Chapter 2

Even after five years apart, Edward's attitude toward me was still as nasty as ever.

The people around him, eager to curry favor, jumped at the chance to join in and put me down.

"So, this is Mr. Schultz's ex-wife? She's definitely not as pretty or classy as Ms. Yardley. Honestly, she doesn't even look like someone with a proper job."

"Yeah, showing up at an auction party with barely any money. What nerve. Seriously, she's embarrassing Mr. Schultz."

"Women with no self-respect are trash. Where's security? Get this bitch out of here before she messes up our place."

I'd had enough. I couldn't just stand there and let them spread those lies about me.

I held up my phone and said, "I've recorded everything you said. Get ready for a court summons."

Before I could finish, my knee suddenly throbbed with pain out of nowhere.

Without thinking, I reached down to touch it, and just like that, Charlie snatched my phone right out of my hand.

Charlie shot me a smug look. "Mom... No, Isabella, those guys are totally right. You come here to suck up to Dad."

I didn't care much for Edward anymore, but this boy was my son. I went through having him after all the pain and effort, spending a whole night in labor.

I couldn't believe he'd actually say something like that.

I sucked in a sharp breath. "What did you say?"

Charlie completely ignored me, smashed my phone hard onto the floor, and then spread his hands like he was totally innocent. "Whatever you heard, that was what it was."

After that, looking for approval, he hugged Grace's waist and chirped sweetly, "Mommy, did I do the right thing?"

Hearing my own son call someone else "Mommy" hit me hard. A sharp pain stabbed at my chest. I winced, my brows knitting together in pain.

For a split second, there was a flicker of panic on Edward's face, but it vanished so fast that it was like I'd imagined it.

Grace gently rubbed Charlie's cheek and gave me a graceful smile. "Isabella, don't take it personally. He's afraid you'll steal Ed away. He's so attached to me and always wants me to be his mom."

Her smile stayed composed, but she made sure to stress that last word.

She deliberately rested her hand, flaunting a massive diamond ring, right on Charlie's head.

Suddenly, I remembered catching her on TV a while back during an interview.

The reporter asked what made her so cheerful all the time.

She answered, "Honestly, I owe it all to Edward's ex-wife. If she hadn't walked away, I never would've gotten to enjoy this kind of life."

Everything pointed to one thing: Edward adored Grace so much that he'd never let her have a single hard day.

Luckily for me, I had already stopped loving him.

Absentmindedly tracing the ring on my finger, I couldn't help but let out a soft laugh as that man crossed my mind.

Edward caught sight of the ring on my finger, and his whole vibe suddenly went icy. "No need to wear a knockoff to look good in front of everyone."

I retorted, "This isn't a knockoff. My husband gave it to me when he proposed."

Both Edward and Charlie stopped dead, their breaths catching in their throats.

Edward locked his eyes on me for a moment and then let out a mocking laugh. "Isabella, your husband must be pretty useless. He can't even get you a diamond ring."

Charlie chimed in, sneering. "Isabella, even if you can't find someone as amazing as my dad, at least don't settle for some broken guy who can't even buy you a diamond ring."

What they didn't know was that this plain, unassuming ring was actually worth billions. It was reserved for the patriarch of the Vance family.

I didn't bother explaining. If I lost the ring, that would be a nightmare.

To them, it just made it look like I'd really married some total loser.

Grace covered her mouth, laughing. "Isabella, looks like you've really fallen on hard times. Let me guess, without Ed, you can't even afford a meal now, right?"

Then, Grace tiptoed up and planted a kiss on Edward, putting on a cutesy pout. "Ed, she's your ex-wife. Why not toss her some bucks for cab fare and send her packing?"

Edward shot me a cold look and said, "Pulling cheap tricks won't get you anywhere. Isabella, just call yourself a cab and go home. Stop embarrassing yourself here."

Suddenly, my phone on the floor buzzed.

I let out a sigh and pointed at it. "Hand me my phone already, will you? I haven't texted my husband for a long time. He's probably losing his mind right now."

Matthew Vance was a jealous guy. If I didn't reply for this long, he'd probably be bawling his eyes out by the time I got home. And of course, I would be the one stuck comforting him.

Charlie let out a snicker, stomping on my phone with his designer shoes and sneering, "So your deadbeat husband's a control freak?"

As soon as I heard that, I knew Charlie had traveled back like me.

Back in our previous life, that was his go-to line whenever he wanted to insult me. Whenever I made him do homework or run errands, he'd always snap back with that.

Even after being given a second chance at life, Edward and Charlie still picked Grace over me.

I couldn't wrap my head around the fact that my own son now called another woman "Mom."

I tried to keep it together, forcing myself to stay calm. "Charlie, hand over my phone. Quit it already."

Charlie completely ignored me, gave my phone a hard kick, and sent it flying straight into the fancy little pool off to the side.

Edward's face turned grim, and he scolded Charlie in a low voice, "How could you kick Mom's... Isabella's phone in the pool? How's she supposed to get home now?"

Charlie shrugged, acting like it was no big deal. "So what? I'll have someone buy her another one. It's just a crappy phone. What's it even worth? Or are you scared that her loser husband might actually lay a hand on her?"

Grace immediately jumped in to defend Charlie. "Ed, don't be mad. He didn't mean it. Don't be so harsh."