CEO Begs Nightly

When Teresa Bennett got home with the cake, it was already 10 PM.

Just as she was about to push the door open, her daughter's clear voice came from inside.

"I just don't want her to go to my parent-teacher conference. The last time she came to our kindergarten, all the kids asked me if she was our housekeeper. It was so embarrassing."

Teresa's fingers suddenly tightened.

The phone watch's speaker volume was quite loud, and a gentle, smiling female voice came through: "Daisy, you can't talk about Mommy like that. Mommy works very hard taking care of you."

Daisy pouted and said in a whiny tone: "But when you came to pick me up last time, everyone said you looked like a celebrity. Please say yes, come to the parent-teacher conference tomorrow. After all, we're the real family."

Teresa stood there, her lips turning pale, not moving for a long while.

Today, she came home from overtime work, and her daughter Daisy Smith had insisted on having cake from the east side of town. She had waited in line for two whole hours to buy it.

Turns out, this was just a way to get her out of the house.

All so she could call Anna Campbell.

She looked at Daisy. The 4-year-old girl was growing more and more beautiful, but those clear, bright eyes had never reflected her own image.

Anna was Daisy's private tutor.

Since meeting her, she had been like a thorn stuck in their marriage.

Anna picked up and dropped off Daisy at school, attended kindergarten activities, and had even replaced her at several parent-child sports days...

Daisy's relationship with Anna was getting better and better. The daughter who used to always say she loved her most now seemed like she didn't need her at all.

She forced back her tears and walked in with a smile.

"Daisy."

When Daisy saw her, she immediately hid the phone watch: "Mommy, you're back?"

Teresa put down the cake in her hand and wanted to hug her, but before she could get close, Daisy moved aside.

"Mommy, you're so cold!"

Teresa's heart tightened. She held back and changed the subject: "Tomorrow is the parent-teacher conference. I'll dress up nicely and be there earliest, okay?"

"Huh?" Daisy's little face fell, and she complained: "But I want Anna to go."

Teresa's throat caught, and she couldn't hold back anymore: "But it's not appropriate for her to go to the parent-teacher conference."

"Why not?"

Daisy tilted her little head: "Mommy is so stingy. Daddy already agreed."

Teresa's lips trembled, and she couldn't say another word.

What does a four-year-old know? For her to act this way, someone must have encouraged her.

She pressed her lips together and finally went upstairs without saying anything.

The bedroom was very quiet. Teresa took out her phone. Her chat history with Simon Smith still stopped at yesterday.

Teresa: [Coming home tonight?]

[No.]

[Can we have dinner together tomorrow?]

[We'll see.]

She could feel his coldness even through the screen.

Today was her birthday, but neither of the two people she cared about most remembered.

But after being married this long, she was used to it.

Coldness, silence, impatience—these were Simon's usual attitudes toward her.

After thinking about it, Teresa still called him.

She and he needed to have a good talk.

As soon as the call connected, just as Teresa was about to speak, a gentle voice came from the other end.

"Hello, is this Teresa?"

Anna answered the phone.

Simon and Anna were together.

Teresa gripped her phone: "Where's Simon?"

"Oh, Simon? Simon's in the shower. He had quite a bit to drink with clients today. Is there something you need? I can pass on the message."

The color drained completely from Teresa's face.

She hung up, her fingertips trembling.

After who knows how long, she suddenly laughed. As she laughed, tears came out.

Five years ago, Simon's grandfather, Jasper Smith, arranged for Simon to marry her. She thought that as long as she tried hard enough, Simon would definitely come to like her.

So for this family, she gave up the opportunity to advance her career abroad and was willing to revolve around the household.

When her mother-in-law was sick and hospitalized for over half a year, it was she who attended to her bedside, allowing Simon to focus completely on work.

Every little detail of Daisy's life, from childhood, eating, drinking, everything—which one wasn't handled by her personally?

When Daisy was two and hospitalized with a high fever, she worked during the day and stayed at the hospital at night, going three whole days without proper rest.

She remembered Simon's every preference—shirts had to be ironed without wrinkles, morning coffee at just the right temperature...

She was like a machine that never took a day off.

But what did she get in return?

Daisy's disgust, Simon's indifference. Nothing else.

Was she sad?

Of course, she was sad.

But now she was numb.

Besides accepting it, what choice did she have? Should she give up her family, give up her daughter?

She couldn't do that.

Regarding Daisy's upbringing, she could be more involved in the future.

She numbly put down her phone and mechanically got up to go to Daisy's room.

The nightlight by the bed was on, and Daisy was already asleep.

The children's phone watch on her wrist still had its screen lit, showing a chat page that hadn't been closed.

Teresa walked over to tuck her in and took off the watch to charge it.

But when she saw the group chat interface on the screen, she froze completely.

[Happy Family.]

This was a group of three: Daisy, Simon, and Anna.

She remembered when she wanted to add Daisy's account before, Daisy had pouted and said: "I'm grown up now, you don't need to always monitor me. I need my own privacy too!"

Though she felt disappointed at the time, she still respected Daisy's wishes.

Turns out, this so-called privacy was only meant to exclude her?

Teresa gently scrolled through the screen. There weren't many chat messages, but each one was enough to break her heart.

Daisy: [Anna, I miss you so much. When can we be together forever?]

Anna: [Daisy, don't talk nonsense. The only one who can be with you is your mother.]

Daisy: [But she's so annoying, always asking if I finished my homework, won't let me play on the tablet much, always bossing me around. I don't like her at all.]

[And her cooking tastes bad; she won't let me eat burgers. Anyway, I just hate her. Oh, right, last time I bought you a burger and accidentally dropped it on the ground. I couldn't bear to let you eat it, so I gave it to her instead, and she was actually pretty happy about it.]

Anna: [How dirty, being on the ground. But it's good not to waste food.]

The last chat ended with Simon's [Go to bed early].

But in the conversation with Anna, Daisy left one more message.

[Anna, don't worry, I'll definitely find a way to make her leave this house! You're the one we love most!]

Tears finally fell uncontrollably onto the screen.

Last week, when Daisy suddenly handed her a burger, saying she'd worked hard, she was so moved she nearly cried. So even though her stomach felt uncomfortable, she forced herself to finish it.

She never imagined it was something Daisy had accidentally dropped on the ground and felt too bad to give to Anna, so she gave her the garbage instead...

This was the daughter she had worked so hard to give birth to and raise.

She was strict with her because she had a mischievous personality. She made her nutritious meals every day because she'd had a weak stomach since childhood, and eating too much outside food would make her uncomfortable.

She had invested all her energy in her, and would even choose to endure this marriage for her sake.

But in the end, she became the obstacle to their family of three.

At this moment, Teresa felt like a complete joke.

Five years.

It was time for her to wake up.

Since they all wanted Anna to move in so badly, she would make it happen for them.

Teresa put the watch back by Daisy's pillow and turned to leave.

Back in the master bedroom, she prepared a divorce agreement.

After signing it, she put the divorce agreement in an envelope. Without hesitation, she dragged her suitcase and left the villa.