I Forgot I Ever Loved You (Zoe and Hayden) novel Chapter 204

The moment the words left Lily's mouth, a collective gasp ripped through the crowd of parents.

A few kids even started clapping for her.

Many of the students knew Lily had a father, but he had never once set foot on campus.

So it turned out her dad was busy playing house with another child.

A little boy nestled in his parents' arms, sitting right next to Hayden and Sienna, looked up innocently.

"Does Lily's dad have a mistress?"

Sienna heard it, the blood draining completely from her face.

Whispers of shock rippled through the audience.

Hayden's eyes were utterly detached, his expression an unreadable mask.

Oblivious to the tension, Holden actually pointed and laughed at Lily.

Then he looked up at Hayden.

"Dad, she's cursing at you."

Immediately, every parent and student who heard Holden's loud remark snapped their heads toward their section.

Sienna turned ghostly white.

"I'm not—"

She desperately wanted to defend herself, but who could she even address?

Under the crushing weight of those suspicious, judging eyes, Sienna felt her confidence shatter for the first time.

If it came out right now that Zoe was the legitimate Mrs. Thorne, the entire tidal wave of public opinion would crash down on her.

Worse, someone might dig up the fact that she had bought fake accounts to launch the online smear campaign against Zoe.

She had been the mastermind behind the narrative that Zoe had drugged Hayden five years ago. But that move had horribly backfired—the scandal stayed trending for weeks and inadvertently accelerated Zoe's marriage into the Thorne family, while Sienna herself had been dumped.

She had witnessed firsthand how the court of public opinion could utterly destroy a woman's life.

A cold panic seized her. She didn't dare think about the consequences.

Under the intense scrutiny of the crowd, Hayden stood up.

Sienna sat frozen in terror, her mind a blank void.

"We're leaving."

He grabbed Holden's hand. The awards ceremony wasn't even over. With his towering height, striking looks, and high-profile status, every single eye was locked onto him, Sienna, and Holden.

Sienna felt a wave of relief just as she was on the verge of fainting.

The crowd seemed to piece something together, though no one dared to say it out loud.

"That's Mr. Thorne, and that has to be Sienna. I didn't know their kid went here."

They had swept the games and were just about to be crowned the ultimate Best Family.

Standing on that stage, everyone would have looked at them and seen a perfect, flawless unit.

And Zoe had ruined it all.

Zoe had zero desire to engage with Hayden, but she couldn't bite her tongue.

"Likewise. At least I don't teach my daughter that promises are meaningless."

It was a direct hit at his betrayal.

If he had known he couldn't come, why had he given them hope in the first place?

She and Lily could have easily just pretended he was dead.

Hayden scoffed coldly. "When exactly did I promise you anything? Stop living in a fantasy world. Or..."

He paused, his eyes narrowing. "Maybe you should consider Garrett."

With that, he walked away and never looked back.

Zoe stood there, utterly bewildered.

Why the hell did he suddenly bring up Garrett? What did Garrett have to do with anything?

Up on the stage, the teacher smiled awkwardly, coaxing Lily down now that she had finished her speech.