Chapter 299
When she left, she took nothing else – not even that rusted pendant.
Snow was my last connection to her.
“Blake.” Seeing my silence, Rachel moved closer and grabbed my arm. “I miss her too. But keeping her cat won’t help either of us.”
“There are better ways to remember her.”
“Snow was crucial to her,” I said, removing her hand from my arm. “She made sure that cat was in our divorce papers.”
“This isn’t up for debate. I’m not giving Snow away. I’ll try to keep the cat hair off my suits, but that’s it.”
I headed for the exit without looking back.
Rachel bit her lip and hurried after me. “But I already promised Dr. Clarke! At least bring Snow to meet him! He saved your life, Blake. We can’t go back on this.”
I didn’t slow down. “You made promises, not me. If you want to give him a cat, buy one yourself.”
‘Snow stays with me. Period.”
Adrian’s POV
After our guests left, I found Audrey had dressed Emma in a princess outfit and fixed her hair.
“Daddy!” Emma burst through the door and threw herself into my arms. “Having a mommy is so awesome!”
She wiggled free to twirl in her dress. “Look how pretty Mommy made me!”
“Don’t I look like the Snow Princess?”
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I couldn’t help smiling at her excitement.
I crouched down and cupped her face, kissing her cheek. “You’ve always been a princess, sweetheart. Daddy and Mommy’s princess.”
Emma beamed. “Yes! With Mommy taking care of me, I’m a real princess now!”
She ran to Audre and grabbed her finger. “Mommy, Emma loves you most!”
Audrey smiled, bending down to ruffle her hair. “And our Emma is the happiest princess around.”
With the girl in her arms, she looked at me. “We should go. Dr. Clarke’s waiting.”
I nodded, gathered our gifts, and led them to the elevator.
When the doors closed, I found myself staring at Audrey.
Emma in her arms had the same face. Mother and daughter, one big and one small, standing there looking so much like a real
family.
For a moment, I could almost believe she was truly Evelyn.
Chapter 299
But they couldn’t be more different.
I closed my eyes and saw Evelyn’s face, twisted with desperation and pain –
“Adrian, I can’t take this anymore! Once this baby comes, I want a divorce!”
“You can’t control me like this! You can’t keep me locked away!”
“There’s nothing wrong with me! Let me out of here!”
“I don’t love you, Adrian. Please stop this. You’re torturing me…”
“Daddy?” Emma’s voice yanked me back to reality.
I blinked, finding Emma staring up at me while Audrey watched with that guarded expression. Something in me settled at the sight. of them. I couldn’t help but smile.
That was then. This is now.
The old Evelyn was gone, replaced by this woman who wore her face but didn’t carry her disappointments.
No matter what, I would transform this woman into a brand new Evelyn!
One who wouldn’t get sick, wouldn’t go mad, wouldn’t tell me she didn’t love me, wouldn’t desperately try to leave me.
With that thought, I took a deep breath, then took Emma from her arms and caught Audrey’s hand before she could pull away. Her fingers stiffened in mine, but I pretended not to notice as I led them out of the elevator.
The drive to Dr. Clarke’s place took barely five minutes. His villa sat on a quiet stretch of shoreline, partially hidden by old oak
trees.
We followed the butler through the entrance hall. Before we even reached the living room, I heard Clarke’s voice floating down the hallway.
“Snow, huh? That’s a good name for you. Are you sure Blake really giving her up?”
