Chapter 3The Price of a Hidden Ring

"Don't pay any attention to her. Let's go inside."

Ethan finally spoke.

But when he said it, he didn't even spare me a single glance.

Seeing Ethan turning to leave, Mia rushed forward and threw her arms around him:

"Daddy, please don't ignore Mia..."

The next second, the man frowned impatiently, forcefully shoving Mia away. His tone was ice-cold:

"I am not your father."

With that, Ethan stepped toward the entrance of the country club, never looking back.

I don't remember how I left the club. All I remember is rushing forward to hug my daughter tightly, while Chloe stood before me, looking down at me and saying:

"You will be beneath my heel for the rest of your life."

I had just managed to coax Mia to sleep when I received a text from Ethan.

"Things were chaotic today. Don't overthink it."

Looking at the message, an indescribable bitterness surged from the depths of my heart, rising all the way up to my throat.

Ethan always seemed to operate like this.

A harsh slap to the face, followed by a half-hearted pat on the back.

My phone chimed again.

It was a message from Chloe:

"Since you're back in the country, come to the office tomorrow. It's time to finally settle who inherits the company."

Looking at my sleeping daughter, I dialed my best friend's number.

"Well, look who finally remembered I exist!"

"Are you free tomorrow? Can you watch my daughter for the day?"

"Daughter? Since when do you have a daughter? Whose is it?"

I froze for a moment.

"Ethan's."

The sound of my friend's utter shock erupted from the phone:

"Ethan Sterling? Didn't you guys break up seven years ago? How do you have a kid?"

"And if I remember correctly, Ethan has been married for a while now."

She paused, as if suddenly realizing something:

"Girl... don't tell me you loved Ethan so much you willingly became his mistress..."

Hearing this, I forced a smile, but my eyes were filled with nothing but desolation.

"It turns out I was the only one kept in the dark."

After hanging up, I stared at the endless stream of notifications popping up on my phone, lost in thought.

They were all from Ethan.

He sent an address.

"I'm busy lately. You and Mia can stay at this apartment for now."

"Starting tomorrow, bring me three meals a day at the office. I'm still used to your cooking."

"Oh, and the day after tomorrow is Chloe's birthday. As her older sister, make sure you get her a gift."

The moment I saw those messages.

I felt a surge of inexplicable rage rise within me, rushing straight to my head.

Even now.

Ethan offered no explanation whatsoever. Instead, he just continued to issue orders and commands like always. He even forgot that today was Mia's birthday.

With trembling fingers, I slowly typed on the screen:

"Ethan, do you even remember what day today is?"

The other side went dead quiet.

I was probably just too exhausted; in my daze, I actually fell asleep.

When I groggily woke up early the next morning, my daughter Mia was sitting on the bed, holding my phone, grinning at me excitedly:

"Mommy, Daddy sent you money!"

I instinctively grabbed the phone to look.

Sometime in the early hours of the morning, Ethan had replied to my message:

"What day is it?"

"Are you out of money again? If you need cash, there's no need to make up excuses. Just accept the transfer."

Right now, the transfer had already been accepted by my daughter.

It was two dollars and fifty cents.

Not even enough to buy a cup of coffee.