Chapter 34:


    Isolde’s grip on the phone tightened. She remembered feeding him when he was a toddler. She remembered reading him stories before she knew whose son he was.


    But then she looked at Effie’s leg, where the bandage from the ne propeller cut was still visible.


    “Ask your father to order pizza,” Isolde said. “He has plenty of money.”


    She hung up.


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    She blocked the number.


    At the penthouse, Kaiden threw the housekeeper’s phone against the wall. It shattered.


    “She hung up on me!” he screamed.


    Grayson walked into the living room, stepping over a pile of toys. The ce was a mess. The maid had quit that morning because Kaiden had bitten her.


    “What is going on?” Grayson rubbed his temples.


    “I’m hungry!” Kaiden wailed.


    “Belle?” Grayson looked around.


    Belle was on the sofa, scrolling through Instagram. “Don’t look at me. I just got a manicure.”


    Grayson looked at the cold, gourmet pasta on the table. It looked unappetizing.


    He remembered the smell of Isolde’s roast chicken. The way the house used to feel warm and orderly.


    “I’ll order pizza,” Grayson muttered.


    “I don’t want pizza!” Kaiden kicked the table. “I want Isolde!”


    “She’s gone, Kaiden!” Grayson snapped. He lost control. “She left us! Get used to it!”


    Kaiden burst into tears. Belle red at Grayson.


    “You’re traumatizing him,” she said.


    “I’m traumatizing him?” Graysonughed bitterly. “This house is a zoo.”


    He walked to the window and looked out at the city. Somewhere out there, Isolde was eating dinner. Was she thinking of him? Was she suffering? He hoped so. Because if she wasn’t, then he was the only one losing.


    The next afternoon, Isolde pulled her rental Toyota up to the curb of St. Jude’s Preparatory School.


    It was pickup time. A parade of Range Rovers, Bentleys, and Tes lined the street. Her dented sedan stuck out like a sore thumb.


    She saw Effie waiting by the gate. Effie waved, a small smile on her face.


    Isolde got out to help her with her bag.


    A silver Bentley pulled up right behind her, blocking her in.


    Grayson got out. He looked immacte in a navy suit, but his face was tight.


    “Isolde,” he barked.


    Isolde stiffened. “Move your car, Grayson. You’re blocking me.”


    “We need to talk,” Grayson said, ignoring her request. He gestured toward Kaiden, who was standing by the Bentley’s door with a nanny. “He’s been a nightmare since you left. Take him for the afternoon. Give his nanny a break.”


    It wasn’t a request. It was amand, wrapped in the assumption that she was still his to deploy.


    Kaiden looked at Isolde’s car, a hopeful expression on his face.


    Isolde pressed the lock button on her key fob.


    Click.


    The sound was quiet but definitive.


    “No,” Isolde said.


    Grayson stepped closer. “Isolde, don’t be petty. Look around. People are watching. Let’s at least pretend to be civil for the children’s sake. Just drop him at the penthouse.”


    “I am not your employee,” Isolde said. “And I am not his mother. Your pretense of civility is your problem to solve. Call Belle.”


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