

"Don't touch my daddy, you meanie!" he screamed through his tears as he pounded his little fists against my legs.

I instinctively shifted to the side. Douglas lost his balance and landed hard on his bottom.

In an instant, the room erupted into chaos.

Patrick glared at me and roared, "Agnes, have you no shame? How could you hurt a three-year-old child?"

Lana scooped Douglas up from the floor and shot me a venomous glare.

"If you have a problem, take it up with me! Leave Douglas out of it!"

Mr. Underwood was shaking with rage as he jabbed a finger at my face and bellowed, "Get out! Get out right now! I was blind to ever consider letting Patrick marry you!"

Even Isaac joined in. "Agnes, what you did was downright cruel!"

"I didn't hit him." I merely tried to defend myself, but Lana immediately slapped me across the face.

She hit me so hard that I tasted blood in my mouth.

"How dare you keep making excuses?" she screamed. "If you didn't hit Douglas, are you seriously telling me he just fell on his own?"