The Comments Said She’d Replace My Daughter? Not on My Watch Chapter 03

The Comments Said She’d Replace My Daughter? Not on My Watch Chapter 03

My daughter hurried over and helped her up. “Tessa, don’t cry. Stay here with me. If they won’t let you, I’ll leave with you.”

[Our baby really knows how to play the innocent. She’ll get what she wants at any cost.]

[Anyone else think this side-character mom is actually pretty great? Too bad she’s just a pawn in the baby’s story.]…

I wasn’t annoyed by my daughter’s impulsive words.

“Nina, slow down. I never said I wouldn’t help Tessa. She has parents, so legally we can’t adopt her,

but I can fund her education and she can stay at the Hart villa with you.”

My daughter nodded. “I don’t get all this funding stuff. I just know I’ve had Tessa’s back since we

were kids. As long as we’re not separated, I’m good.”

Tessa bit her lip. She was unhappy, but she nodded.

I took my daughter up to the third floor.

“That’s your brother’s room, and this is mine. Yours is right between us.”

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My daughter stood at the door, sizing up the pink princess room. In her dark, edgy outfit, she looked completely out of place.

She muttered that pink was tacky, but her eyes kept darting around, and a small, pleased smile

crept to the corner of her mouth.

Just then, Tessa sighed behind us. “So jealous, Sonny. The room is beautiful, and it’s my favorite

color too.”

My daughter suddenly slapped her thigh. “Oh, right. Tessa, you love pink. Why don’t you take this

room?”

Tessa acted timid. “I couldn’t. Your mom prepared it for you.”

But my daughter draped an arm over her shoulder. “What’s wrong with it? I told you I’d always look out for you. I can live anywhere.”

Marcus snickered. “At least you know yourself. A princess room is for a princess, and Tessa fits it better than you.”

i frowned and shot Marcus a quiet look.

A flicker of smugness passed through Tessa’s eyes. She was about to enter the room when I stopped

her.

“Tessa, if you like pink, I can have a room decorated for you too. But there are only three rooms on this floor, so it wouldn’t be right for you to stay here.”

I turned to my daughter. “Nina, if you don’t like the color, I’ll have them redo it.”

I called to the housekeeper beside me. “Margaret, take Tessa to the second floor later and set up a guest room she likes.”

Tessa’s eyes reddened instantly. “Ma’am, do you want me to live with the servants?”

“Servants?” My tone sharpened. “It’s the twenty-first century, not feudal times. This is an employment relationship, not master and servant.”

Tessa shrank back. “I’m sorry. I chose the wrong word.”

The housekeeper seemed to see right through her. With a smile that didn’t reach her eyes, she said, “Miss Rayne, come with me to the second floor and see your room.”

Tessa wanted to say more, but she had no choice but to follow Margaret downstairs.

My daughter watched Tessa’s retreating figure, a little worried. “Uh, she won’t be bullied, right?”

My heart softened immediately. “Silly girl, Tessa is your guest. You’re the young mistress of the Hart family. No one would dare mistreat her.”

“It’s my fault. I assumed every girl loves pink. Tell me what style and furniture you want, and I’ll

have it ready within days.”

Then something occurred to me. I held her shoulders and looked into her eyes with emphasis.

“Remember, you’re Vivienne Hart’s daughter. No matter what happens, you never have to give away the things you love.”

She looked at me for a long time, as if only then believing I meant it. She nodded.

The Hart family finding its long-lost daughter was big news in Clearwater.

I had planned a welcome-home party for a long time, intending to formally introduce Nina to our

social circle.

When the lights came up at the party, I watched the entrance with hope, expecting my transformed daughter.

But the person who walked in under everyone’s gaze was Tessa Rayne, wearing a haute couture

gown.

She wore the off-white silk gown I had carefully custom-made for my daughter, with flawless makeup and meticulously shaped brows and a perfectly timed smile.

The smile on my face froze.