Chapter 2

My smile froze on my face. A two-year-old who could barely speak clearly could now clearly point at me and say "mistress."

Claire glanced at me and pretended to scold the boy.

"Lucas! How dare you talk like that! She's your godmother! She loves you the most."

Damian quickly covered the child's ears.

"Claire, don't yell at him. Kids say the darndest things."

"Rowena's my wife. She won't hold it against a child."

I smiled bitterly, sitting there like a criminal disrupting a happy family of three. How could I possibly claim to be Damian's wife?

I'd never seen a two-year-old with "innocent" words call someone a mistress.

Lucas. Yearning. Only now did I understand the meaning behind the child's name.

Damian didn't find anything wrong with the situation. He even tried to hand the child to me.

I dodged smoothly.

"I should go."

The man grabbed my wrist with his free hand.

"Rowena, you're free right now. Perfect time to practice caring for a kid."

I laughed coldly. "Damian, I'm naive but I'm not insane. Why would I care for you and your mistress's child? If you three don't find me an eyesore, I certainly find you disgusting."

Seeing the tension, Claire smiled and tried to smooth things over.

"Rowena, you know I never want to get married. The baby was just an accident. If you mind, I can legally transfer him to you. It won't affect your marriage to Damian."

As she spoke, she deliberately pushed against Damian, her chest "accidentally" brushing his shoulder.

"Go home with your wife. I've been raising the child alone for two years anyway—I'm used to it. When Rowena wants to raise him, she can come handle the transfer paperwork anytime."

The boy in Damian's arms seemed to sense something and suddenly burst into tears.

The man instantly panicked, anxiously patting the child, coaxing him and wiping his tears with tissues.

When the child finally stopped crying, he handed him to Claire before finally turning to glare at me.

"Rowena, that's enough! Because of you, our son never had a father. Now you want to separate mother and child?"

"Besides, you often babysit anyway and he's used to your care. You'd better take good care of him, or forget about marrying me."

My breath caught. I turned and quickly left.

What did he mean "because of me" the child had no father?

I rushed downstairs, not wanting to stay another second. I opened my car door, preparing to drive away.

As I closed the door, Damian blocked it.

The man frowned, preventing me from shutting the door.

"Rowena, I wanted to tell you when Claire first got pregnant. I never meant to hide it."

"But she's your best friend. I figured since she didn't want to get married anyway, when she had the baby and didn't want to raise it, we'd just transfer custody to you."

I stared at him in disbelief, my eyes red.

"Too bad you let it slip. I might raise her child, but I'd never raise a mistress and your child."

Seeing my reddened eyes, Damian responded with mockery:

"You're the heir to Anderson Enterprises, from such a prominent family, yet you can't accept this small thing. You're not as strong as Claire—a girl from the slums has more backbone than you."

My nose stung. I fought to hold back tears.

"I can't argue with you, and I don't want to anymore."

Damian pulled me from the driver's seat and held me forcefully.

"Stop crying. I promised I'd make it up to you, just not now."

I laughed miserably and struggled out of his embrace.

I looked away for a long moment before speaking flatly.

"Forget it. Let's break up."