I Rented My Husband Out and Bought My Daughter A Heart Surgery Chapter 07

I Rented My Husband Out and Bought My Daughter A Heart Surgery Chapter 07

“She just came out of surgery,” the doctor said quietly. “It’s best not to correct her right now. Avoid anything that might trigger her.”

I let out a soft, hollow laugh.

I had once told Alistair he didn’t deserve to have Bria.

I never imagined it would come true like this.

I leaned down and brushed a hand over her hair.

“Hey, sweetheart… how about we move somewhere new after you’re discharged?”

I used the visas I had prepared long ago and took Bria to Northvale Ridge, Oregon.

Between the money from the divorce and everything Alistair had paid, we had more than enough.

Enough to live the rest of our lives in peace.

I bought a small house with a yard.

And a car.

It wasn’t the life we used to have.

No staff. No polished routines.

But cooking for ourselves, tending to the garden-there was a quiet kind of happiness in it.

Bria got better.

You could see it day by day.

The language barrier didn’t stop her.

Kids find a way.

Before, she had always kept her distance from children her age.

Now, she laughed easily. Played freely.

For the first time in a long while, I felt like I could breathe.

After we settled in, I enrolled her in a local language school.

I found work too-translation. It didn’t pay much, but earning my own money felt different, better than living off someone else.

The peace didn’t last.

One morning, after I got Bria ready for school and buckled her into the car, I was about to start the

engine-

When I saw him. Standing outside the gate.

Alistair.

My heart slammed hard against my ribs.

But my face stayed calm.

“Stay in the car. I’ll be right back.”

I made sure she nodded before stepping out.

“What are you doing here?”

It had only been a few months.

But he looked thinner.

The tailored suits hung loose on him now.

Dark circles shadowed his eyes.

“Maren… is Bria in the car?”

His voice shook with something close to hope.

“I knew it. I knew she was okay.”

“Let me see her. How is she? Is she recovering?”

I locked the gate. Fast.

“Stay away from my daughter.”

“If you don’t leave, I’m calling the police.”

“Don’t-please don’t.”

He reached through the bars, trying to grab my hand.

“I’ve been looking for you everywhere.”

“I know I was wrong.”

“I’ve had time to think. I know I failed both of you.”

“Just give me a chance to make it right.”

I stepped back, out of reach.

“You’ve already paid.”

“What’s left to make right?”

“If you actually care about us, then leave.”

“No, Maren, please don’t say that.”

He gripped the bars, his voice urgent, almost desperate.

“I’m your husband. I’m Bria’s father.”

“I didn’t do what I should have. I know that.”

“I don’t have feelings for Coraline. We just grew up together-she’s loved me for years.”

“That night before the wedding, I was drunk. I thought she was you.”

“That’s how it happened.”

“She couldn’t bring herself to end the pregnancy, so she married someone else.”

“That man treated her badly. He drank. He hit her and the kid.”

“After he died, she finally told me everything. I always felt responsible for how she turned out.”

He swallowed hard.

“But none of that excuses what I did to you and Bria.”

“So please… just give me one more chance.”

“At least for Bria’s sake.”

“She deserves to grow up with her father.”

Something inside me snapped.

I grabbed a bag of fertilizer from the side and raised it, ready to throw it straight at him-

“Hey, mister… you look familiar.”

A small voice came from behind me.

I froze.

Bria had gotten out of the car.

She stepped closer, tugging lightly at my sleeve.

Then looked at him, puzzled.

“Oh, I remember now.”

“You’re Dexter’s dad, right?”

“What are you doing here?”