Chapter 2 — Don’t Talk to My Mum Like That

Chapter 2 — Don’t Talk to My Mum Like That

Kate forced her hands to keep moving.

The vegetables were almost done.

The sauce needed stirring.

Dinner had to be perfect.

It always did.

Because perfection was the only thing that kept her invisible—and invisibility was safer than being seen and rejected.

She turned off the stove and stepped back.

The food could wait.

Kate wiped her hands slowly on a towel, pressing her palms together afterward to stop their trembling. She took a steady breath and reached for the strings of her apron.

Then she heard it again

Laughter.

Mason’s laughter towards his childhood love, towards the woman that broke him completely and walked out of his life when they were supposed to get married.

Yet he laughed so freely with her, like she didn't completely break him, like she never left and like he wasn't married.

It drifted in from the living room warm in a way that it had never been for her.

Kate hesitated before leaving the kitchen.

You came out here for Elena, she reminded herself. Just talk about the birthday. Nothing else.

When she stepped into the living room, the sight before her made her want to puke.

Mason and Ellie were already seated.

Not formally. Not stiffly.

Ellie sat close to him on the couch, angled toward Mason like she had never left this house. Like this was still her place. Her posture was relaxed, confident, one leg crossed over the other, her fingers lazily toying with the edge of the cushion.

Comfortable, flirting like that were still in highschool.

Kate felt something tighten painfully in her chest.

For a brief, foolish moment, she wondered if this was how it had always looked—if she had simply refused to see it.

She swallowed and reminded herself why she had come out.

“Elena’s birthday is coming up,” Kate said quietly, breaking the moment.

Both of them turned to look at her.

Mason’s expression was unreadable.

Ellie’s lips curved slightly, her eyes sharp with interest, like a predator sensing weakness.

“I spoke with the party planner today,” Kate continued, forcing her voice to remain steady. “She suggested a small garden party this year. Pink and white decorations. A princess-themed cake. Elena liked the idea when I showed her the sketches.”

Elena perked up immediately, sliding off the armchair. “Daddy! I want the castle cake!”

Mason smiled without hesitation, the warmth in his face instant. “Then you’ll have it.”

Kate’s chest loosened just a little.

She allowed herself a breath.

“The planner said we should confirm the guest list this week,” Kate went on. “Your parents, a few friends, and some children from her school—”

A soft laugh cut through her words.

Mocking.

“Well, of course,” Ellie said lazily. “She’s already planned everything.”

Kate stopped speaking.

Ellie leaned back, crossing her legs slowly. “This was always the goal, wasn’t it honey ? The money. The comfort. The lifestyle.” Her gaze slid over Kate deliberately. “You wanted to be a billionaire’s wife so badly you schemed your way into his life. How desperate ”

Kate didn’t react.

She had learned long ago that silence hurt more than words.

“All poor people are the same,” Ellie continued lightly. “They grab whatever opportunity they can even if it means stealing someone else’s life.”

Kate’s fingers curled slowly at her sides.

Ellie tilted her head. “You know what’s funny? The man I left Mason for three years ago?” She laughed, but bitterness crept through it. “He scammed me. Took everything I had. Every cent. And vanished.”

Mason said nothing.

Kate stared at mason but also said nothing.

What shattered her wasn’t Ellie’s confession.

It was Mason’s agreement.

“She’s not wrong,” he said coldly.

Kate felt the air leave her lungs.No one spoke.

The air in the room suddenly felt heavy and suffocating. Kate could hear the ticking of the clock on the wall, each second dragging painfully slow.

Mason didn’t correct her, he actually agreed with Ellie, all it took was for Ellie to come back and Mason was acting love stuck again, but she has been with him for three years and this is what she gets.

That was worse than the insult itself.

“If it wasn’t for your sly actions,” Mason continued, finally looking directly at her, “I would have married Ellie. You just realized your mistake too late.”

Ellie’s smile widened.

Triumphant.

“You should be grateful I left,” Ellie said, turning fully to Kate now. “Otherwise, you’d never have had this life.” Her gaze flicked toward Elena. “ or my mason she said the last part with a smirke. "Oh and piece of advice for you darling stop using the child to squeeze money out of him. It’s disgusting.”

“Don’t talk to my mum like that!”

The words came out, small but fierce, unafraid.

Kate’s head went up.

Elena stood there, tiny hands clenched into fists, her little body trembling with anger.

Kate’s heart nearly broke.The room froze.

Even Ellie looked startled .

Kate stared at her daughter, stunned—not because Elena had spoken, but because she had understood. she was just three soon to be four but she already knew when something was wrong.

Mason stood immediately. “Ellie, enough.”

He signaled her sharply, then turned to Elena—and the change in him was instant.

He crouched down, warmth flooding his face. “Come here, princess.”

Elena ran into his arms.

“Mummy didn’t do anything wrong,” she insisted.

Mason smiled gently. “Adults sometimes say things they shouldn’t.” He kissed her forehead. “Daddy loves you, okay?”

Kate turned away before they could see her face, but even as she left broken she could hear mason still comforting an angry little Elena.

She walked back into the kitchen, gripping the counter as her vision blurred.

The food still simmered on the stove.

Forgotten.

As long as Mason could love Elena like that…

As long as he could look at their daughter with joy.

Kate told herself she still had a chance.

Even if that hope was slowly breaking her, piece by piece.

It’s fine, she told herself.

She had survived worse. She could survive this too. She would lower her expectations again, shrink herself again, if it meant keeping the peace.

Love, she had learned, was often quieter than pain.

The wooden spoon slipped from Kate’s fingers and clattered against the counter.

She stared at it for a long moment before picking it up again. Even the simplest things felt heavy now, like everything in this house demanded more strength than she had left.