Chapter 2

I did not know how I made it back to my rental.

The place was dark when I walked in. The eggs I had left on the table for Poppy that morning were still sitting there, stone cold.

I sat up the entire night.

When the sun came up, I dug the marriage certificate out from the very back of a drawer. I had kept it carefully in a plastic sleeve, and not a single corner had ever been bent.

When Delia first brought it home all those years ago, I held it and cried for a long time. She told me her family did not approve, so we had to keep the marriage a secret for now. She said that certificate was all we needed, and that someday, she would give me a proper wedding in front of everyone.

I had believed her for seven years.

At 9:00 am, I went to a law firm.

Attorney Daniel Haskins opened the folder, and after only a couple of glances, his expression changed. "Mr. Wheeler, this certificate is fake."

I stared at the certificate as my fingers slowly tightened around it. At that moment, even breathing hurt.

When I walked out of the firm, the giant screen outside the shopping mall was lit up. On it, Delia stood on the deck of a yacht, fastening a necklace around Jensen Rhodes's neck.

Fireworks burst across the night sky as captions scrolled past, announcing that every light in the city was shining for Jensen alone.

People around me raised their phones to take pictures, their eyes full of envy.

"That's so romantic."

"I heard she spent six months planning it."

I stood in the crowd, clutching that fake certificate while feeling like a joke.

On my birthday that year, she had only bought a tiny cake, and the candle that was stuck in was crooked. She laughed and told me that once we had money, she would throw me the best birthday party ever.

Back then, I thought a little hardship was fine as long as she remembered.

She had money now, and she still remembered all the grand gestures and romance. She had simply given them to someone else.

That evening, Delia brought Poppy home.

Poppy was hugging a new toy, and the moment she saw me, she tucked it behind her as if she were afraid I would touch it.

Delia walked in and took off her coat as though nothing had happened. "I can explain about today."

I set the fake marriage certificate on the table. "Then start by explaining this."

She waited until Poppy went back to her room before sitting down across from me and rubbing her temples. "My family arranged my engagement to Jensen. Back when the company ran into trouble, the Rhodes family helped us out a lot."

I looked at her. "So you never went bankrupt."

She did not answer.

I asked again. "Were the debts fake too?"

She finally spoke, her voice so calm it was almost cold. "What else was I supposed to do? It's not like you could have helped me."

A laugh burst out of me, though I was close to tears. "I spent four years paying off your debts. I washed dishes and hauled stock until my hands cracked and bled. And it turns out none of it was worth anything to you."

Her expression soured. "I never forced you to go that far."

I held my hands out in front of her. The scars left behind by frostbite and cracked skin were still there. "Then tell me, what else could I have done?"

She glanced at them once and looked away.

After a while, she said quietly, "It is what it is. The engagement with Jensen is settled, and Poppy will be going over there too."

My head snapped up. "What do you mean, going over there?"

"Jensen has agreed to become her guardian." She paused.

"Having his name behind her will give her a much better future."

I stared at her, barely able to believe what I was hearing. "I'm the one who raised her."

She frowned. "And in the state you're in, what can you give her?"

Just then, the bedroom door swung open.

Poppy ran out, her eyes shining. "Mommy, can I really live in the mansion forever? Papa said he's going to make me a playroom!"

I looked at her and said nothing for a long time. She did not notice the look in my eyes and only waited for Delia to nod.

Delia stroked her hair. "As long as you're good."

Poppy broke into a smile. "Then I'm never coming back here."

I lowered my head and looked at the fake certificate on the table, its bold print glaring up at me. It turned out I had not been betrayed. I had simply never had anything to begin with.

I raised my head, my voice so quiet that it came out hoarse. "Fine."

Delia was taken aback. "What?"

"If you want our daughter, she's yours." I paused and forced the corner of my mouth upward. "We were never married anyway, so let's make a clean break."

With that, I picked up the marriage certificate and tore it in half.