But none of that mattered to David. And it never mattered to Tyler, either.
David continued his lecture, "When you married into the Gunn Family, I only had one request: take care of Tyler. Was that so difficult?"
"If you can’t even do that, then I—"
"Divorce. Let’s get divorced. I don't want to be this Madam Gunn."
David froze, stunned, as if he couldn’t believe what he had just heard.
Of course he was surprised.
After all, this marriage had been arranged by Xander Family, my family.
Back then, my sister, Yvonne Xander, was supposed to marry David. But when her first love came back from abroad, she ran away after giving birth to Tyler.
The Gunn Family was furious.
So my parents tricked me into coming home from my PhD studies, drugged me and sent me to David’s bed.
The scandal was impossible to contain.
And with an abandoned infant crying for a mother, David had no choice but to marry me.
Still, he agreed on a period of time, only ten years and when Tyler was old enough, we would divorce.
Over the years, every time we fought, he’d throw that 'divorce' word at me like a weapon.
So fine.
Let’s end it now.
But before David could react, my parents exploded.
"Nadine, what nonsense are you saying? You can’t get a divorce! If you leave, who will take care of Tyler?"
Their disappointed expressions were the same as when I first refused to give up my engagement for Yvonne.
Back then, when my mother was pregnant, the marriage had been arranged for me.
But when Yvonne had her heart broken and decided to marry out of spite, my parents forced me to step aside.
With one word mom and dad made me give up the marriage.
I refused. And now, history repeated itself.
Seeing that I didn't say anything, mom and dad hurriedly said again.
"Alright, alright, you’re injured now, we won’t make you apologize to Tyler this time. If you just admit you were wrong, we’ll give you the house keys back. You can come home anytime you want."
When I married into the Gunn Family and became a stepmother, they took away my keys.
They even warned the security guards and drivers: unless I was with Tyler, I wasn’t allowed inside.
"Nadine, only when you have no home to return to—no way out—will you truly see the Gunn Family as your own. Only then will you treat Tyler as your real son."