Chapter 4

She was an old-fashioned mother; of course she longed to hold a biological grandchild.

Yet she knew the world had changed, and she never wanted to be the overbearing parent who forced her daughter's hand.

When Logan and I decided not to have biological kids, she respected our choice without protest.

And when I brought baby Shirley home, my mother poured her heart into caring for her, freeing me up to build my business without worries.

It had taken my mother sixteen years to fully see Shirley's selfish, ungrateful nature. Only after total heartbreak did she finally urge me to have my own child.

And was my own heart not broken into a million pieces?

"Mom," Shirley's sharp voice snapped me back to the present.

"You're in your mid-forties. Don't tell me you actually bought into that nonsense about 'forty being the new twenty'? If you get a divorce, you're going to spend the rest of your pathetic life alone, turning into an ugly, miserable hag. That's exactly what happened to my friend's mom."

"I don't get why you're suddenly throwing a fit about a divorce. Uncle Logan has been taking care of Leo and visiting Chloe's grave since day one! Why are you suddenly making a scene about it at your age?"

Shirley scrutinized my face, searching for a crack in my composure.

When she found none, she let out an exasperated sigh.

Then came her ultimate power play: "If you still want me as your daughter, call off the divorce. Stop hurting Uncle Logan, or you're going to lose me forever."

To prove she wasn't bluffing, she marched straight into her bedroom and began packing her bags.

I remained seated quietly on the sofa, not offering a single word to stop her.

Shirley dragged three massive suitcases into the living room. "Final exams are coming up. I'm going to stay at Leo's place to study."

She deliberately took everything she owned, trying to force my surrender. Her posture screamed that if I didn't bend to her will, she would never set foot in this house again.

I looked down at her, reached into my bag, and pulled out the legal petition to dissolve our adoptive relationship.

I spoke slowly and clearly: "If you walk out that door today, you are no longer my daughter. Sign this agreement, and we terminate our legal ties as mother and daughter."

If she had shown even a glimmer of remorse, I might not have been able to love her the same way, but I still would have ensured she was financially secure for life.

Instead, she burst into a mocking sneer.

Shirley stared at me with the cold detachment of a stranger, issuing her warning:

"Mom, playing hardball won't work on me. It only makes me hate you more, and it makes me look down on you from the bottom of my heart."

Convinced I was running a desperate bluff, she snatched the pen and scrawled her signature across the paper without a second thought.

Then, she crumpled the document into a tight ball and hurled it contemptuously right at my chest.

Strangely, a peaceful smile touched my lips.

The final illusion had shattered. Knowing without a shadow of a doubt that my adopted daughter didn't care about me at all, the lingering attachment evaporated into thin air.

I knelt down, picked up the paper ball, smoothed out the wrinkles, and laid it flat on the table.

Pulling a sleek fountain pen from my blazer pocket, I signed my legal name with firm, elegant strokes.

A flicker of panic flashed across Shirley's eyes.

I kept my face completely blank as I delivered my final words: "You are legally an adult now. Moving forward, I have no obligation to manage your life. As for your education, I will wire the funds directly to your college account until you complete your undergraduate degree."

"Beyond that, we have no reason to speak, and no reason to meet. I hope today is the last time our paths ever cross. If we run into each other on the street, pretend we are complete strangers."

Sixteen years of being mother and daughter—this was my final closure to myself.

With that, I pushed her heavy suitcases toward the front door and hit the elevator button in the hall.

Without casting a single glance at the girl I had raised since she was a toddler, I turned around and stepped back into my home.

"Slam."

The door clicked shut, severing our connection once and for all.