My Husband Chose His Mistress

That evening, I sat on the couch, holding Skyla's photo, my eyes fixed on the hallway. It wasn’t until midnight that the door finally creaked open, and Princeton Foster stepped in, switching on the light. Our eyes met, and his gaze fell on the photo in my hands. His voice was cold and sharp as he remarked, "You didn’t take care of her when you had the chance. Why start mourning now?"

"How could you let such a small child wander off alone?" His words hit me hard, a lump forming in my throat. While our daughter was being laid to rest, Princeton had been busy picking up his muse, Zuri Morgan, from the airport, not returning until late that night. I wanted to confront him, but the words stuck in my throat, afraid to come out.

After a long pause, I looked down, my voice rasping, "It’s my fault. I failed Skyla." I had been deluded by three years of marriage, thinking I could provide Skyla with a loving home. Sensing the harshness of his earlier words, he softened his tone slightly.

"If you still want a child, we can always adopt another one." My grip on the photo tightened. How could he say that? To him, Skyla seemed like a toy, something that could be easily replaced. Had he forgotten how sweetly she called him dad? His heart was so cold; neither I nor Skyla could ever warm it.

I had been too hopeful, too eager to create a happy family with him. Skyla and I were both children abandoned by our families. She was left because of her heart condition, left at the orphanage’s doorstep. In her, I saw a reflection of my own childhood, and that's why I adopted her.

I wanted to protect her forever, to let her grow up without worries. But reality struck me hard. A three-year-old, hit by a car and thrown over thirty feet, her body bloodied, like a kite with its string cut, forever out of reach.

When I didn’t reply, he sat beside me, beginning to say something but then stopping, only to eventually get up and leave. His coat, left on the sofa, carried the familiar scent of coffee and cedar—Zuri Morgan’s favorite fragrance.