"A day this good deserves a proper celebration."
Marilyn threw her arms around his leg.
"Daddy, will there be yummy food at the party?"
Thaddeus scooped her up high, his expression melting into pure tenderness.
"Of course there will! The party's going to have all kinds of yummy food. Our little Marilyn can eat whatever she wants!"
I thought about what Dominic had said—that the plane would come for us tonight. I looked at Marilyn's eager eyes, then remembered Dominic's warning not to raise Thaddeus's suspicions. In the end, I nodded.
The moment the three of us stepped into the banquet hall, every eye in the room turned our way.
"Look, Mr. Abbott and his family are here. What a gorgeous couple. Their daughter's name is Marilyn, isn't it? She's absolutely adorable. I wish I could set her up with my boy."
"I know, right? Such a sweet, well-behaved child. I can't help but love her just looking at her."
A few of Thaddeus's business associates waved him over. He smiled at me, then headed their way.
The moment he left, a cluster of wives closed in around Marilyn and me.
"Mrs. Abbott, you really are blessed. Mr. Abbott is so young and capable, and your daughter is so well-behaved. We're all green with envy."
"Honestly! Did you see the way he looked at you just now? The man couldn't peel his eyes off you. Married all these years and still that smitten."
The pleasant chatter was interrupted by a voice dripping with affected sweetness.
"Is that so? Wasn't Mrs. Abbott trying to divorce Mr. Abbott just a month ago?"
"I heard she was in a terrible car accident on her way out, too. She must have remarkable recovery powers—back on her feet and looking this good after only a month."
"Then again, I hear her health is nothing like it used to be. After all, even her heart is artificial now. And poor little Marilyn—I heard she's only got one kidney left, and she's just six years old. What's going to become of her?"
The woman who had arrived was none other than Monica Mason, and beside her stood a seven-year-old girl.
That had to be the daughter Monica had mentioned—the one Thaddeus brought up in his study that day. Lily Acevedo.
Thaddeus had done an impeccable job of covering up the accident that had injured me and Marilyn. Not a single word had ever leaked.
Hearing what Monica said, the wives in attendance exchanged bewildered glances, none of them sure how to respond.