Chapter 3The $1.5 Lemonade That Cost Him Everything

I was completely dumbfounded.

Leo blinked his big eyes and shyly said, "Mister."

Daniel's eyes instantly reddened. He looked at me, his voice trembling with heartbreak. "Charlotte, you never even told him about me?"

"How could you be so cruel? Other children have fathers to grow up with, but my son, Daniel Kane's son, has to suffer like this?"

I had lost all patience. "Are you ever going to shut up? Let go of me!"

But his grip only tightened. After a long silence, he sighed. "For our son's sake... I'll give in. Charlotte, you can come back."

I was confused. "What?"

A corner of his mouth twitched. "Come back to me. Are you satisfied now?"

"Daniel!" Ava cried, looking at him with wounded eyes. "What about me?"

Daniel's gaze flickered. "Ava, she'll just be a nanny for the child."

"My feelings for you won't change. It's just... I can't abandon my son."

Ava shot me a venomous glare, tears springing to her eyes. "I don't want her! This woman is using this cheap trick to cling to you! She's just playing hard to get! She never got over you!"

Daniel soothed her, but his eyes on me were cold as ice. "I know."

"Don't worry. Even if she begs me on her knees, I won't be moved. You know what she's like. With her background and her narrow worldview, how could she ever be worthy of me?"

The popsicle vendor snorted. "I thought she was some gold digger. Turns out she's just a desperate mistress!"

The crowd immediately chimed in.

"She acts so high and mighty, but she's just a manipulative witch!"

"No wonder the kid is so timid."

"Didn't you hear Mr. Kane? She's from the countryside. Trash is as trash does."

So what if I'm from the countryside? I worked my way up to become an investment consultant, handling multi-million dollar projects. But in his eyes, I would always be branded as "cheap."

I love street food, early morning hikes, devouring half a watermelon on a hot summer day... When we were together, he dismissed all these simple pleasures as "lacking class."

And Ava? As the "poor student" he sponsored, she used his money to buy luxury goods. Did he ever call her a gold digger?

In the end, it was simple. He just didn't love me.

I wrenched my hand away, my face a cold mask. "Daniel, if you don't stop this, I'm calling the police!"

Ava threw her arms around his waist. "Darling, she's poor and stubborn. She's taking your kindness as an insult. Let's just leave her alone."

But Daniel didn't budge. Instead, he sneered. "The police? Go ahead. With the Kane family's resources, I'll get custody of the child, one hundred percent."

"You have two choices: give me your contact information and accept child support, or come home with me and our son right now... as his nanny."

I was so angry I could have screamed. I picked up my son and started to walk away.

Daniel's face darkened. He lunged forward and snatched Leo from my arms. "Since you're so ungrateful, I'll raise the child myself!"

He held the struggling boy tightly. "If you want to see him, you can come find me at my new place on the coast. I just moved to the city."

Before I could react, Daniel was striding towards the Maybach with my son. Ava trotted behind him, muttering, "Darling, I thought we were here to pick up my nephew."

Suddenly, my son started screaming, reaching for me with his small hands. "Mommy! Bad man! I'm scared..."

I ran after them, a wild panic seizing me, but the crowd blocked my way.

"The kid will have a great life with Mr. Kane! What are you so hysterical about?"

"No wonder Mr. Kane couldn't stand her. No class at all. Not even thinking about what's best for the child!"

As I watched Daniel open the car door, a desperate sob escaped my lips. "Daniel! Please, give me back my son!"

I fumbled for my phone, my hands shaking. "I'm not a mistress! My husband is the head of the Ashton family... Leo is our eldest son! We have a daughter too! I have a family photo on my phone, look!"

The crowd erupted in derisive laughter.

"The Ashtons? The family that could bankrupt a company with a single word?"

"If Mr. Ashton was your husband, would your kid be in this kindergarten? You might as well say you're the First Lady!"

They all mocked me. No one believed me. A chilling cold spread through my body, but I couldn't just stand by and watch my son be taken away.

I screamed, my voice raw with desperation, "Daniel! I'll go back with you!"