My Daughter Gifted My Husband to His Mistress

After Lily finished, she turned around and hugged me with a bright smile. "Mommy, don't be sad! I've already given daddy away to Miss Maya." The laughter in the room died down instantly. The parent who had just shown me the video awkwardly pulled her phone back. Her eyes darted around, pretending to be deeply interested in the ceiling pattern. Several parents in the front row exchanged knowing, silent glances. The teacher on stage let out a forced chuckle, quickly raising her microphone to break the ice. "Haha, our little Lily is so sweet and generous! Alright, let's move on to the next activity. Shall we give these beautiful flowers to our mommies?" But Lily stood her ground, clutching her sunflower stubbornly. "I’m not lying. I really want to give my daddy to them." I took the microphone from the teacher, knelt down, and looked Lily in the eyes. "Lily, you did a great job. When we don't need something anymore, we should be generous and give it away." I took her little hand, gave a polite nod to the stunned parents and teachers, and walked out. As soon as we reached the lobby, the phone in my pocket began vibrating violently. It was Ethan. I picked up, and the loud roar of factory machinery filled the background. "Hey, babe. There’s a huge issue with this batch of products at the factory. I’ve been stuck on the workshop floor. Is Lily’s show over yet?" "I'm almost done here. I'll drive over right now and take you guys out for a big steak dinner." His voice was as gentle and caring as always. If I hadn’t seen that video, I probably would have spent the last six years worrying about him and telling him to stay safe. "No need," I said. "What’s wrong? Are you mad?" Ethan softened his tone, sounding a bit desperate to please. "I promise this is the last time. Once this busy season is over, I'll take time off and we'll go to Miami..." "Ethan, check the parents' group chat." I cut him off and hung up. In the short time it took me to walk off the stage, some parents had already recorded Lily’s speech and posted it in the school's WhatsApp group. Someone else had posted a candid photo taken at the mall across the street. In the photo, Ethan was wearing a light gray casual jacket, and Maya was wearing a dress of the exact same color. They were holding hands with Leo on either side of them, looking like a perfect little family of three. I led Lily out of the kindergarten gates. My phone rang again. I didn't answer. I threw it into my bag and led Lily to the car. Our car was parked on the second basement level of the mall across the street. We were bound to run into them anyway.

Ethan came running over, panting heavily, his face pale and tense. Maya stood beside him, holding her son's hand. Her eyes were red, making her look incredibly fragile and wronged. The moment Ethan reached me, he started pointing fingers. "Chloe! How on earth are you raising our daughter?" "You let Lily say those ridiculous things on stage? Everyone in the school group is laughing at me now! How am I supposed to show my face?!" I pulled Lily behind me and took a step back, looking at this man. This was the man I had loved for eight years. "Which part of what she said was wrong?" Ethan choked on his words, his eyes darting away. Still, he forced a defense. "I only help Maya because it's not easy for her as a single mom! I was just helping her out!" "Fixing a leaky pipe, changing a lightbulb—how did that turn into something so disgusting in Lily’s mouth?" "Chloe, please don't be mad at Ethan." Maya stepped forward, wiping her tears. "Leo saw other kids with their dads and wouldn't stop crying for one. Ethan just felt bad for him, so he brought him out to buy a toy." "If you want to blame someone, blame me. I'm just useless. I can't give Leo a real family." She certainly knew how to play the victim. Before I could speak, Lily peeked out from behind me and pointed at the massive box Leo was holding. "Mommy, why did daddy have money to buy him a giant Transformer?" "Last week, when I wanted that Barbie doll, daddy said it was too expensive and that kids shouldn't be greedy. He didn't buy it for me." Ethan froze. Leo clutched the box tightly, hiding behind Maya, and yelled loudly: "My daddy bought this for me! You don't have one!" Maya quickly covered Leo’s mouth, looking at me with an apologetic expression. "He’s just a child, Chloe. Kids say the craziest things, please don't take it to heart." "Ethan only bought this toy to calm Leo down because he felt sorry for him." Ethan’s face turned bright red. He tried to grab my hand. "Babe, let me explain. I only lied because I didn't want you to worry..." I stepped back, avoiding his touch, and clicked my car keys to unlock the doors. "Shut up, Ethan." "Whether you did this out of pure charity or because you have feelings for her, you know the truth in your heart." I opened the car door and buckled Lily into her car seat. Ethan rushed over, grabbing the edge of the door, his voice dropping into a low, threatening hiss. "Chloe, don't push it." "I've already swallowed my pride to explain this to you. Do you have to make such a scene in public?" "I'm not the one making a scene." I shoved his hand off the door and slammed it shut. As I drove out of the garage, I saw Maya standing next to Ethan in my rearview mirror, gently patting his arm to comfort him.

At 9 PM, Ethan came home. He was holding a beautifully wrapped, limited-edition Barbie set. The shiny packaging felt like a pathetic attempt to buy his way out of trouble. I sat on the living room sofa, focusing on the latest financial reports of our company. After Lily was born, I had stepped back from the day-to-day operations to focus on our family. I left most of the company's management to my partner, and handed a small portion over to Ethan. Looking back, it was a total joke. Ethan walked over to Lily’s bedroom door and knocked gently. "Lily, look what daddy got for you!" The door remained closed. Only Lily’s loud voice came through. "I don't want your toys! Give them to Leo!" Ethan’s patience wore thin. He walked over to me and tossed the Barbie box onto the coffee table. "Chloe, how long are you going to keep this up?" "I already explained everything to you. You need to tell Lily to stop acting out. Don't bring your petty drama into our kid's head." "Do you really have to be this cold and heartless?" Seeing that I didn't even look up at him, Ethan grew even more frustrated. He yanked at his tie, his voice dripping with self-righteous anger. "Maya’s ex-husband was a deadbeat gambler who ran off and left them with a mountain of debt! She’s raising a sick kid all by herself and can barely afford rent!" "I’m just lending her some money and helping her out around the house." "You’ve lived a privileged life, Chloe. You have no idea how hard it is for people at the bottom!" I closed my laptop and looked at him blankly. "If you understand her so well, why don't you just hand over your entire paycheck to her?" "You are completely unreasonable!" Ethan raised his voice. "You sit there with a cold face all day long. This house feels like a freezer! Even when I hand over my salary, you never smile." "But Maya is always sweet and warm. When I go over to help, she always hands me a glass of warm water, and her kid calls me daddy." "I just wanted to feel a little bit of warmth in a home. What did I do wrong?!" Unbelievable. He actually managed to paint his emotional affair as a search for "family warmth." Looking at this complete stranger, I didn't even have the energy to argue. "Are you done? We have the company’s annual VIP gala tomorrow. I need to sleep." Ethan was completely enraged by my cold shoulder. He pointed a finger at me, his voice carrying a blatant threat. "Chloe, don't think you can boss me around." "Tomorrow’s gala is huge. A lot of major industry leaders are coming, and they're all coming to see the new projects and patents that "my" team developed." "If you keep up this attitude, I won't show up tomorrow. Let's see how you explain that to the investors!" The gala was for our company's fifth anniversary. The guests were our key suppliers and investors. It was a crucial event to maintain our business relationships. He thought he could use his leverage to force me to back down. But I have never been someone who takes threats lightly. "Do whatever you want." With that, I walked into my bedroom and locked the door. Outside, I heard Ethan kick the trash can over with a loud crash, followed by the heavy slam of the front door. The next morning at 10 AM, Ethan showed up anyway. He couldn't bear to miss an event where he could network and show off his status as a successful businessman. Ethan walked up to me, smiling warmly at a group of executives. "Good morning, gentlemen. Chloe worked sleepless nights preparing for this gala. I was honestly so worried about her health." The executives praised us for being such a supportive couple. Soon, they started discussing the upcoming projects for the second half of the year with Ethan. Ethan couldn't hide his smugness. He leaned in and whispered in my ear: "See? Without me, you wouldn't even have a seat at this table. Let's forget about last night. I'll cook you a late-night snack when we get home." I maintained my perfect smile but said nothing. Half an hour later, my business partner, Liam, walked through the crowd with a frown and pulled me into the VIP lounge. "Chloe, is there something going on with Ethan?" "He just used your digital company credentials to request an urgent wire transfer of two million dollars. He claimed you approved it as an advance payment for a new materials supplier." He showed me his tablet. The recipient was "R-M Trading Corp."

My heart sank. "I didn’t sign off on that, and I definitely didn't approve it." "Call finance immediately. Halt the transfer under the pretext of a flagged suspicious transaction." Liam nodded and immediately stepped aside to make the call. I turned around to look for Ethan, but he was no longer in the ballroom. As I walked down the quiet hallway of the lounge area, I heard familiar voices coming from a slightly ajar door. It was Ethan and Maya. Today, Maya wore a simple white shirt, looking pale and vulnerable. She was clutching a hospital bill, her voice cracking with tears. "Ethan, I really didn't want to bother you today." "But the hospital said if I don't pay the deposit for Leo's bone marrow treatment by noon, they'll give his spot to someone else. I had no other choice..." Ethan looked around nervously, patting her shoulder. "Didn't I tell you I'd handle it? Why did you come here? What if someone sees you? The money will hit your account in ten minutes. Go back to the hospital now." But Maya wasn't intimidated. Instead, she leaned closer to him, speaking softly. "I’m just so scared." "No one cares about us except you." Her act worked perfectly. Ethan’s tense face softened. He wrapped his arm around her, speaking in a gentle, comforting tone. Right then, one of our major investors, Mr. Vance, walked out of the restroom at the end of the hall. Seeing me, he smiled and walked over to say hello. Since the lounge door wasn't fully closed, Mr. Vance easily spotted the two people cuddling inside. The smile faded from his face. Frowning, he pushed the door open and pointed at Maya. "Wait a minute. Aren't you the woman who threw a screaming fit at our branch office last month, begging us not to sue your husband for fraud?" The air in the hallway turned dead cold. Every drop of color drained from Ethan’s face. He violently pushed Maya away, rushed to my side, and grabbed my wrist tightly. "Chloe! Why is the cleaning lady you hired last month showing up here to beg for an advance on her paycheck?" He leaned in close, whispering in my ear with a desperate hiss: "Play along with me! If Mr. Vance pulls his investment, the company is finished!" He was threatening me.