I’d never done anything so rebellious.
For a moment, I was still dazed.
“…Huh?”
“Dress up beautifully. Stop revolving around your husband and sons.”
“Have your own hobbies, your own life. Find a boy who can make you happy.”
My mother sat behind her massive desk, tapping the surface with her index
finger.
“Annabel, choose: be a princess or a nanny.”
“Remember, this is your only chance.”
“Miss it, and I won’t help you again. We won’t see each other again either.”
She meant what she said.
When I stubbornly married Caleb, she didn’t take my calls for five years.
She even went to Europe alone and had a sister twenty-five years my junior.
My mother stated plainly: I was a lost cause. She needed to start a new one
in time.
She couldn’t hand over the vast family business to a foolish daughter like
me.
Her aura was intense. I’d always been afraid of her.
I wouldn’t have sought her out if I weren’t desperate.
I felt unsure. “Mom, can I think about it?”
She pointed to the office door.
“You have 24 hours. After that, the offer’s gone. Now get out. I have a
meeting.”
She clearly didn’t want to talk anymore.
On the way back, I kept thinking about what she said.
She said the reason she opposed my marriage to Caleb was his privileged
background—he was the youngest child, spoiled rotten.
People like that are used to taking and often don’t know how to cherish.
Plus, she’d privately investigated.
Caleb started changing girlfriends frequently in high school.
I was just blinded by his looks and attentiveness, dead set on marrying him.
Had to admit, my mother was prescient.
Walking in, I found the house lively.
Caleb was back, and he’d brought someone.
A ridiculously cute girl in a white dress, shoulder-length blonde hair, sweet
smile.
She was curled up on the sofa I’d carefully chosen.
My two sons were snuggled on either side. Caleb sat nearby looking at files
on his tablet.
From my angle, they looked like a perfect family.
But only I knew our family of four hadn’t had a leisurely meal together in a
very, very long time.
On his rare days off, he was always in his study.
The kids didn’t like going out with me either.
They said I was always nagging, too annoying.
Now, even usually quiet Noah was excitedly holding Sophia’s hand.
“Sophia, you’re amazing! You actually beat that hardest game level. My mom
can’t do it.”
The girl named Sophia smiled, eyes crinkling.
“Of course! I was the main player in my college gaming club.”
Caleb handed her a cup of warm milk.
“Alright, drink some milk first. Don’t want a stomachache later.”
“Annabel will be back soon. She’ll cook. Her roasted ribs are delicious. You’ll
love them.”
They chatted easily, as if I weren’t the lady of the house, but a servant.
I looked at the haggard, sallow face reflected in the entryway mirror.
Almost instinctively, I threw the grocery bags on the floor and ran out.
I wished I could run faster.
Twenty minutes later, I drove frantically to my mother’s Beverly Hills
mansion.
I rushed in, voice trembling.
“Mom, help me!”
“I don’t want to be a frumpy housewife anymore. I’ll listen to everything you
say.”
My mother put down her coffee cup.
Walked over and slapped me hard across the face.
“Hurt, Annabel?”
I stammered, “A bit.”
“Good. Remember this: that slap was for wasting five years of your youth on
the wrong person.”
“You made a huge mistake. Now you need someone to clean up your mess.
Face reality.”
“Starting tomorrow, go see Assistant Lena.”
“She’ll help transform you from this sorry state into a truly radiant woman.”
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