Chapter 101
As they prepared to leave for the hotel, Caroline noticed Layla's hesitation.
"Mommy, I want to stay with Logan. Can you take him with us?"
Before Caroline could respond, Logan jumped in. "No way! We don't want to go with Mommy. We want to go with Ms. White."
He grabbed Layla's hand, forming a united front against Caroline.
"Layla, didn't you promise to spend today with me?" Caroline tried again. "You're changing your mind already?"
Logan stepped between them. "Stop pressuring her! Layla wants to be with us!"
From the sidelines, Heidi offered, "Caroline, why don't we all go together? The car should have enough room."
"No need. I'll drive myself." Looking at her children, Caroline forced a smile. "You go ahead. I'll be right behind you."
As she closed the car door, she watched Arthur fasten Heidi's seatbelt while the children sat obediently in the back, chatting happily with Heidi. The car quickly disappeared from view as Caroline's chest tightened.
Just as she'd thought—she was the outsider. Always.
The White family had arranged an extravagant birthday celebration at the Royal Hotel, inviting many of Sovereign City's elite families.
When Caroline arrived, she ran into her grandmother, Marsha Cook, who was resting in the lobby.
Seeing her, Marsha's eyes lit up with joy, her aged face brightening with a warm smile.
"Caroline, how have you been these past few years?"
Caroline didn't respond, but her nose stung with emotion, her eyes gradually reddening.
Beside them, Naomi noticed Caroline's cold demeanor and her smile instantly stiffened. "Caroline, even if you despise me, that's between us. It has nothing to do with the White family or your grandmother."
"Are you really willing to make your grandmother worry about you for the rest of her life just because of your personal grievances?"
Owen, having just finished entertaining some guests, walked over with a practiced fatherly tone. "Caroline, you're here. Your grandmother has been talking about you constantly. You should visit home sometime to keep her company."
The flicker of warmth Caroline had just felt instantly cooled.
When the Hamilton family first fell on hard times, Naomi had hurriedly remarried into the White family, taking Caroline with her.
Naomi claimed the Whites would provide better educational resources for Caroline, saying that as a girl, unlike her brother who was the Hamilton family's male heir, she needed every advantage.
At that time, Caroline was only a few years old, her brother barely one. She hadn't wanted to leave the Hamiltons, nor be separated from her mother.
When Naomi asked if she wanted to leave, Caroline hesitated. Her father had died early, and staying would burden the Hamiltons, so she ultimately followed her mother.
Even after moving to the White family, her heart remained with the Hamiltons.
When they first arrived in Sovereign City, she still maintained contact with them—until Naomi found out and cut off the connection.
Caroline didn't want to hurt her mother, so she planned to secretly find the Hamiltons once she was older.
After college, she went to Orchid City hoping to track them down. But they had moved away, and no one knew where.
She lost touch with the Hamilton family completely, becoming Owen's daughter in name and deed.
But there were things Caroline couldn't forget.
During her first autumn with the White family, it was Heidi's birthday, with Caroline's following a week later.
Naomi, eager to please Owen, suggested the "sisters" celebrate together, claiming it would be more festive.
Caroline didn't want to. But seeing Naomi's reproach—hearing her say Caroline was nothing like her mother, more like her stubborn, stingy father who died too young—she felt hurt and wondered if she truly was being petty.
Even after all these years, she remembered that day clearly.
It was Heidi's birthday, yet Naomi and Owen called Caroline the "little birthday girl" too.
Upset, she went to the bathroom, and when she returned, Heidi had already cut the cake. The handcrafted cream roses were reduced to a mushy mess.
Heidi acted as if nothing was wrong, smiling as she cut Caroline the largest piece—a piece without a single rose.
Naomi just stroked Caroline's hair, never considering that her own daughter hadn't even blown out candles, never thinking to buy a new cake.
When Caroline returned, Naomi simply handed her that shapeless piece, as if everyone had forgotten she was still wearing the shiny "Happy Birthday" paper crown.
The White family certainly wasn't short on money for another cake. But no one thought of it.
Finally, noticing Caroline's hesitation, Naomi halfheartedly stuck a single candle in that lump of cake, wishing her a happy birthday and a lifetime of sisterly love with Heidi.
It was at that moment Caroline clearly understood: her mother's love had changed.
Even though she was Naomi's biological daughter, Naomi loved Heidi more. And she could never forget the malice behind Heidi's smile as she handed her that cake.
Later, on her actual birthday, it was her grandmother who bought her a small cream cake, and the two of them properly celebrated in the little house in the White Villa's garden.
The difference between love and indifference was painfully obvious.
The White family wasn't lacking money for a cream cake—she simply wasn't valued.
Her mother didn't value her, which was why everyone treated her with such disregard.
#
Looking at Naomi's reproachful expression and words supposedly for her own good, Caroline's lips curled into a slight smile. She knew exactly what Naomi was thinking.
"Are you really concerned about me? Or are you using my grandmother as an excuse to pressure me into giving up? Is your so-called concern actually about helping Heidi interfere in my marriage?"
Hearing this, Marsha's expression suddenly changed, while Naomi showed no embarrassment, as if she'd expected this response.
"Caroline, we're all looking out for your best interests. If you insist on thinking otherwise, there's nothing I can do."
Owen, ever the master of appearances, sighed. "Caroline, you understand the situation between you and Arthur. Forcing someone who doesn't love you to stay only makes everyone miserable. A clean divorce would be better for everyone involved. We're just—"
"You're all looking out for my best interests? Is that right?" Caroline's lips curved in a faint, mocking smile. "I'm tired of these self-righteous excuses. Why don't you try being honest for once, and maybe I'll give you what you want."
Her voice cooled. "Though that's not guaranteed either. No matter how nice it sounds, what matters is what you actually do."