Chapter 3

As I stepped out of the restroom, someone suddenly darted out from around the corner. I took a step back, but she still ran right into me.

It was Mia.

She was visibly pregnant, one hand supporting her back and the other protecting her belly. She took two steps back, her face suddenly pale. Before I could say a word, her eyes grew teary.

"Mrs. Grant," Mia said, biting her lip, her voice trembling. "You... you bumped into me."

I stood my ground.

She clutched her stomach, her brows knitting together as her expression shifted from hurt to pain. "My belly hurts. I'm pregnant. How could you run into me like that?"

Alex Reed, who was with me, frowned and stepped forward, his tone calm. "Ma'am, the security cameras should have caught it. You were the one who suddenly darted out from the corner."

Mia didn't even look at him, her eyes locked on me, her lips trembling. "Mrs. Grant, I know you hate me, but the baby is innocent. Is it really so hard for you to accept this baby?"

"If your baby is so important to you," I said, looking her straight in the eye, "why were you acting so recklessly?"

Mia paused, her lips trembling. "I-I wasn't..."

Leon stood up from the window and walked over in big strides.

"What's wrong?" he asked, crouching down, his voice deep and gentle.

Mia looked up, her eyes red, tears hanging on her lashes, about to spill. She glanced at Leon, then at me, her lips trembling, and then she lowered her head again. "It's nothing... I wasn't careful. It's not Mrs. Grant's fault."

Leon's expression changed.

I leaned back in my chair, took a sip of my coffee, and made no move to get up.

"Ms. Goodwin," Alex said, adjusting his glasses and raising his phone. "I've asked the staff for the security footage. It shows you fell on your own. It also caught you blocking Ms. Sutton at the corner. Should I play it now?"

The café went dead silent for three seconds.

Mia's face went pale.

Leon frowned and stepped in front of her, shielding her. "Mr. Reed, she was startled. Why fuss over this with a pregnant woman?"

I looked at him.

"This isn't about whether we're making a fuss," I said. "She's staging this to set me up."

He stepped closer, lowering his voice into that gentle, child-coaxing tone I'd heard for nearly ten years. "Enough. She didn't mean it. If you're angry with me, take it out on me, not her. She's pregnant. It isn't easy."

"Leon." I stared at him. "Do you really think you're such a big deal that I'd drag her into this because of you? Are you blind or deaf? Now the one trying to frame me is suddenly the victim in your eyes?"

"Forget it, Leon. It's all my fault," Mia sniffled, steadying herself against the wall as she slowly got up, grabbing Leon's sleeve, her voice barely holding together. "Don't fight with Mrs. Grant. I'm fine. The baby's fine. I shouldn't have come here."

But watching her play the victim, whatever anger I had left faded away, replaced by nothing but plain irritation.

I stared at her, my voice flat. "Who said you could talk?

"You ran out and crashed into me, then squatted down whining about your belly, and now you say it's not my fault. Every word you say is a lie. Where do you get the guts?"

"Tara," Leon said, his voice low and serious. "That's enough. Don't go too far."

He turned to the staff. "Get her an iced coffee, to help her chill out."

"No need," I said, picking up the folder from the table. "I don't need that coffee. Alex, let's go."

"Man, what a temper," Ryan said with a smirk. At some point, he'd appeared by the hallway wall, an unlit cigarette dangling from his lips.

Alex caught up with me, briefcase in hand, sounding as calm as ever. "Ms. Sutton, if we take this to court, we've got a solid shot. He's been hiding a ton of assets from you. If we really start digging..."

"Get him to sign first," I said. "He will."

"How do you know?"

"Because Mia can't wait that long."

The sunlight outside the café was blinding.

It was exactly like the sunlight on the day I first met Leon, all those years ago.

It was the start of my freshman year.

Leon was a year ahead of me. When the student council was recruiting, he sat behind the booth in a white shirt, sleeves rolled up. He took my application, glanced at it, then looked up and smiled at me.

Only that one moment.

After that, he started chasing after me, and everyone in the college knew about it.

He'd wait for me outside my dorm every morning, get in line for me at the cafeteria, and slip me printed notes before finals.

My roommate warned me that Leon was way too smooth, and she was worried he'd end up playing me.

I told her not to worry. The way he looked at me was genuine, like he really meant it.

During my junior year, I had to be hospitalized for appendicitis. He stayed with me in the hospital for a whole week, sleeping on a folding chair every night.

When Clara came to visit, he was crouched by my bed, peeling an apple for me. The way she looked at him, I could tell she was really pleased.

We got married the year after we graduated.

Our wedding home was a spacious apartment under Leon's name, with four bedrooms, two living rooms, and a south-facing balcony. He'd bought it before we got married, and I was the one who oversaw the whole renovation.

I filled the balcony with all kinds of flowers. The orchid was a housewarming gift I picked up the day we moved in. Leon said it was hard to keep alive, but I told him I'd give it a shot.

Back then, he'd just started at Grant Holdings, working his way up from the bottom. He'd stay late at the office every night, and I'd always leave the living room light on for him when he came home.

Later, he got promoted. He got busier and busier, and he never even noticed that light, but I kept leaving it on for him, every single night.