Chapter 4

James stepped in front of me, blocking my way.

“Evelyn,” he said stiffly, his eyes flicking toward Emily again and again, clearly convinced she was his child. “For the kid’s sake, you could come back. There are still plenty of easy jobs on the estate.”

“Mr. James,” I met his gaze coldly, enunciating each word as I said, “I’m married.”

James let out a short, disbelieving laugh, as if I’d just told the most ridiculous joke. “Your husband? What kind of loser lets you live like this?”

His eyes slid over my plain dress before deliberately landing on Mia’s extravagant gown, his meaning obvious. “After all these years, don’t tell me you’ve never even gotten so much as a freebie bouquet.”

“Forget her, James.” Mia moved closer, though her attention was fixed on the camellia hair clip in Emily’s hair. Suddenly, her voice shot up several octaves. “Oh my gosh! Is this little one wearing Chanel’s new hair accessory?”

She reached out to take it, but Emily shrank back, frightened.

“Fake?” Mia’s fingers brushed the smooth, delicate surface, and she immediately raised her voice for the whole room to hear. “Of course. This year’s Chanel limited edition! Evelyn, it’s bad enough you wear knockoffs yourself. Are you trying to teach your kid to do the same?”

The crowd didn’t hesitate to pile on. Their pointing and judgmental stares cut into me like knives.

“Mommy…” Emily’s eyes welled up, her small body trembling as she buried her face in my chest.

“That’s enough!” My patience snapped as I shielded my daughter. “You keep calling what we wear fake, but have you even seen the real thing?”

I took off my watch and held it up, turning the back toward them. “Look closely. Here’s Patek Philippe’s custom serial number and the Howard family crest!”

“Family crest?” A bystander burst into laughter.

“She’s lost it! The Howard family crest? Does she think she’s Daniel Howard’s mother or something?”

“She probably had it engraved herself. It’s illegal, by the way.”

“Pathetic. Call the cops and have her arrested!”

No one even tried to verify it. My fingertips went cold from anger as I clutched my daughter and tried to leave, only to have several people deliberately step into my path.

Mia’s greedy eyes locked on my watch, and she suddenly stepped forward. “A fake like that is an insult to tonight’s guests! Take it off and hand it over, or smash it right now! Otherwise, you’re not leaving.”

“That’s not happening.”

My refusal barely left my lips before Mia lunged for it. Emily screamed and sobbed in my arms, terrified.

“Enough!” James’s patience broke under the noise and chaos.

He yanked Emily right out of my arms. He clearly wanted to regain control and to get a closer look at the child’s face.

Ripped from me and held by a stranger, Emily panicked completely. She kicked and screamed, her cries raw and heart-wrenching. “Mommy! Mommy! Let me go! Bad man!”

“Ugh, how annoying!” Mia snapped when one of Emily’s frantic kicks hit her.

She grabbed Emily’s arm and gave it a vicious twist.

“Emily!” My vision went red.

I tried to rush forward, but a server’s firm grip landed on my shoulder, holding me back.

“Stay there. I’ll give her back,” James muttered, now struggling to contain the wailing child.

He started toward me with Emily in his arms. However, just as I reached out to take my daughter back…

“Ah!” Mia shrieked, her heel slipping as she “accidentally” crashed into a passing server carrying an enormous pudding tower.

With a loud crash, the towering, rainbow-colored dessert collapsed, dumping its entire sticky, creamy contents over me.

I didn’t even have time to move. From head to toe, I was covered in pudding, whipped cream, and fruit, like I’d just crawled out of a trash bin. The cold, sticky, nauseating mess clung to my skin and hair.

The ballroom went dead silent.

Emily froze at the sight of her mother turned into a human dessert disaster. Her face went chalk-white, her sobs cutting off into stunned silence.

“Oh my god…” The quiet was shattered under a wave of laughter and cruel commentary.

Mia covered her mouth, feigning pity. “You look like a dessert trash can, Emily. Well, now you can eat all you want.” She snorted into laughter.

James, startled by the commotion, lost his grip on Emily. She tumbled to the floor with a dull thud. Her knees and arms turned red and bruised, but she didn’t even seem to feel it. Crying, she scrambled toward me.

Then, the server’s voice rang out loud and clear over the chaos.

“Please welcome Mr. Daniel Howard and his son!”

Every head in the room turned toward the entrance.

Dressed in an immaculate white bespoke suit, his striking features framed by a powerful presence that seemed to crush the air out of the room, Daniel Howard walked in, holding the hand of his little boy—a miniature prince.

Their cool, aristocratic gazes instantly found the center of the chaos—me, a woman drenched in pudding, standing frozen in humiliation.

Emily’s wail broke the heavy silence, raw and desperate. “Daddy!”