The Unveiled Rose

'They'd surely be more careful in the future,' I thought. They wouldn't make the same mistake again.

But, as it turned out, I had given them too much credit.

"Not only did you ignore everything I said, but you even sent him over to Luna's place! You let my child bond with Luna, the woman trying to wedge herself into our marriage! It's the same story even today!"

"Leander came home and told me, 'I dropped Nigel off at his grandma's.' Just a few hours later, he's at Luna's house, eating himself sick to the point of being rushed to the hospital!" "And now what?"

At first glance, the scene I walked into at the hospital broke my heart.

"Luna just walked away, leaving Nigel all alone here."

Hattie opened her mouth, looking to argue, but found herself at a loss for words.

"Mom," I began, the words heavy on my tongue. "I know you've never thought much of me. And I understand that the only daughter-in-law you ever approved of was Luna..." "But if you dislike me and want to torment me, direct it at me! Nigel is still your grandson, and he is still so young... He can't handle this kind of turmoil!"

Hattie hadn't expected her usually compliant daughter-in-law to stand up to her, and as she scrambled for a retort, a good scolding seemed to put this unruly one in her place. Before she could get the words out, Leander, rushing in, interrupted. "Mom, can't you just ease up a bit?"

In moments of conflict with my in-laws, Leander always unconditionally stood by my side. That was one of the reasons I was utterly devoted to him.

Hattie, stopped by her son, was even more infuriated. "You ungrateful child. Did you not hear how she just spoke to me?"

Leander, with a stern face, stood by me. "Did she say anything untrue?"

Hattie was at a loss for words.

Leander continued, "I've already made it clear that I would cut ties with Luna, yet you went behind my back and took Nigel to her. This has started to affect my marriage." Hearing this, I looked at Leander in surprise.

So, he was unaware of this as well?

Hattie seemed to have a lot to say, but in the end, she held back, only managing a fierce glare at me.

My attention was fully on Nigel, with no time or energy to spare for Hattie.

After some thought, I decided to clear things up. "Mom, I won't be sending Nigel over to your place anymore."

I wasn't sure when Luna had started getting involved with my son.

But I hoped from today onward, there will be no contact between them.

Meanwhile, I would like to spend more time with Nigel...

With enough patience, he would return to being the healthy, sweet child he once was.

Hattie, without thinking, objected, "No way!"Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

I was merely informing her that her opposition or support wouldn't change my decision.

Hattie, not waiting for my response, turned to Leander.

Leander simply said: "I support Amara."

"You!" Hattie was livid yet powerless to change anything. After a long standoff and seeing we weren't going to budge, she had no choice but to leave.

In the vast infusion area, it was just the three of us left. I held Nigel in my arms and Leander sat by my side.

Nigel slept soundly until the moment the needle was removed. He suddenly woke up, his eyes clouded with confusion as he looked at me.

I gently patted his back, whispering soothingly, "It's okay, don't worry, mommy's here."

Nigel pouted, clearly upset. "It's your fault. Why did we have to come to the hospital?"

Perhaps it's a mother's bias, but even as he grumbled, I found him adorable:

"You didn't want me to come?"

"Yeah." Nigel's response was immediate. "If you hadn't come, Luna would've stayed with me."