Seven Years a Shadow: The Stand-In's Escape novel Chapter 13

Now, I didn’t care about what he did for Susan.

But he should never have hurt our daughter for the sake of that mother and son.

Just as I clenched my fists tightly, the door suddenly burst open.

“You’re still awake?” Gavin seemed a little surprised as he walked over and sat beside me, speaking softly. “Since Harry just lost his dad, I couldn’t bear to…”

Before he could finish, I interrupted sarcastically, “So you could bear to hurt our daughter?”

Gavin jumped to his feet, embarrassed and angry. “Do you really have to be like this?”

When his eyes met mine, cold and distant, he fell silent. He then pulled out a few tickets from his pocket.

“Yara has been wanting to go to the amusement park, right? Since tomorrow’s the weekend, I’ll take you both there.”

I knew this was something Yara had been looking forward to, so I couldn’t refuse.

The next day, when I told Yara the news, she immediately perked up, her earlier sadness forgotten. She hugged my arm and cheered, “Great! I forgive Daddy!”

Seeing the bright smile on her face made my heart feel a little lighter.

Gavin gave me a look as if expecting praise.

But when our eyes met, I turned my head indifferently.

Even though Yara forgave him this time, I was already completely disappointed in him.

Every time he chose Susan and her son over us, it only made me more certain that if it weren’t for Yara, I would have already divorced him.

Gavin paused for a moment before quickly returning to his usual self.

He then crouched down in front of Yara and, with a serious expression, promised, “Yara, don’t worry. Whatever you want today, Daddy will make it happen.”

As we approached the amusement park, Gavin’s phone suddenly rang.

He glanced at the caller ID, looking somewhat conflicted, and stopped in his tracks.

Finally, with obvious reluctance, he said, “Wait for me, I need to take this call.”

When he returned, there was a sense of urgency in his eyes. “Sorry, something came up at work…”

Again, the same clumsy excuse.

I took a deep breath and patiently asked, “We finally get to spend time with Yara, and you can’t just skip this?”

“How was it? Did you have fun with Yara today?”

I responded calmly, “It was fine…”

He paused for a few seconds before apologizing, his voice laced with guilt.

“I’m sorry for ditching you both today. Next time, I’ll make it up to you…”

Before he could finish, a little boy’s voice came closer from a distance. “Dad, can you help me with this model?”

Gavin quickly covered the phone with his hand and hastily hung up. “I have to go. Let’s talk later.”

When we got home, Yara suddenly spiked a high fever.

Seeing her flushed face, I anxiously called Gavin. “Gavin, when are you coming back? Yara has a fever. Can you come back and drive us to the hospital?”

“What? Alright, I’ll come back right away.”

Just as he finished speaking, a concerned female voice came from the other side. “Gavin, it’s so late. You’re leaving now?”

Next came the sound of a crying little boy. “Dad, can you stay and keep me company?”