Part 2His Heart

My gaze shifted to a figure standing behind him, and a bitter laugh escaped my lips.

“Josh, are you so insistent on adopting this child because of her?”

In an instant, Sierra Thorne became the focal point of every eye in the room.

She stood frozen, her eyes welling with tears as she tried to defend herself. “Mrs. Mason, Josh and I are ancient history. How could this baby possibly be ours?”

“I never said the child was yours and Josh’s, Ms. Thorne. Why are you in such a hurry to deny it? Or is it that the child is yours and Josh’s?”

“I… I…” Sierra bit her lip, rendered speechless.

The whispers in the crowd grew louder, the gazes sharper, all of them aimed at Sierra.

“So that’s why. I was wondering why Mrs. Mason, who’s always so agreeable, was putting her foot down this time. The baby isn’t adopted, it’s the mistress’s.”

“Mistress or not, I heard she’s Mr. Mason’s first love. She’s his personal secretary now, you know.”

“If it wasn’t for old Mrs. Mason disapproving back in the day, she’d be the one who’s Mrs. Mason now.”

“Who cares if she’s his first love? She interfered in a marriage, got pregnant out of wedlock—that makes her the other woman, period. Let’s not forget, the real Mrs. Mason is Evelyn. She and Mr. Mason are legally married. Who the hell is Sierra Thorne?”

Sierra’s face was ashen, a single tear clinging to her eyelash. She looked desperately toward Josh.

“That’s enough, Evelyn!”

Josh stepped forward, pulling Sierra behind him protectively. He shot a single look across the room, and the chatter died instantly. After all, everyone in Crestwood was wary of the Mason family’s influence.

“Sierra is just my secretary. Don’t make things difficult for her.”

A profound weariness washed over me. I finally understood that I couldn’t follow my grandmother-in-law's advice to live a good life with him anymore. It was impossible.

I looked down at the wedding ring I had worn for five years. The sharp, stinging pain bloomed in my chest again.

I twisted it off my finger.

“I’m done being Mrs. Mason.”

I threw it. The diamond ring sailed through the air in a perfect arc before landing in the swimming pool with a soft splash. Just like our marriage—it began with a grand spectacle and ended in silence.

Leaving Josh and the guests staring in shock, I gathered the hem of my gown and walked away. In their eyes, I had always been the graceful, composed Mrs. Mason who always considered the bigger picture. But tonight, I had lost all dignity.

And I didn’t care.