For five years, Elara was the perfect "stay-at-home wife." She traded her high-powered career as a top-tier legal shark—the same woman who once saved her husband's company from a billion-dollar collapse—for kitchen counters and nursery rhymes to care for their sick daughter. She did it for love. She did it because her husband, Julian Beckett, said he needed her. But while Elara was playing the role of the submissive, dutiful wife, Julian was playing someone else. He thought Elara was too soft, too settled, too "obedient" to ever notice his betrayal. He was wrong. Elara didn't scream. She didn't cry. Instead, the "Golden Lawyer" went back to work in the shadows. With cold, surgical precision, she gathered every scrap of evidence, stripped him of his assets, and served him the divorce papers of a lifetime—all without him sensing a thing until it was too late. Now, Elara is back in the spotlight, more radiant and powerful than ever as a single mother and a career powerhouse. As Julian falls to his knees in the pouring rain, begging for a second chance and promising a lifetime of atonement, a shadow looms over him. The cold, formidable CEO Sebastian Vance—a man far more powerful than Julian could ever dream of being—steps in front of Elara, shielding her from his sight. "Mr. Beckett," Sebastian’s voice is like ice, "You’ve overstayed your welcome in her life. Move, before I make you."

Chapter 1The number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable. Please try again later... Beep... Beep...[Julian, Melody got hurt.][I can't get a cab to the hospital. Please drive to Bayview Mall and pick us up.]After the third unanswered call, Elara Sterling placed her daughter on the bench and had no choice but to leave Julian Beckett a message.The torrential rain made the ground slick. Her daughter had accidentally tumbled down the stairs and scraped her knee. Elara wanted to take her to the hospital, but it was rush hour, and not a single cab was available.Their family driver had taken a week off, leaving Elara with no option but to contact Julian.Julian's company was just down the street, less than a five-minute drive away. Elara could even see the flickering lights on the top floor of his building. He was still at the office.The cold air nipped at their legs. Elara rolled down her daughter's pant leg, but the fabric brushed against the wound. Melody cried in pain, squirming restlessly as she choked out, "Daddy isn't coming. Does he not want us anymore?"Elara was momentarily at a loss for words. She gently stroked her daughter's hair. "No, sweetie. Daddy is in a meeting. He's just tied up right now.""Whenever I'm sick, Daddy is always in a meeting. Does he not care about me at all?"Sensing Elara's sudden dip in mood, Melody clamped her mouth shut in fright. A panic and remorse far beyond her years flickered in her eyes.She wanted to apologize and comfort her mother but didn't know how to express it, eventually bursting into anxious tears.Elara quickly pulled her into a hug and explained, "I'm not mad. Mommy is just blaming herself for not noticing how much you miss Daddy.""I'm sorry, baby. Mommy was wrong."Melody accepted the apology, her cries gradually softening. She rubbed her small face against her mother's chest to show she had forgiven her.A lump formed in Elara's throat as she held her daughter tighter.The phone in her pocket buzzed. The premium ride she had booked finally arrived, and the driver was calling to confirm their location.The moment she hung up, Julian's reply popped up on the screen:[Entertaining clients. Not at the office.]Elara instinctively looked up. In the distance, the lights on the top floor of the office building—which had been on just seconds ago—flickered off.After sending the text, Julian slipped his phone back into his pocket.Footsteps approached from behind. As he turned, he extended his other hand.The woman placed her hand in his palm. It was freezing, sending a jolt through Julian.Vivian Winthrop leaned into him, slipping her hands beneath his coat. "Warm me up."Her cool fingers slid under his shirt, grazing the skin of his waist. Julian caught her hand, his hot breath brushing against her ear. "Didn't I satisfy you just now?"Vivian smiled shyly and tilted her head up to press a kiss to his lips.In the quiet space, the sounds of their passionate kisses and heavy breathing were exceptionally loud.Lightning flashed, thunder rumbled, and the rain poured down harder.It was over two hours later by the time they finished at the hospital and returned home.After a bath, it was time for ointment. The cold medicine stung the wound, and Melody thrashed around in tears. "Mommy, am I going to die?""No, you're not."Elara held her daughter firmly to prevent her from injuring herself further."Then why didn't the doctor make it better?""Why isn't Daddy home yet?""Does he not want me anymore?""Am I not being a good girl?"Melody was naturally highly sensitive, processing internal and external stimuli far more intensely than an average person. Missing her father for so long without any response made her incredibly anxious, and the scraped knee only amplified her insecurities.She was plagued by endless "whys" and "is it because I'm bad."She cried and asked, but no satisfactory answers came."Daddy is busy with work and can't come home." Melody had heard that excuse for eight days straight. It had lost all its credibility.Elara could only hold her daughter, telling her gently over and over again, "Mommy knows you're hurting. It's okay, just let it out."This was the first time in six months that Melody had lost control of her emotions. On the surface, it was about the scraped knee, but it ultimately traced back to Julian.He shouldn't be so cold as to neglect his own daughter.And she shouldn't have let him get away with not coming home.Half an hour later, Melody calmed down on her own. Elara poured her a glass of water, and they talked through what happened.In the end, mother and daughter apologized to each other and made amends.After coaxing her daughter to sleep, she sent Julian a message:[Julian, Melody scraped her knee tonight. When I was putting ointment on her, she suddenly missed you so much she broke down crying. If your work dinner is over, please come home and spend some time with her.][You haven't been home in eight days, and Melody really misses you.]Ever since they started dating in college, Elara had never done anything to put Julian in a difficult spot.If Melody hadn't missed him to the point of an emotional breakdown, she wouldn't have interrupted his networking dinner today.After sending the text, Elara went downstairs to prep ingredients for tomorrow's breakfast. When she returned, she found an unread message from Julian.There was no text, just a photo.It was a very deliberate, candid shot. In the top right corner, a perfectly manicured nail was visible.Through the frosted glass of a bathroom, a tall, naked man stood under the showerhead.It was her husband, Julian, who hadn't been home in eight days.Elara's hand trembled, nearly dropping her phone.Unanswered calls, the suddenly darkened office, the dismissive text, her daughter's injured knee, the way Melody cried for her father when she was sick—and the unfamiliar, sickeningly sweet perfume that had been lingering on Julian for months—flashed through her mind like a slideshow.So, while their daughter was sick and hurt, Julian had been keeping this woman company?Elara stared at the screen, and a bitter laugh escaped her lips.Highly sensitive but deeply misunderstood, Melody could only express her overwhelming emotions through crying as a baby. People used to call her a "demonic child," and everyone spoke of her with disgust and fear.After burning through over a dozen nannies, no one was willing to take the job no matter how much she paid. Elara had no choice but to quit her job as an attorney to focus entirely on raising her.It took three years of relentless effort for Elara to finally make her child believe that home was a safe harbor. She taught Melody that her parents would understand and love her, accepting her like any other child, and communicating with her.When Elara first suspected Julian's affair, he still cared about their daughter and still came home.For the sake of giving Melody a secure, stable environment, Elara convinced herself to endure it. As long as he played the role of a good father and met Melody's needs, she could pretend she didn't know.But a person's affection is finite. If he gave it to someone new, he was bound to take it away from the old.Julian no longer cared whether she and Melody needed him. When his daughter fell ill or had an emotional breakdown because of him, it was as if it had nothing to do with him anymore.For a highly sensitive child, every shattered expectation was an unforgettable betrayal.A castle of trust took years to build, but destroying it only required pulling out a few foundation stones.Julian was no longer a safe harbor for them; he was the executioner who would destroy Melody's life.Elara saved the photo, then screen-recorded the chat history and Julian's profile information.Six months of neglect and deceit. It was time to end this.Melody shouldn't have to suffer the consequences of Julian's mistakes.Elara usually cooked her daughter's meals herself.Today's breakfast was exactly what Melody requested: custard pastries, savory scones, and warm oatmeal.The oatmeal had been set in the slow cooker the night before.After heading downstairs, Elara took the prepared dough and ingredients out of the fridge to mix the filling.Once the pastries were steaming on the stove, she asked Mrs. Gable to keep an eye on them and went upstairs to wake Melody.Eating her favorite food put Melody in a great mood. She swung her legs happily and chattered away. "Mommy's pastries are the absolute best.""Thank you, Mommy. You work so hard."Elara's eyes crinkled in a smile, all her exhaustion melting away as she placed another custard pastry on her plate.Melody said thank you, took two bites, and suddenly stopped, staring blankly at the half-eaten pastry."Are you full?" Elara asked.Melody looked at her, shook her head, and whispered, "Mommy's pastries are so good. If only Daddy could have some too.""Mommy, did Daddy come home yesterday?" she asked carefully.Elara's heart tightened, but she kept her expression neutral and her tone firm. "No."She would no longer lie to cover for Julian and drain her child's trust in her.Melody lowered her head in disappointment, taking tiny bites of her pastry. When she finished, she asked again, "Did Daddy not come home because he got drunk at work?"Elara felt a wave of bitterness. Before she could figure out how to comfort her, Melody looked up again."Mommy, can I make Daddy a cup of honey tea?"Afraid Elara would say no, Melody quickly explained, "When Daddy used to get drunk, you always made him honey tea. I want to make it for him too."The fact that her child held no grudges and still cared for her father's health gripped Elara's heart like an invisible hand. She felt both fear and hatred.She feared her daughter's hopes would be dashed again, leaving her hurt by Julian once more.She hated Julian for his coldness.He used to say Melody was his little princess, so how could he be so cruel as to pour salt on her wounds?Elara tightened her fists, calculating her next move, and gently guided the conversation. "Melody, do you want to make it and take it to Daddy's office?"Melody nodded enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling. "Can I?""Yes."Elara agreed, then put on a conflicted expression. "But if you go to his office, you'll be late for school."The joy that had just surfaced froze on Melody's face. She stared blankly, doing the math in her head, and her face fell.She had taken a lot of days off last week when she was sick. If she missed more school, her teacher would be unhappy."I have an idea."Seeing that Melody had reasoned it out and wasn't insisting on going herself, Elara added, "How about I drop you off at kindergarten first, and then I'll take your honey tea to Daddy's office. Does that work?"It was a perfect compromise, and Melody accepted it. "Okay. Thank you, Mommy."After breakfast, Melody found a thermos and, with Elara's help, prepared the honey tea. Thinking her dad might not have eaten, she packed all the leftover custard pastries into a container.When Elara arrived at Julian's company, official working hours hadn't started yet.She followed the morning crowd, took the elevator to the executive floor, and bumped into a familiar face as soon as she stepped out with the thermos and fruit."Elara?"Leo Hammond was dressed sharply in a suit, a coat draped over his arm. He had clearly just arrived and looked at her in surprise. "It's so early. What brings you to the office?"Elara held up the bag containing the thermos and food container, smiling. "Melody was worried about her dad's health, so she made him honey tea and asked me to drop it off."In the early days of Ark Solutions, Julian didn't have the budget for lawyers, so Elara had reviewed most of the contracts. Later, when the company was targeted, Elara called in favors from her mentors and alumni to salvage their losses and save the business.As a partner, Leo had always held deep gratitude and respect for Elara."That's so sweet of Melody."Unaware that Elara already knew about Julian's affair, Leo fed her the same tired excuse. "We had a VIP client yesterday, and Julian was out late entertaining them. He'll probably be in a bit later. You can wait in his office."The smile in Elara's eyes slowly faded. "...Alright."After setting her things down in the office, Elara took the fruit to the secretariat, distributing pounds of freshly flown-in cherries to the assistants.The secretaries were just as guilty as Leo. Taking the gift only made them more afraid to look the boss's wife in the eye.Elara pretended not to notice, sweeping her gaze across the room. "Is there a new colleague who hasn't arrived yet?"Everyone froze.Elara smiled warmly. "Make sure to save some for her. If there's not enough, I can have more sent over later."The staff hastily insisted it was plenty, their eyes darting away nervously.Elara smiled and exited the room.None of them wore that sickly sweet perfume.But when she mentioned the absent new colleague, their discomfort had been palpable.It seemed everyone knew exactly who Julian was sleeping with.A chill settled in Elara's heart.She rarely interfered with Julian's career, but she used to bring Melody to the office occasionally. She had only stopped this year to help Melody adjust to kindergarten.Chapter 2The number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable. Please try again later... Beep... Beep...[Julian, Melody got hurt.][I can't get a cab to the hospital. Please drive to Bayview Mall and pick us up.]After the third unanswered call, Elara Sterling placed her daughter on the bench and had no choice but to leave Julian Beckett a message.The torrential rain made the ground slick. Her daughter had accidentally tumbled down the stairs and scraped her knee. Elara wanted to take her to the hospital, but it was rush hour, and not a single cab was available.Their family driver had taken a week off, leaving Elara with no option but to contact Julian.Julian's company was just down the street, less than a five-minute drive away. Elara could even see the flickering lights on the top floor of his building. He was still at the office.The cold air nipped at their legs. Elara rolled down her daughter's pant leg, but the fabric brushed against the wound. Melody cried in pain, squirming restlessly as she choked out, "Daddy isn't coming. Does he not want us anymore?"Elara was momentarily at a loss for words. She gently stroked her daughter's hair. "No, sweetie. Daddy is in a meeting. He's just tied up right now.""Whenever I'm sick, Daddy is always in a meeting. Does he not care about me at all?"Sensing Elara's sudden dip in mood, Melody clamped her mouth shut in fright. A panic and remorse far beyond her years flickered in her eyes.She wanted to apologize and comfort her mother but didn't know how to express it, eventually bursting into anxious tears.Elara quickly pulled her into a hug and explained, "I'm not mad. Mommy is just blaming herself for not noticing how much you miss Daddy.""I'm sorry, baby. Mommy was wrong."Melody accepted the apology, her cries gradually softening. She rubbed her small face against her mother's chest to show she had forgiven her.A lump formed in Elara's throat as she held her daughter tighter.The phone in her pocket buzzed. The premium ride she had booked finally arrived, and the driver was calling to confirm their location.The moment she hung up, Julian's reply popped up on the screen:[Entertaining clients. Not at the office.]Elara instinctively looked up. In the distance, the lights on the top floor of the office building—which had been on just seconds ago—flickered off.After sending the text, Julian slipped his phone back into his pocket.Footsteps approached from behind. As he turned, he extended his other hand.The woman placed her hand in his palm. It was freezing, sending a jolt through Julian.Vivian Winthrop leaned into him, slipping her hands beneath his coat. "Warm me up."Her cool fingers slid under his shirt, grazing the skin of his waist. Julian caught her hand, his hot breath brushing against her ear. "Didn't I satisfy you just now?"Vivian smiled shyly and tilted her head up to press a kiss to his lips.In the quiet space, the sounds of their passionate kisses and heavy breathing were exceptionally loud.Lightning flashed, thunder rumbled, and the rain poured down harder.It was over two hours later by the time they finished at the hospital and returned home.After a bath, it was time for ointment. The cold medicine stung the wound, and Melody thrashed around in tears. "Mommy, am I going to die?""No, you're not."Elara held her daughter firmly to prevent her from injuring herself further."Then why didn't the doctor make it better?""Why isn't Daddy home yet?""Does he not want me anymore?""Am I not being a good girl?"Melody was naturally highly sensitive, processing internal and external stimuli far more intensely than an average person. Missing her father for so long without any response made her incredibly anxious, and the scraped knee only amplified her insecurities.She was plagued by endless "whys" and "is it because I'm bad."She cried and asked, but no satisfactory answers came."Daddy is busy with work and can't come home." Melody had heard that excuse for eight days straight. It had lost all its credibility.Elara could only hold her daughter, telling her gently over and over again, "Mommy knows you're hurting. It's okay, just let it out."This was the first time in six months that Melody had lost control of her emotions. On the surface, it was about the scraped knee, but it ultimately traced back to Julian.He shouldn't be so cold as to neglect his own daughter.And she shouldn't have let him get away with not coming home.Half an hour later, Melody calmed down on her own. Elara poured her a glass of water, and they talked through what happened.In the end, mother and daughter apologized to each other and made amends.After coaxing her daughter to sleep, she sent Julian a message:[Julian, Melody scraped her knee tonight. When I was putting ointment on her, she suddenly missed you so much she broke down crying. If your work dinner is over, please come home and spend some time with her.][You haven't been home in eight days, and Melody really misses you.]Ever since they started dating in college, Elara had never done anything to put Julian in a difficult spot.If Melody hadn't missed him to the point of an emotional breakdown, she wouldn't have interrupted his networking dinner today.After sending the text, Elara went downstairs to prep ingredients for tomorrow's breakfast. When she returned, she found an unread message from Julian.There was no text, just a photo.It was a very deliberate, candid shot. In the top right corner, a perfectly manicured nail was visible.Through the frosted glass of a bathroom, a tall, naked man stood under the showerhead.It was her husband, Julian, who hadn't been home in eight days.Elara's hand trembled, nearly dropping her phone.Unanswered calls, the suddenly darkened office, the dismissive text, her daughter's injured knee, the way Melody cried for her father when she was sick—and the unfamiliar, sickeningly sweet perfume that had been lingering on Julian for months—flashed through her mind like a slideshow.So, while their daughter was sick and hurt, Julian had been keeping this woman company?Elara stared at the screen, and a bitter laugh escaped her lips.Highly sensitive but deeply misunderstood, Melody could only express her overwhelming emotions through crying as a baby. People used to call her a "demonic child," and everyone spoke of her with disgust and fear.After burning through over a dozen nannies, no one was willing to take the job no matter how much she paid. Elara had no choice but to quit her job as an attorney to focus entirely on raising her.It took three years of relentless effort for Elara to finally make her child believe that home was a safe harbor. She taught Melody that her parents would understand and love her, accepting her like any other child, and communicating with her.When Elara first suspected Julian's affair, he still cared about their daughter and still came home.For the sake of giving Melody a secure, stable environment, Elara convinced herself to endure it. As long as he played the role of a good father and met Melody's needs, she could pretend she didn't know.But a person's affection is finite. If he gave it to someone new, he was bound to take it away from the old.Julian no longer cared whether she and Melody needed him. When his daughter fell ill or had an emotional breakdown because of him, it was as if it had nothing to do with him anymore.For a highly sensitive child, every shattered expectation was an unforgettable betrayal.A castle of trust took years to build, but destroying it only required pulling out a few foundation stones.Julian was no longer a safe harbor for them; he was the executioner who would destroy Melody's life.Elara saved the photo, then screen-recorded the chat history and Julian's profile information.Six months of neglect and deceit. It was time to end this.Melody shouldn't have to suffer the consequences of Julian's mistakes.Elara usually cooked her daughter's meals herself.Today's breakfast was exactly what Melody requested: custard pastries, savory scones, and warm oatmeal.The oatmeal had been set in the slow cooker the night before.After heading downstairs, Elara took the prepared dough and ingredients out of the fridge to mix the filling.Once the pastries were steaming on the stove, she asked Mrs. Gable to keep an eye on them and went upstairs to wake Melody.Eating her favorite food put Melody in a great mood. She swung her legs happily and chattered away. "Mommy's pastries are the absolute best.""Thank you, Mommy. You work so hard."Elara's eyes crinkled in a smile, all her exhaustion melting away as she placed another custard pastry on her plate.Melody said thank you, took two bites, and suddenly stopped, staring blankly at the half-eaten pastry."Are you full?" Elara asked.Melody looked at her, shook her head, and whispered, "Mommy's pastries are so good. If only Daddy could have some too.""Mommy, did Daddy come home yesterday?" she asked carefully.Elara's heart tightened, but she kept her expression neutral and her tone firm. "No."She would no longer lie to cover for Julian and drain her child's trust in her.Melody lowered her head in disappointment, taking tiny bites of her pastry. When she finished, she asked again, "Did Daddy not come home because he got drunk at work?"Elara felt a wave of bitterness. Before she could figure out how to comfort her, Melody looked up again."Mommy, can I make Daddy a cup of honey tea?"Afraid Elara would say no, Melody quickly explained, "When Daddy used to get drunk, you always made him honey tea. I want to make it for him too."The fact that her child held no grudges and still cared for her father's health gripped Elara's heart like an invisible hand. She felt both fear and hatred.She feared her daughter's hopes would be dashed again, leaving her hurt by Julian once more.She hated Julian for his coldness.He used to say Melody was his little princess, so how could he be so cruel as to pour salt on her wounds?Elara tightened her fists, calculating her next move, and gently guided the conversation. "Melody, do you want to make it and take it to Daddy's office?"Melody nodded enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling. "Can I?""Yes."Elara agreed, then put on a conflicted expression. "But if you go to his office, you'll be late for school."The joy that had just surfaced froze on Melody's face. She stared blankly, doing the math in her head, and her face fell.She had taken a lot of days off last week when she was sick. If she missed more school, her teacher would be unhappy."I have an idea."Seeing that Melody had reasoned it out and wasn't insisting on going herself, Elara added, "How about I drop you off at kindergarten first, and then I'll take your honey tea to Daddy's office. Does that work?"It was a perfect compromise, and Melody accepted it. "Okay. Thank you, Mommy."After breakfast, Melody found a thermos and, with Elara's help, prepared the honey tea. Thinking her dad might not have eaten, she packed all the leftover custard pastries into a container.When Elara arrived at Julian's company, official working hours hadn't started yet.She followed the morning crowd, took the elevator to the executive floor, and bumped into a familiar face as soon as she stepped out with the thermos and fruit."Elara?"Leo Hammond was dressed sharply in a suit, a coat draped over his arm. He had clearly just arrived and looked at her in surprise. "It's so early. What brings you to the office?"Elara held up the bag containing the thermos and food container, smiling. "Melody was worried about her dad's health, so she made him honey tea and asked me to drop it off."In the early days of Ark Solutions, Julian didn't have the budget for lawyers, so Elara had reviewed most of the contracts. Later, when the company was targeted, Elara called in favors from her mentors and alumni to salvage their losses and save the business.As a partner, Leo had always held deep gratitude and respect for Elara."That's so sweet of Melody."Unaware that Elara already knew about Julian's affair, Leo fed her the same tired excuse. "We had a VIP client yesterday, and Julian was out late entertaining them. He'll probably be in a bit later. You can wait in his office."The smile in Elara's eyes slowly faded. "...Alright."After setting her things down in the office, Elara took the fruit to the secretariat, distributing pounds of freshly flown-in cherries to the assistants.The secretaries were just as guilty as Leo. Taking the gift only made them more afraid to look the boss's wife in the eye.Elara pretended not to notice, sweeping her gaze across the room. "Is there a new colleague who hasn't arrived yet?"Everyone froze.Elara smiled warmly. "Make sure to save some for her. If there's not enough, I can have more sent over later."The staff hastily insisted it was plenty, their eyes darting away nervously.Elara smiled and exited the room.None of them wore that sickly sweet perfume.But when she mentioned the absent new colleague, their discomfort had been palpable.It seemed everyone knew exactly who Julian was sleeping with.A chill settled in Elara's heart.She rarely interfered with Julian's career, but she used to bring Melody to the office occasionally. She had only stopped this year to help Melody adjust to kindergarten.Chapter 3The number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable. Please try again later... Beep... Beep...[Julian, Melody got hurt.][I can't get a cab to the hospital. Please drive to Bayview Mall and pick us up.]After the third unanswered call, Elara Sterling placed her daughter on the bench and had no choice but to leave Julian Beckett a message.The torrential rain made the ground slick. Her daughter had accidentally tumbled down the stairs and scraped her knee. Elara wanted to take her to the hospital, but it was rush hour, and not a single cab was available.Their family driver had taken a week off, leaving Elara with no option but to contact Julian.Julian's company was just down the street, less than a five-minute drive away. Elara could even see the flickering lights on the top floor of his building. He was still at the office.The cold air nipped at their legs. Elara rolled down her daughter's pant leg, but the fabric brushed against the wound. Melody cried in pain, squirming restlessly as she choked out, "Daddy isn't coming. Does he not want us anymore?"Elara was momentarily at a loss for words. She gently stroked her daughter's hair. "No, sweetie. Daddy is in a meeting. He's just tied up right now.""Whenever I'm sick, Daddy is always in a meeting. Does he not care about me at all?"Sensing Elara's sudden dip in mood, Melody clamped her mouth shut in fright. A panic and remorse far beyond her years flickered in her eyes.She wanted to apologize and comfort her mother but didn't know how to express it, eventually bursting into anxious tears.Elara quickly pulled her into a hug and explained, "I'm not mad. Mommy is just blaming herself for not noticing how much you miss Daddy.""I'm sorry, baby. Mommy was wrong."Melody accepted the apology, her cries gradually softening. She rubbed her small face against her mother's chest to show she had forgiven her.A lump formed in Elara's throat as she held her daughter tighter.The phone in her pocket buzzed. The premium ride she had booked finally arrived, and the driver was calling to confirm their location.The moment she hung up, Julian's reply popped up on the screen:[Entertaining clients. Not at the office.]Elara instinctively looked up. In the distance, the lights on the top floor of the office building—which had been on just seconds ago—flickered off.After sending the text, Julian slipped his phone back into his pocket.Footsteps approached from behind. As he turned, he extended his other hand.The woman placed her hand in his palm. It was freezing, sending a jolt through Julian.Vivian Winthrop leaned into him, slipping her hands beneath his coat. "Warm me up."Her cool fingers slid under his shirt, grazing the skin of his waist. Julian caught her hand, his hot breath brushing against her ear. "Didn't I satisfy you just now?"Vivian smiled shyly and tilted her head up to press a kiss to his lips.In the quiet space, the sounds of their passionate kisses and heavy breathing were exceptionally loud.Lightning flashed, thunder rumbled, and the rain poured down harder.It was over two hours later by the time they finished at the hospital and returned home.After a bath, it was time for ointment. The cold medicine stung the wound, and Melody thrashed around in tears. "Mommy, am I going to die?""No, you're not."Elara held her daughter firmly to prevent her from injuring herself further."Then why didn't the doctor make it better?""Why isn't Daddy home yet?""Does he not want me anymore?""Am I not being a good girl?"Melody was naturally highly sensitive, processing internal and external stimuli far more intensely than an average person. Missing her father for so long without any response made her incredibly anxious, and the scraped knee only amplified her insecurities.She was plagued by endless "whys" and "is it because I'm bad."She cried and asked, but no satisfactory answers came."Daddy is busy with work and can't come home." Melody had heard that excuse for eight days straight. It had lost all its credibility.Elara could only hold her daughter, telling her gently over and over again, "Mommy knows you're hurting. It's okay, just let it out."This was the first time in six months that Melody had lost control of her emotions. On the surface, it was about the scraped knee, but it ultimately traced back to Julian.He shouldn't be so cold as to neglect his own daughter.And she shouldn't have let him get away with not coming home.Half an hour later, Melody calmed down on her own. Elara poured her a glass of water, and they talked through what happened.In the end, mother and daughter apologized to each other and made amends.After coaxing her daughter to sleep, she sent Julian a message:[Julian, Melody scraped her knee tonight. When I was putting ointment on her, she suddenly missed you so much she broke down crying. If your work dinner is over, please come home and spend some time with her.][You haven't been home in eight days, and Melody really misses you.]Ever since they started dating in college, Elara had never done anything to put Julian in a difficult spot.If Melody hadn't missed him to the point of an emotional breakdown, she wouldn't have interrupted his networking dinner today.After sending the text, Elara went downstairs to prep ingredients for tomorrow's breakfast. When she returned, she found an unread message from Julian.There was no text, just a photo.It was a very deliberate, candid shot. In the top right corner, a perfectly manicured nail was visible.Through the frosted glass of a bathroom, a tall, naked man stood under the showerhead.It was her husband, Julian, who hadn't been home in eight days.Elara's hand trembled, nearly dropping her phone.Unanswered calls, the suddenly darkened office, the dismissive text, her daughter's injured knee, the way Melody cried for her father when she was sick—and the unfamiliar, sickeningly sweet perfume that had been lingering on Julian for months—flashed through her mind like a slideshow.So, while their daughter was sick and hurt, Julian had been keeping this woman company?Elara stared at the screen, and a bitter laugh escaped her lips.Highly sensitive but deeply misunderstood, Melody could only express her overwhelming emotions through crying as a baby. People used to call her a "demonic child," and everyone spoke of her with disgust and fear.After burning through over a dozen nannies, no one was willing to take the job no matter how much she paid. Elara had no choice but to quit her job as an attorney to focus entirely on raising her.It took three years of relentless effort for Elara to finally make her child believe that home was a safe harbor. She taught Melody that her parents would understand and love her, accepting her like any other child, and communicating with her.When Elara first suspected Julian's affair, he still cared about their daughter and still came home.For the sake of giving Melody a secure, stable environment, Elara convinced herself to endure it. As long as he played the role of a good father and met Melody's needs, she could pretend she didn't know.But a person's affection is finite. If he gave it to someone new, he was bound to take it away from the old.Julian no longer cared whether she and Melody needed him. When his daughter fell ill or had an emotional breakdown because of him, it was as if it had nothing to do with him anymore.For a highly sensitive child, every shattered expectation was an unforgettable betrayal.A castle of trust took years to build, but destroying it only required pulling out a few foundation stones.Julian was no longer a safe harbor for them; he was the executioner who would destroy Melody's life.Elara saved the photo, then screen-recorded the chat history and Julian's profile information.Six months of neglect and deceit. It was time to end this.Melody shouldn't have to suffer the consequences of Julian's mistakes.Elara usually cooked her daughter's meals herself.Today's breakfast was exactly what Melody requested: custard pastries, savory scones, and warm oatmeal.The oatmeal had been set in the slow cooker the night before.After heading downstairs, Elara took the prepared dough and ingredients out of the fridge to mix the filling.Once the pastries were steaming on the stove, she asked Mrs. Gable to keep an eye on them and went upstairs to wake Melody.Eating her favorite food put Melody in a great mood. She swung her legs happily and chattered away. "Mommy's pastries are the absolute best.""Thank you, Mommy. You work so hard."Elara's eyes crinkled in a smile, all her exhaustion melting away as she placed another custard pastry on her plate.Melody said thank you, took two bites, and suddenly stopped, staring blankly at the half-eaten pastry."Are you full?" Elara asked.Melody looked at her, shook her head, and whispered, "Mommy's pastries are so good. If only Daddy could have some too.""Mommy, did Daddy come home yesterday?" she asked carefully.Elara's heart tightened, but she kept her expression neutral and her tone firm. "No."She would no longer lie to cover for Julian and drain her child's trust in her.Melody lowered her head in disappointment, taking tiny bites of her pastry. When she finished, she asked again, "Did Daddy not come home because he got drunk at work?"Elara felt a wave of bitterness. Before she could figure out how to comfort her, Melody looked up again."Mommy, can I make Daddy a cup of honey tea?"Afraid Elara would say no, Melody quickly explained, "When Daddy used to get drunk, you always made him honey tea. I want to make it for him too."The fact that her child held no grudges and still cared for her father's health gripped Elara's heart like an invisible hand. She felt both fear and hatred.She feared her daughter's hopes would be dashed again, leaving her hurt by Julian once more.She hated Julian for his coldness.He used to say Melody was his little princess, so how could he be so cruel as to pour salt on her wounds?Elara tightened her fists, calculating her next move, and gently guided the conversation. "Melody, do you want to make it and take it to Daddy's office?"Melody nodded enthusiastically, her eyes sparkling. "Can I?""Yes."Elara agreed, then put on a conflicted expression. "But if you go to his office, you'll be late for school."The joy that had just surfaced froze on Melody's face. She stared blankly, doing the math in her head, and her face fell.She had taken a lot of days off last week when she was sick. If she missed more school, her teacher would be unhappy."I have an idea."Seeing that Melody had reasoned it out and wasn't insisting on going herself, Elara added, "How about I drop you off at kindergarten first, and then I'll take your honey tea to Daddy's office. Does that work?"It was a perfect compromise, and Melody accepted it. "Okay. Thank you, Mommy."After breakfast, Melody found a thermos and, with Elara's help, prepared the honey tea. Thinking her dad might not have eaten, she packed all the leftover custard pastries into a container.When Elara arrived at Julian's company, official working hours hadn't started yet.She followed the morning crowd, took the elevator to the executive floor, and bumped into a familiar face as soon as she stepped out with the thermos and fruit."Elara?"Leo Hammond was dressed sharply in a suit, a coat draped over his arm. He had clearly just arrived and looked at her in surprise. "It's so early. What brings you to the office?"Elara held up the bag containing the thermos and food container, smiling. "Melody was worried about her dad's health, so she made him honey tea and asked me to drop it off."In the early days of Ark Solutions, Julian didn't have the budget for lawyers, so Elara had reviewed most of the contracts. Later, when the company was targeted, Elara called in favors from her mentors and alumni to salvage their losses and save the business.As a partner, Leo had always held deep gratitude and respect for Elara."That's so sweet of Melody."Unaware that Elara already knew about Julian's affair, Leo fed her the same tired excuse. "We had a VIP client yesterday, and Julian was out late entertaining them. He'll probably be in a bit later. You can wait in his office."The smile in Elara's eyes slowly faded. "...Alright."After setting her things down in the office, Elara took the fruit to the secretariat, distributing pounds of freshly flown-in cherries to the assistants.The secretaries were just as guilty as Leo. Taking the gift only made them more afraid to look the boss's wife in the eye.Elara pretended not to notice, sweeping her gaze across the room. "Is there a new colleague who hasn't arrived yet?"Everyone froze.Elara smiled warmly. "Make sure to save some for her. If there's not enough, I can have more sent over later."The staff hastily insisted it was plenty, their eyes darting away nervously.Elara smiled and exited the room.None of them wore that sickly sweet perfume.But when she mentioned the absent new colleague, their discomfort had been palpable.It seemed everyone knew exactly who Julian was sleeping with.A chill settled in Elara's heart.She rarely interfered with Julian's career, but she used to bring Melody to the office occasionally. She had only stopped this year to help Melody adjust to kindergarten.