Seeing how things were going, the butler called Zion Hawthorne.
“The only reason we let you name a price is that you’re Summer’s mother.” Mr.
Hawthorne’s gaze was intensely intimidating.
“But since you refuse to appreciate the gesture, we don’t need to discuss it with you any further.”
“You’re right, there’s no need to discuss it with me,” Rowan Keller said.
“Because you have no say in the matter.”
“What did you say?” Mr.
Hawthorne’s demeanor turned cold.
“The divorce papers have been filed.
Once the divorce is finalized, I’ll get custody of our son.” Rowan’s body tensed as she spoke, but ‘at this point, she had no choice but to face them head-on.’ “If you try to take him by force, I can and will call the police.”
Mr.
and Mrs.
Hawthorne’s expressions instantly soured.
If they hadn’t been worried about that, why would they have rushed over to find her the moment they got wind of the situation?
Once the divorce was finalized and it was all set in stone, changing things would be much more difficult.
“How can you be so selfish!
Dragging him around to suffer with you!
Have you even considered that he’s just a child?” Mrs.
Hawthorne railed. Find the original chapter at g.com.
“I’m getting custody of him, it’s not like his father is dead.” ‘Besides being completely self-serving,’ Rowan thought, ‘they’re just trying to manipulate me every way they can.’ “I’m not stopping Zion Hawthorne from spending money on him.”
“In the end, you’re just trying to use Summer to get money, to find a way to make Zion keep supporting you,” Mrs.
Hawthorne said, her words dripping with venom.
“A scheming person like you is completely unfit to be Summer’s mother.”
“No matter how unfit I am, I’m still a better parent than the cheating Zion Hawthorne.” Rowan couldn’t even be bothered to explain the basics anymore.
“So what if he cheated?” Mr.
Hawthorne shot back.
“Things like that are hardly uncommon in our circles.”
“That’s exactly why I’m taking Summer and leaving.” Rowan was more certain than ever that this was the right decision.
“Growing up in a family with such broken morals, no matter how good his values are, he’d still be corrupted by you.”
“Say that again!” Mr.
Hawthorne would never allow a ‘kept woman’ like Rowan—a little canary his son had caged—to lecture him.
Rowan stood her ground.
“I could say it ten more times, and it would still be the same.”
The atmosphere instantly grew tense, reaching a stalemate.
Just then, Mr.
Hawthorne’s phone suddenly vibrated.
Seeing it was a call from Zion Hawthorne, he answered, simmering with rage.
The moment the call connected, he started complaining to his son, “Look at this fine woman you’ve been keeping.
She actually dares to lose her temper with me now.”
“You just said it yourself, she’s the one I’m keeping,” Zion replied nonchalantly, his tone completely lacking the respect a son ought to show his father.
This only made Mr.
But he couldn’t take his anger out on his son.
He shot Rowan a disgruntled glare before putting the phone on speaker.
“Your call is well-timed.
Your mother and I have something to ask you.”
“Is this about Rowan Keller getting custody of Summer?” Zion asked before they could.
Mr.
Hawthorne glanced at Rowan.
“Yes.”
Zion: “I agreed to it.”
As soon as he said that, the pressure in the room plummeted.
A palpable chill radiated from Mr.
Hawthorne, and the temperature seemed to drop several degrees in an instant.
“If she wants to raise him, let her,” Zion said, seemingly oblivious to his father’s fury, his tone still perfectly nonchalant.
“Are you an idiot?” Mrs.
Hawthorne grew frantic.
She couldn’t just stand by and watch her grandson leave with an outsider.
“If Summer goes with her, he won’t be close to you anymore!
What are you going to do when he starts calling some other man ‘Dad’?”
“That’s certainly a possibility while he’s young,” Zion remarked casually.
“But once he’s older and understands the concept of self-interest, that might not be the case.”
“What do you mean?” Mrs.
Hawthorne wasn’t as cunning as her son.