Chapter 2

2 Leo tilted his head back, proudly pointing at the cake for Krystal.

"Mommy Krystal, this is a special surprise for you! Do you like it?"

Krystal smiled and kissed Leo's cheek.

"Our Leo is so thoughtful! Mommy loves you the most."

Leo beamed, but when he turned and saw me, the smile vanished from his face.

"Dad, she's dressed so ugly! And she kinda smells. I wish we hadn't let her come."

"Now, Leo, what did I say?" Shane chided gently. "This is what your Mommy Krystal wanted. You want to make her happy, don't you?"

"Yes!"

The father and son duo played their parts perfectly, making Krystal beam with delight.

I stood there holding the cake, feeling like a clown for everyone's amusement.

"Could you hold the cake for a sec?" Krystal asked sweetly. "I'm having them bring Pupper over to blow out the candles."

Confused, I watched as Krystal brought her dog to me.

So that was it. It was the dog's birthday. They'd made me carry the cake just to humiliate me.

Pupper ran circles around me, yapping excitedly.

I've been allergic to dog fur since I was a child. Shane knew this; he'd even given away his dog of four years because he was afraid I'd be uncomfortable.

He was heartbroken about it for a long time, but he never let me see.

But now, he just watched coldly, even remarking on how cute the dog was.

The itching started almost immediately, and my breath caught in my throat. I swayed.

My mother-in-law yanked me hard from behind, glaring at me like I was her mortal enemy.

"You're a grown woman and you can't even hold a cake steady? What are you even doing here, just freeloading? Useless!"

"I'm allergic to dog fur," I rasped.

"Allergic? Since when are you allergic to dog fur? You're just making excuses because you don't want to hold the cake!"

A cold laugh escaped me.

A dog fur allergy could mean difficulty breathing, or even anaphylactic shock and hospitalization. And she said I was making excuses?

I could barely stop myself from throwing the cake right in her face.

Before I could lose it, Shane stepped in to smooth things over.

"Take Pupper away for now. We don't want anyone getting hurt."

No one dared disobey his order. A servant quickly took the dog away.

Krystal, seeing things weren't going her way, immediately rushed to Shane's side and took his arm.

"Shane, it's all my fault. I just wanted to celebrate Pupper's birthday, and it turned into this mess."

"It's okay, it's not your fault," Shane said, his voice soft for her. "Some people just know how to spoil the fun."

He said it while staring right at me, as if blaming me for causing trouble and upsetting Krystal.

Midway through the party, Shane went upstairs to change. I sat numbly in a corner.

Krystal, her demeanor completely changed, sauntered over to me.

"Clara, how does it feel to have everything stolen from you? Your husband, your son―they only remember me now. They have no idea who you are. And guess what they say about you?"

Her voice was a venomous whisper. "You probably don't even know, do you? Shane has always loved me. He only married you because the Carter family was on the brink of bankruptcy and they needed an alliance with your family. We've secretly met countless times over the years, countless nights in hotels."

She leaned in closer. "As for when you were assaulted... with your brains, you'd probably never guess who was behind it, would you?!"