Chapter 2
Back then, I agreed to sign the contract with Mr. Carter Sr. because I needed special medication for my mother's heart condition.
But my mother passed away a year ago, and now I didn't need anything anymore.
After a long silence, Mr. Carter Sr. finally spoke.
"Back then, Jonathan couldn't let Claire Bennett go, so I picked the very best candidate I could find from among the top graduates and had you trained."
"I even had you learn some of Claire's habits and preferences. That's how the marriage was kept together."
"I didn't expect her to come back. But since I promised you had the right not to renew, I'll keep my word."
"As compensation for these years, you can take your daughter with you."
So the times Jonathan had treated me well were only because he saw me as a substitute.
After hanging up, I started packing my things.
When Jonathan came back that night, he reeked of alcohol and roses.
The moment he spotted the suitcase in the corner of the living room, his brows knitted tight.
"Isabelle Grant, are you done with this little tantrum yet?"
I picked up our daughter, who had been woken by the noise, and gently patted her.
He let out a mocking laugh and walked closer, his shadow falling over me.
"Running away from home, are you? Where exactly do you think you can go? Every connection and resource you have comes from the Carter family."
"Our daughter is a Carter. She carries the Carter bloodline. What makes you think you can take her? And don't think my father favoring you means he can protect you forever."
Jonathan had no idea there was an agreement between me and his father. All he knew was that I was the daughter-in-law his father had chosen.
He reached out for our daughter, but I turned sideways and avoided him.
His gaze darkened, and he lowered his voice.
"Don't test my patience. Be a good Mrs. Carter and I won't treat you badly. Otherwise..."
"Otherwise what?"
I lifted my eyes and looked at him calmly for the first time ever.
"You'll ruin my name in our social circle? Or make sure I never see my daughter again?"
He froze, clearly not expecting that from me.
Just then, his phone screen lit up. It was a photo from Claire.
She was wearing a lace nightgown and holding a bouquet of white roses.
"Thanks, Jonathan. It would've been even better if you'd stayed."
I suddenly remembered my birthday last year, the one night he had actually turned down his business dinners and come home.
He'd cooked me a bowl of birthday noodles himself, even though it looked terrible.
He'd fed me the noodles clumsily and said in a gentle voice,
"Isabelle, with you here, this place feels like a real home."
Looking back now, he had probably just been dazed for a moment and imagined me in the place where Claire was supposed to be in his fantasy.
The front door shut, taking the last bit of warmth with it.
An hour later, Claire Bennett arrived at the house with her luggage.
After Jonathan took her up to the top-floor sunroom, he never came back down.
That night, our daughter suddenly came down with a fever.
Panicking, I instinctively went upstairs to find Jonathan.
Instead, I heard ragged breathing coming from inside.
"Jon, after all these years, you've still got that much stamina. I can't take it anymore... Are you like this with her too?"
Jonathan let out a muffled groan.
"Only when I imagine she's you can I keep going. Claire, you're fucking deadly..."
Our daughter's cries disturbed them, and Jonathan yanked the door open in irritation.
"Our daughter has a fever..."
Before I could finish, he shoved me and the baby back toward the staircase.
"Isabelle Grant, don't use the child as an excuse. You're disturbing Claire, got it?"
"You should know your place. Just be your perfect wife and that's enough."
I looked down at my daughter, burning up in my arms, and it felt like countless needles were stabbing straight into my heart.
"Okay. I will. Sorry for the disturbance."