Chapter 135
The call was cut off. Just like that.
Carter tried dialing again. Then again. But Sharon still didn’t pick up.
His hand tightened around the phone. He had let too much slide before. He’d been too lenient with Sharon. That softness had blurred her understanding of her place-made her forget who she was, made her bolder than she had any right to be.
It seemed it was time to teach her a lesson.
When Sharon arrived at the kindergarten, she wasn’t surprised to find Carter and Kelly already there.
Kelly was cradling Theo in her arms, whispering comfort into his ear.
Meanwhile, Matty stood off to the side, completely alone. Small and silent, he looked heartbreakingly out of place.
Sharon stepped inside. “Sorry I’m late.”
She had been rehearsing the violin with John on the other side of town, far from the kindergarten. Naturally, she was the last to
arrive.
Carter’s face darkened the moment he saw her.
“Sharon, why didn’t you answer your phone?”
Her expression was calm and detached. “Didn’t feel like it. Isn’t that reason enough?”
His eyes narrowed, voice dropping with quiet fury. “Sharon, you’re Theo’s mother. Something happened, and you couldn’t even pick up your phone?”
Kelly chimed in, her tone dripping concern edged with blame. “That’s right, Sharon. Did you even consider that if something urgent had happened to Theo, your silence could have put him in serious danger?”
A flicker of cold amusement crossed Sharon’s face.
“And as Theo’s father, how many calls did Carter answer back when Theo was in the hospital? If missing a single call from me means I’ve endangered him, then based on the number of times Carter didn’t answer, shouldn’t Theo already be dead by now?”
Carter’s eyes turned dark, something perilous flickering deep in them.
“You’re cursing your own child now, Sharon?”
“Carter,” she said flatly, “are you blind, heartless, and deaf now too?”
She didn’t hold back. “It was your precious Kelly who said Theo was doomed-not me. But I guess it’s easier to pin that on me, isn’t it? There’s a talent show at the kindergarten in a few days, right? Maybe you and Kelly should team up-call yourselves the
Forever-Innocent Duo.”
She turned, eyes softening as they landed on Matty.
“Matty,” she said gently, “can you tell me what happened?”
Matty took a step forward, then hesitated. His gaze flicked toward Theo. Whatever he saw there made him freeze in place.
Sharon’s expression darkened slightly. She took the step for him, closing the distance.
“Matty, it’s okay. Tell me what happened. This time, I promise-I’ll make it right.”
1/2
“I… I’m fine,” Matty said quietly, glancing once more at Theo. “Sharon, about the talent show this weekend… maybe we shouldn’t join after all.”
Before Sharon could respond, Kelly spoke, a note of reprimand in her voice.
“Sharon, you’re Theo’s mother. Instead of performing with your own child, you’re choosing to accompany someone else’s. Isn’t that… a bit much?”
Sharon raised a brow. “Oh? So Theo’s pulling out of the show?”
Kelly smiled faintly. “Since you won’t accompany him, he… had no choice but to turn to me.”
Sharon let out a soft, surprised laugh. “Did Theo tell you that himself? Or is that just something you imagined?”
Kelly hesitated, lips parting to deflect-when Theo suddenly spoke. “I asked Kelly to team up with me!”
He lifted his chin proudly, eyes gleaming with accusation.
“This is a talent show. You don’t know anything! What’s the point of having you there? You’ll just embarrass me! You’ll make me a joke!”
2/2
