Chapter 2

"So, were you really trying to get pregnant behind my back?"

When he said this, the oppressive look in his eyes was all too familiar to me.

It was the same reprimand he gave when his subordinates made a mistake.

I asked in return, "What if I was? Would you still make me get my tubes tied?"

Griffin's tone instantly sharpened as he blurted out, "Not right now!"

Realizing his bad attitude, he pulled me onto his lap and coaxed me.

"Ronnie said Poppy became very insecure after the divorce. If we have a child now, it will affect her mental health."

"So before you get pregnant, get your tubes tied first."

"When Poppy comes of age and can take over the company, if you still want one, I can go with you to consult about a reversal surgery, or we can do IVF. By then, Ronnie should be at ease."

Poppy was six years old this year. I would have to wait twelve years.

And that still depended on whether Veronica would agree when the time came.

Griffin gently kissed my cheek.

I used to be obsessed with that tenderness hidden beneath his cold exterior.

But at this moment, my heart felt absolutely nothing.

I pulled away from him, stood up, and laughed sarcastically.

"Am I going to have to make way for your ex-wife and daughter for the rest of my life?"

Griffin froze for a second, annoyance surfacing in his eyes.

"Didn't you know I was divorced and had a daughter when you married me? What's the point of making a fuss about this now?"

"When Ronnie and I split up, I had my share of the blame. It's not easy being a single mother, and I can't just leave her be."

I only found it ridiculous listening to him.

Although Veronica had custody, she still left Poppy to live here most of the time.

After all, she was Griffin's first love, and they had been married for a few years.

Even though they divorced due to incompatible tempers, he always felt guilty toward her, so he let her have her way.

I was the one taking care of Poppy while working full-time. What was so hard for her?

Seeing that the conversation was going nowhere, Griffin dug out a box of stomach medicine from the first-aid kit and walked toward Poppy's room.

His tone was flat.

"Just calm down for a bit. I'm going to check on Ronnie. Her stomach hurts whenever she gets angry."

Connie sighed softly from the side.

"After all these years, Mr. Prescott still remembers that only this stomach medicine works best for Veronica."

"The doctor prescribed it for her, and the name is long and complicated. I never even knew what it was for before."

"But Mr. Prescott remembers it better than anyone. They're divorced, yet he always keeps it stocked in the house—he probably still can't let her go, huh?"

I bought all these things for the house. Griffin rarely cared about such trivial matters.

Only that stomach medicine was something he specifically asked me to buy.

I hadn't thought much of it before. So this was the reason.

Realizing she had spoken out of turn, Connie quickly explained.

"Nora, don't take it to heart. I was just talking nonsense."

"It wasn't that I didn't want to explain the miscarriage for you just now. It's just that Mr. Prescott has always cared a lot about Veronica's feelings. How could I dare talk back to her in front of him..."

"Since Mr. Prescott married you, you must matter to him too..."

I looked silently at the messy table.

Actually, besides that bottle of folic acid, there were two prescription bottles on the table.

The labels clearly printed the names of the medications—they were both for treating depression.

And besides being taken for pregnancy preparation, folic acid also helped in treating depression.

But Griffin turned a blind eye to them. Or maybe he saw them but simply didn't care.

As I walked past Poppy's room, I heard Veronica and him talking inside.

"See, I told you. How could a stepmother truly care for Poppy? How long has she even been here? And she's already learned to frame a child."

"I heard her arguing with you. Is this the young girl you like? When did your taste get this bad?"

Griffin's tone was somewhat cold.

"I wouldn't say I like her. You kept dumping Poppy on me back then, and I was too busy."

"Nora is gentle, family-oriented, and knows her boundaries. She used to be Poppy's kindergarten teacher—after I married her, I told her to stop teaching Poppy's class and switched her to another teacher. She knows how to take care of kids, so she was a very suitable candidate. If I had known it would turn into this mess today, I would have been better off alone."

So she was just suitable.

I gave a sarcastic smirk and walked straight back to my bedroom.

Actually, I was surprised when I was diagnosed with mild depression.

I only knew that I hadn't been happy in a long time.

My chest always felt like a rock was pressing down on it, making it hard to breathe.

But when the doctor asked me when it started, I couldn't answer.

Was it when Griffin promised to make up for our honeymoon, only to leave me alone at a foreign airport and run off at the last minute to join Veronica and Poppy on their family trip?

Or was it when he heard I wanted a child, and the very next day he handed me a box of long-term birth control pills, telling me to wait a little longer?

It didn't matter anymore.

Since no one cared about my feelings, at the very least, I had to learn to love myself.

I sent a message to my lawyer.

"Please draft a divorce agreement for me. Thank you."

As I put down my phone, the bedroom door was gently pushed open.

Poppy walked in cautiously.

She looked at my stomach and whispered.

"I just secretly asked Connie. She said the baby in your tummy is gone, and you bled a lot."

"But I just wanted it to disappear. Mommy said... I didn't know you would fall down the stairs, really."

"Ms. Weil, can I still be the kid who tells you all her secrets? I have another secret. If you want to hear it, I can stay."