Chapter 3

3

After we went public, we were as in love as any young couple.

To earn the Miller family's approval, I spent every spare second working part-time jobs.

I refused to spend a single cent of Jace's money.

Jace, for his part, was willing to squeeze into my tiny, cramped rental apartment with me.

Even though we were exhausted, seeing each other made all the hard work worth it.

We encouraged each other and talked for hours every night.

Compared to this cold, massive mansion, that tiny apartment felt more like a home.

It was full of laughter. Every morning, I woke up to the person I loved most.

But those days were dead and gone. Jace and I could never go back.

I moved into a small condo I had bought before we got married.

I had used my own savings for it back then.

Jace hadn't understood why I wanted my own place when he could give me a mansion.

I had joked that I needed a place to go if he ever kicked me out.

I wanted a place that was entirely mine.

Jace had looked me in the eye and told me that day would never come.

I guess life has a funny way of making fools of us.

The day after I had my lawyer draft the divorce papers, Jace called.

"Leo is being bullied at school! Get your ass over here right now!"

Hearing that my son was in trouble, I shoved the papers into my bag and raced to the Miller estate.

When I walked in, I saw Leo huddled in Sienna's arms, sobbing.

I rushed over to check on him, ignoring everyone else.

"Leo, honey, tell Mommy where it hurts. Who was mean to you at school?"

Leo flinched away from my touch, burying his face deeper into Sienna's chest.

"Don't touch me! Get away!"

The pain in my chest felt like a physical weight.

I was his mother, yet he looked at me with such disgust while clinging to Sienna.

Old Mrs. Miller let out a sharp, cold huff.

"Still so unrefined. This is what happens when you marry into a family with no breeding. She has no class at all."

Sienna stroked Leo's hair, her voice sweet and poisonous.

"Leo, we can't be rude like your mother. You're the Miller heir, after all."

I suppressed my anger, reminding myself I was only here for my son.

I tried to take Leo's hand again, my voice soft.

"Leo, please let Mommy see if you're hurt."

Leo violently shoved my hand away. His eyes were filled with pure hatred.

"You're a criminal's daughter! I hate you!"

I froze. Despite the summer heat, I felt like I had been plunged into ice water.

It felt just like the first time I met the Miller family.

When they found out my father was in prison, they nearly drowned me in their spit.

They looked at me with such contempt, saying my blood was dirty because of my father.

I had endured eight years of that insults for Jace's sake.

But I never thought my own flesh and blood would use my deepest trauma to attack me.

Old Mrs. Miller chimed in, "Stay away from him. Don't bring your filthy aura near my grandson."

Sienna covered her mouth and giggled.

"We'll probably need to disinfect the whole house after she leaves."

Jace stood there, not saying a single word in my defense.

"Watch your behavior, Jane. Don't corrupt Leo, or I won't let you see him at all."

Eight years of humiliation flashed before my eyes.

For Jace, I had swallowed my pride for nearly a decade.

Even when Sienna started wedging herself between us, I held onto the fantasy that he would come back to me.

I was such a fool.

I had turned myself into a total failure. My husband wasn't mine, and my son hated me.

This eight-year marriage was nothing but a pathetic joke.

I had endured everything for my son and for a love that had long since rotted.

Now, I was done.