Chapter 2The Desperate Woman

Katie teetered toward us on impossibly high heels, her eyes brimming with tears as she stared at Karl. “We just took our wedding photos, and you’re already cheating on me, Karl? You said you would only love me for the rest of your life! You lied to me! I’m just going to go kill myself!”

With a dramatic cry, she ran towards a tree on the curb, only to collapse theatrically into Karl’s waiting arms.

She pounded weakly on his chest. “You’re a bastard, Karl! If you’re going to break my heart, just let me die!”

My daughter ran over to her, gently wiping away her fake tears. “Don’t cry, Mommy,” she cooed. “Daddy and I only love you.”

In an instant, the curious glances from the crowd turned into sharp, judgmental glares aimed directly at me. “So, she’s the other woman?”

“Obviously. They have a child together. I can’t believe she has the nerve to seduce a married man.”

I opened my mouth to explain, but Karl cut me off, his brow furrowed with annoyance. “You should go, Aurora. I can’t do this to Katie.”

My daughter then reached up and yanked the hairpin from my head, tearing out a fistful of my hair with it. She snatched the necklace box from my hand. “Did you really think this was for you? Daddy and I got these presents for Mommy.”

It had only been a month, and my daughter was already calling Katie ‘Mommy.’

Karl shot me a triumphant smirk before turning and dropping to one knee in front of Katie. “I kept feeling like I still owed you something. Perhaps… it was this ring.” He produced another box, this one containing a massive diamond ring.

My daughter clipped the butterfly hairpin into Katie’s hair. “Mommy loves butterflies. I bought this especially for you.”

Meanwhile, someone in the crowd was live-streaming. The hashtag #EpicLoveStory was trending.

[He and their daughter love her so much! She’s the real winner here!]

[OMG, is that a two-carat diamond? I think that’s the ‘Heart of the Ocean’ ring! It took the designer three years to make, it’s worth over a hundred million, and it’s the only one in the world!]

Basking in the crowd’s adoration, Katie shot me a look of pure contempt and melted into Karl’s embrace. He scooped her up with one arm, took our daughter’s hand with the other, and walked away.

I just stood there, silently taking screenshots of all of Katie’s Instagram posts before blocking and deleting them both.

I had no time to be a player in their pathetic little soap opera.