Nadia Ashford's POV

“Rodger, you've got some nerve. You're celebrating your mistress's birthday with your daughter and keeping Nadia in the dark? What happens when she finds out? You think she's just gonna let that slide?”

“Relax.” Rodger chuckled. “Nadia's head over heels for me. She wouldn't leave even if she caught me in bed with another woman.”

“What about Stephanie? You can't keep a gorgeous woman like her a secret forever.”

Rodger glanced down at the woman in his arms, running his thumb teasingly over her bare waist.

Stephanie Klein.

My half-sister.

She leaned close to his ear, her red lips curling into a smile. “See? Even everyone else thinks you're treating me unfairly.”

“Am I now?” Rodger chuckled, lowering his head to kiss her. “Then who was begging me to stay in bed with her last night?”

Just then, a little voice piped up.

“Daddy! Aunt Stephanie! Look! I painted our family!”

Five-year-old Eileen proudly held up her painting. Rodger, Stephanie, and Eileen were all smiling brightly on the canvas, looking like one big happy family.

“Aunt Stephanie, I want you to be my new mommy!”

My daughter threw her arms around Stephanie. Stephanie kissed her forehead, grinning as she looked at Rodger. “Babe, did you hear that?”

He smiled fondly. “Sure did.”

Someone chimed in, clearly teasing, “So, what about Nadia?”

Stephanie hooked a finger into Rodger's collar and giggled. “She's had that spot long enough. It's time to let someone else have it.”

Rodger adjusted her shoulder strap and replied casually, “She knows her place.”

I stared at the video playing on my phone, my stomach twisting as a chill crept down my spine.

Today was my thirtieth birthday.

I'd spent seventeen hours traveling halfway around the world just to make it home and celebrate with my husband and daughter.

Just five minutes ago, Rodger had texted me: Something important came up at work. I have to cancel lunch.

So that was his idea of an important meeting. Celebrating my half-sister's birthday.

And my own daughter was helping another woman build a family that didn't include me.

I gripped my phone, the smiling faces on the screen burning into my eyes.

Only then did I realize I hadn't just missed a family gathering. I'd been shut out of a life where they no longer needed me.

And the signs had been there since last night.

At ten thirty last night, I dragged my suitcase into the Zander villa.

Mrs. Weiss, the housekeeper, stared at me in surprise. “Madam? I thought you weren't coming back until the day after tomorrow.”

“My work wrapped up early. Where are Rodger and Eileen?”

“Mr. Zander isn't home yet. Miss Eileen's upstairs painting.”

I'd come home two days early on purpose, hoping to surprise them.

For the past year, Eileen had been traveling overseas with Rodger. With the time difference, we could barely squeeze in a few minutes on the phone. I'd even bought her a limited-edition white bunny plushie.

But the moment I opened her bedroom door, I heard my daughter's cheerful voice.

“Daddy said Aunt Stephanie's gonna love this!”

Eileen was kneeling in front of her easel, painting a woman with chestnut curls and delicate features.

Stephanie.

“Eileen.”

She spun around. “Mommy? What are you doing home?”

I opened my arms, expecting her to run over and hug me like she always did. Instead, she hurriedly stepped in front of the canvas.

“Mommy! Don't come any closer! It's a surprise. You're not supposed to see it!”

My arms froze in midair.

“Okay.” I forced a smile and held out her gift. “Then how about you see what Mommy got you?”

She unwrapped it, but her smile disappeared almost immediately.

Pointing to the bedside table, she said, “Aunt Stephanie already got me one just like this. Mine's pink. I like pink now, not white.”

I froze. Just a few months ago, she'd been telling me on our video calls that white was the prettiest color in the whole world.

“Mommy, can you go now?” She picked up her paintbrush again. “I've been working on this for three weeks. I have to give it to Aunt Stephanie tomorrow.”

Three weeks!

She'd been working on Stephanie's birthday present for that long.

I asked softly, “Eileen, do you know whose birthday it is tomorrow?”

“Of course! It's Aunt Stephanie's birthday!”

My heart felt like someone had squeezed it in a vise.

“And what about today?”

She finally looked up, clearly annoyed. “Mommy, can you stop bothering me? I'm trying to finish my painting!”

I didn't ask anything else.

Five years ago, I'd risked my life giving birth to her. Back then, Rodger had held my hand and promised he'd celebrate my birthday with me every year, thanking me for bringing our daughter into the world.

Now, both of them had forgotten.

Back in our bedroom, I called Rodger. He didn't pick up until my third try.

“What?”

“I'm home.”

“Yeah.”

No surprise. No concern.

I tightened my grip on the phone.

“I booked a restaurant ahead of time. Can we have lunch with Eileen tomorrow?”

“Babe, can you come zip me up? Is this dress too tight?”

Stephanie's sweet, flirty voice suddenly came through the phone.

My blood ran cold.

“Are you with Stephanie?”

“It's her birthday tomorrow. I'm helping her pick out a dress.”

I glanced at the clock. It was eleven at night.

“You're still out with her this late?”

Rodger's voice immediately turned cold. “Nadia, seriously? Can you stop being so jealous? She's your sister. What's wrong with helping her pick out a dress?”

“What about my birthday?”

“You're thirty, Nadia. Do you really still make a big deal out of birthdays?”

I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.

He used to tell me that no matter how old I got, I'd always be his girl, the one he wanted to spoil.

Now, even asking him to spend one birthday with me was apparently too much.

“Noon tomorrow.” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “It's just one meal. Can you please make time for us?”

“Send me the address.”

The call ended. I stared at the dark screen for a moment before sending him the restaurant details anyway.

One last time.

That's what I told myself.

But the next morning, my daughter shattered what little hope I had left.

I went to Eileen's room to wake her up.

A pink birthday card lay on her bedside table, covered in crooked handwriting.

Happy Birthday, Aunt Stephanie!

You're the best mommy in the whole world!

Daddy says you're nicer and prettier than Mommy.

I hope you marry Daddy soon so we don't have to sneak around to see each other anymore!

I went completely still.

Sneak around?

“Mommy! Who said you could touch my stuff?” Eileen suddenly rushed over and snatched the card away. “That's private!”

I looked at her. “Eileen, does Daddy take you to see Stephanie a lot?”

Her eyes darted away. “No!”

“Then why do you have to sneak around?”

“Because... Daddy says you'll get jealous if you find out!”

She seemed to realize she'd said too much only after the words had left her mouth.

It felt like something had ripped right through my chest.

After a long silence, Eileen muttered, “Aunt Stephanie's really nice to me. Daddy's happy when he's with her, too.”

“Mommy, don't you always say you want Daddy and me to be happy?”

I stared at her.

She looked up at me with innocent eyes.

“So, can you move out? Then Aunt Stephanie can move in!”

I could barely breathe.

I'd given up the overseas training program I'd always dreamed of to take care of her.

I'd stepped away from core research projects to support Rodger's career.

Even when I traveled for work, I'd set daily alarms to video call her across time zones.

Yet in her eyes, I was just the woman who needed to move out.

I grabbed the easel to steady myself.

“Eileen, do you know what today is? It's Mommy's birthday, too.”

“Then can't you celebrate tomorrow? Today's Aunt Stephanie's birthday! I already promised Daddy I'd spend the whole day with her!”

That was when I finally understood. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't win back a heart that had already chosen someone else.

At noon, I sat alone in the restaurant.

Three place settings were arranged on the table, along with a small birthday cake.

The waiter approached me for the third time. “Ma'am, do you want me to call your family?”

Just then, Stephanie posted a new Instagram story.

Almost without thinking, I opened the video and saw the scene from the beginning.

“She knows her place.”

The words kept ringing in my ears.

Tears rolled down my cheeks, blurring the screen into a scattering of light.

Six years ago, I'd left the AI tech company I'd co-founded to marry Rodger. I'd put my groundbreaking research on hold and hidden my identity to join Zander Group, starting from the bottom.

And now, even my own daughter thought I should give up my place as her mother.

My place?

I'd once been Nadia Ashford, one of the brightest minds in AI, someone the entire industry had pinned its hopes on. I wasn't just someone's wife or someone's mother, let alone a woman who could be replaced whenever it suited them.

“Ma'am, are you still waiting?”

The waiter's cautious question pulled me back to reality.

“No, I'm done waiting.” I wiped my tears, took a deep breath, and pushed the two place settings across from me aside. “It's my birthday. Could you cut me a slice of cake, please?”

After leaving the restaurant, I called a lawyer right away.

“I need you to prepare divorce papers. Handle the division of assets and custody arrangements according to the law.”

After hanging up, I sent a resignation email to Jared Yardley.

An hour later, I returned to the Zander villa and packed only my documents, laptop, and a few changes of clothes.

Then I took off my wedding ring.

Six years ago, when Rodger slipped that ring onto my finger, his eyes had been red as he told me:

“Nadia, marry me. I promise you'll never regret it.”

Now, I regretted it.

But it wasn't too late.

I placed the ring and divorce papers inside an envelope and handed it to the housekeeper.

Mrs. Weiss's expression changed the moment she saw my suitcase.

“Madam, where are you going?”

“Home.”

“But... isn't this your home?”

I looked around the villa where I'd lived for six years.

Rodger and Eileen's photographs were everywhere.

Yet there were barely any pictures of me.

“No,” I said softly. “This place was never my home.”

I handed her the envelope. “Give this to Rodger yourself when he gets back.”

As I wheeled my suitcase out the front door, my phone suddenly buzzed.

An email from my former business partner, someone I'd worked with six years ago.

Nadia, we've been looking for you for six years. No one has been able to solve the core AI problem you left behind. The board is willing to offer you anything. We just want you back.

I stared at the screen in silence for a long moment.

Six years ago, I'd defied my grandfather's fury, hidden my family background, and walked away from my position as the Ashford family heir. I'd chosen to stand beside Rodger as an ordinary woman.

Back then, I was not only the brightest rising star in AI, but also the sole heir to the Ashford family, with everything anyone could dream of.

Yet I'd chosen love.

I'd believed Rodger loved Nadia, the woman who lived for algorithms, not the Ashford name.

I'd even secretly planned to reveal my true identity once Zander Group was firmly established.

But he'd never truly known me.

I glanced at the faint mark left by my wedding ring and slowly curled my fingers into a fist.

The story of Nadia Zander ended here.

But Nadia Ashford's next chapter was just beginning.

And Rodger would soon learn exactly what he'd thrown away.