After I Stopped Loving Him (Isabella and Ethan) novel Chapter 274

“The George family… Mom, what was Dad like to you?” Isabella’s voice was soft, careful. She almost never brought up Dennis in front of her mother. He had died so young, and she knew it was a wound that never really healed.

She knew only the basics. The George family had never treated her or her mother kindly. She was Dennis’s only child, but her grandparents had wanted to sell her just because she was a girl.

“Your father was a wonderful man,” Cynthia said, her eyes distant and full of memories. “He treated me so well. I know I’ve been married to Jackson now for twenty years, but your father still has a place in my heart. If he were still alive, we would have been so happy together.” Maybe they wouldn’t have been rich, but living a simple life, running a little business, just being together—that would have been enough.

Cynthia let out a tired sigh. “All these years, I’ve never even taken you to visit your father’s grave.” She wasn’t cold, just afraid. She was scared that if she brought Isabella back, the George family would try to hurt her again. That fear kept her away from her old village, and she never wanted to know what was going on back there.

“We’ll go next year, Mom. I want to visit Dad’s grave,” Isabella said, her tone gentle but determined. “I’m an adult now. They can’t do anything to me.”

“We could go back during the Labor Day holiday if you want,” Cynthia suggested quietly. “We’ll keep a low profile. They won’t even know we’re there. But Isabella, you’re Mrs. Adams now. We really can’t let them find out. If they do, they’ll show up looking for favors and cause all sorts of problems for you.”

Isabella almost laughed at the idea of having any real status in the Adams family. She couldn’t even get past the front gate of the estate. But she kept that to herself. Cynthia still didn’t know the real reason Ethan had married her, and Isabella wanted to keep it that way.

“I know, Mom. If they ever come looking for us because they think we have money, I won’t even acknowledge them.” Most of her childhood was a blur, but there was one memory she could never forget. She was three, and her grandparents and uncles tried to sell her and her mother. Even now, thinking about it made her chest tight. The only bright spot in that memory was her uncle Zachary, standing in front of them with a big kitchen knife, shouting that if anyone dared to touch them, he’d make sure they regretted it.

“Mom, how’s Uncle Zachary doing now? Maybe we can visit him one day. I haven’t seen him in ages, and I kind of miss him.” Zachary hadn’t been able to make it to her wedding because of his health, and since her life turned upside down, she hadn’t gotten a chance to see him or his family at all.

Just then, there was a knock at the door.

“Come in,” Isabella called.

She expected one of her employees, but when the door opened, it was Ethan. She glanced at the clock without thinking. Already lunchtime.

“Mom, you’re here too!” Ethan’s smile was warm and his greeting was genuinely sweet. “Perfect timing. Why don’t you join us for lunch? I came to pick up Isabella.”