I let out a long sigh.

So, that was it. In Angelica's mind, I simply wasn't worthy of meeting anyone better. That was why she had left without a second thought back then and now returned with such confidence.

The traffic light turned green.

I pressed the accelerator. Once we passed the intersection, I said softly, "Angelica, I'm not joking. I'm married and have a son now. Once we park, please leave. I don't want you disrupting my life."

Angelica frowned slightly. "Devon, do you really think you can fool me? I know you're upset, so go ahead and throw whatever tantrum you want. I'll be right here with you, until you've had enough and come back to me."

Since there was no getting through to her with words, I decided to let her see the truth with her own eyes and crush her hopes once and for all.

Tommy stretched out his arms and ran toward me with a sweet smile.

"Daddy, why are you so late today?"

"I stopped by the old cottage to pick up some things," I said. "Sorry to keep you waiting. How about I make it up to you with some fries later?"

"Okay!" Tommy replied, hugging me happily.

Angelica clearly hadn't expected me to actually return with a child. Her expression changed instantly.

"Devon, there should be a limit to your jokes. You can't just drag around someone else's kid like this. This is child abduction. Do you know you could go to jail for this? Hurry up and take him back."

She angrily grabbed Tommy's arm, trying to lead him away.

I quickly slapped her hand away and scooped Tommy into my arms. "What do you think you're doing?"

The preschool teacher, Marissa Lopez, spotted us and walked over.

"Oh, are you Tommy's mom? We've always seen his dad but never met you. Glad to finally put a face to the name."

Angelica stared at me in disbelief. "He's really your son?"

"Of course he is." I was about to walk away with Tommy in my arms when she blocked my path.

"How old is Tommy?" she asked, her eyes fixed intently on Ms. Lopez.

"He's three this year."

Three years old?

Angelica stared at Tommy, who stood a head taller than the kids around him. Suddenly, her hands shot out and gripped my arm tightly.

"Devon, he's not really three years old, is he? He should be four. Our baby that was born prematurely back then—he didn't die, did he? You hid him from me all this time, didn't you?"

I looked at her calmly. "If that baby had survived back then, would you have refused to marry Jeffrey?"

"I…" Angelica faltered, then lowered her head and frowned. "If Jeffrey couldn't marry me, he would have killed himself."

I let out a cold laugh. "You have no right to bring up our child ever again."

"Devon, I'll take you and Tommy home right now," she said. "My parents have always wanted a grandchild. If you bring Tommy back with you, they'll surely overlook our different backgrounds."

I rolled my eyes so hard I was practically looking at my own brain. "Who said I was going back with you? I told you, he's not your son. Can't you get that through your thick skull?"

"Enough, Devon. I can't just stand by and watch my family's bloodline be raised outside our home. Why didn't you tell me sooner? How could you send our child to a school like this? How can he grow up properly in such a cramped, run-down place?"

I glanced at the preschool, then back at Angelica.

This was a top-ranked preschool, the kind that fed into the best K-12 schools in the state. Did Angelica even get how much that mattered? Her so-called elite school, where everyone just coasted through, didn't even come close to them.

I specifically had my wife, Vera Lambert, transfer Tommy here. I didn't want him to pick up the arrogant, entitled habits of those kids from wealthy families.

It never crossed my mind that Angelica would look down on this place so much. Honestly, it made me all the more grateful that I hadn't married someone with such narrow-minded views.

"Stay away from us. This has nothing to do with you," I said coldly.

"Who else could he be if not my son?" Angelica pulled Ms. Lopez aside. "Tell me, whose name is listed as the mother in Tommy's records?"

Since we didn't want our identities exposed, we had left the mother's information blank in the preschool's records. As a result, Ms. Lopez genuinely had no idea who Tommy's mother was.

Hearing that they had no information about the mother, Angelica became even more convinced that Tommy was her son.

"Devon, it must've been hard raising Tommy on your own all these years. You've had your fun, but enough is enough. Let's go home now."

Tommy didn't understand what we were arguing about and just whispered in my ear, "Daddy, weren't we going to get fries?"

As if she'd heard something outrageous, Angelica suddenly flared up.

"Devon, how could you feed Tommy such junk?" she snapped. "First, it was those cheap food truck hot dogs you used to love, and now you're letting him eat this filthy garbage?

"What if something happens to him? Could you bear the responsibility? He's the only heir to my family!"

I was planning to have our housekeeper, Sharon Palmer, prepare homemade fries for Tommy. How was that "filthy"?

Ignoring Angelica, I headed for the car with Tommy in my arms.

She, however, blocked the car door. "Don't put Tommy in this old thing. It's beneath him."

To avoid drawing attention, I'd deliberately chosen this understated, reliable car. Though not luxurious, the back seat had been specially modified to be the safest and most comfortable for Tommy.

If Angelica had simply glanced at the back seat earlier, she would've realized I had a son and that I took his safety seriously. But alas, she never paid attention to anything about me.

She simply pointed at her Mercedes and said, "Devon, stop with this act. Only I can give you and Tommy the best life."

As she spoke, Jeffrey walked over. He was dressed in a tuxedo that looked completely out of place on the bustling street.

He lifted his feet slightly in disgust, then said with a frown, "Angelica, weren't you supposed to pick Devon up? What are you still doing here? After this, you still need to accompany me to meet the mysterious Ms. Lambert, who just took over Lambert Group."

Angelica's demeanor softened instantly when she saw him. "I remember, don't worry. I'd never forget anything about you," she said gently. "I need to deal with a problem here, but I'll join you soon to meet Vera.

"You look so handsome and charming. I'm sure she'll be drawn to you and become your wife. The Lambert family is Riverton's most prominent family, far surpassing my own. Jeffrey, you'll find true happiness. Just give me a moment to wrap things up here, alright?"

When I heard their exchange, I froze for a moment. Were they saying what I thought they were?

Jeffrey was supporting Angelica in reconnecting with her ex-boyfriend, while she was helping him find his next partner? And more importantly, was the Vera they mentioned actually referring to my wife?

I looked at Jeffrey with a complicated expression. This guy really rubbed me the wrong way.

"I really am just too charming," Jeffrey said smugly. Then he turned and saw me holding Tommy. Instantly, he let out a sharp cry, "Devon, who is this child?"

Angelica panicked and hurriedly explained, "This is my son, Tommy. Jeffrey, let me explain—"

Jeffrey looked as if he'd been struck hard. He suddenly clutched his chest and said, "Angelica, you had a child with Devon behind my back?

"You could've just left me back then, so why betray me like this? Is it because of them that you never wanted to be intimate with me all these years?"

Seeing how devastated he was, Angelica rushed over to comfort him. "Jeffrey, it's not what you think. This happened before we were married. You know about the premature baby I had with Devon back then, right?

"Devon grew up poor and was afraid of losing me, so he hid Tommy to keep me tied to him. I only found out today. Jeffrey, please don't take it out on Devon, alright?"

Jeffrey pointed at me in anguish. "Devon, how could you be so shameless? How dare you hide Angelica's son? Don't you have any conscience at all?"

Tommy didn't fully understand his words but could tell he was attacking me. He pointed a tiny finger at Jeffrey and fiercely declared, "You're a bad person. Why are you yelling at my daddy? You're so mean!"

Jeffrey raised his hand as if to strike Tommy. In an instant, I shifted Tommy to one arm and caught Jeffrey's wrist.

"Try laying a hand on my son. I dare you."

Angelica grabbed my arm. "Devon, let go of Jeffrey. He didn't mean it."

"This is all your fault for hiding Tommy's existence from the start. Otherwise, Jeffrey wouldn't be this upset," Angelica complained.

I didn't care what she said about me, but no one was allowed to lay a finger on Tommy.

I released Jeffrey's wrist and instead drove my fist straight into his face.

I looked coldly at Angelica and warned, "Keep your man in check. If anyone harms Tommy, I'll make sure they pay for it a thousand times over."

"You actually hit me!" Jeffrey shrieked. "I'm still the head of the Manning family, and Angelica is the general manager of Manning Group. With just a flick of her wrist, she could crush you.

"Don't think having her son changes anything. The Manning family will never accept you. Even if I leave, the next head of the family won't be you!"

I snorted coldly. Only Jeffrey would care about these things.

"Who gives a damn about being the head of the Manning family? Only a dog would want that."

"Y-You're insulting me?" Jeffrey threw an arm over Angelica's shoulder, his gaze dark and menacing as it settled on Tommy.

"Angelica, look at the way Devon is now. How could he possibly be a good influence on Tommy? You need to take Tommy back to your family and raise him properly."

Angelica frowned at me. "Jeffrey's right. Hand Tommy over to me. I can give him the best life possible."

"Over my dead body!" Seeing them ready to snatch Tommy, I quickly rushed toward the preschool with him in my arms.

As I ran, I pulled out my phone and called Vera. "Vera, someone's trying to take Tommy. I'm at the preschool entrance. Get here now with your men."

Angelica chased after me. "Devon, he's my son too! He has to come home with me."

A crowd had gathered at the preschool entrance, and people were staring.

Someone recognized Angelica. "Isn't that Ms. Manning?"

"The Ms. Manning from Manning Group? And that's her husband next to her. I've seen him in the news before."

"No wonder we've never seen Tommy's mother. Turns out he's an illegitimate child."

"Ms. Manning is already married, and yet this man still dares to play the homewrecker. How shameless."

"It's disgraceful to have someone like that attending the same school as our children."

"Exactly, what if he influences our kids? Ms. Lopez, you have to expel them. Our kids can't study alongside people like this."

More and more people were calling for expulsion.

I shouted toward them, "Tommy isn't Angelica's son! We haven't been together for years. She's trying to take my son by force. Please, help me! If you don't believe me, call the police. Let them sort this out!"

Jeffrey scoffed and said, "You're just trying to use Tommy to cling to Angelica. Now that your plan's failing, you're panicking. Angelica is only trying to get her own son back. And don't you know that filing a false police report carries serious consequences?"

Those who had considered helping me call the police slowly lowered their phones.

Seeing this, I knew I had to call for help myself. But as I reached for my phone, Angelica lunged forward, trying to snatch Tommy away.

In the chaos, my phone fell to the ground. I held Tommy tightly.

Jeffrey stomped on my phone, shattering it, then drove his fist hard against my head.

A sharp pain shot through my skull. At the last moment, I curled around Tommy, shielding him in the corner. The blow left me dazed and unable to move for what felt like an eternity.

"Help," I managed to whisper weakly.

Angelica frowned in disgust. "Jeffrey only hit you once. How much could it hurt? Stop pretending. You're just embarrassing yourself in front of all these people."

My head spun, and I wanted to argue. But no words came out.

Jeffrey must've been wearing something hard on his hand, maybe metal.

I could only grip the nearby railing tightly, shielding Tommy with everything I had.

In the haze of dizziness and pain, I finally heard a familiar voice.

"Devon! Tommy! I'm here!"