The Rise of Betrayed Husband
Copyright© 2026 by Laxu
Chapter 9: Coming Clean With His Daughter
In the past, Ethan would have found his eldest daughter’s lack of respect endearing, a sign that they were as much friends as family. Being friends with your kid narrowed the generation gap and made life together easy and comfortable. But after the paternity results, he saw it differently. She wasn’t his flesh and blood, so of course she would never feel close to him or respect him. Her rebellious streak was really just a sign of how distant she was.
He was about to say something when Dean William Lang called, asking him to come to the hospital to go over the latest news on yesterday’s cholera patient. It gave Ethan an idea: the perfect way to shake off the girls. He agreed, hung up, and turned to his eldest daughter. “I have to go to work at the hospital, so I don’t have time to look after you. Take your little sisters home.”
His eldest found the cheap motel even more disgusting now and didn’t want to stay a second longer. “I didn’t want to come either, but Her Majesty issued a royal decree. If we don’t bring you home, we’re not allowed back either. So, old man, be a decent human being for once and come home with us.”
The second daughter, Jenna, nodded along. “Dad, Natalie’s telling the truth. Mom’s angry. If you don’t go home, the three of us have to stay with you. Wherever you go, we go, and whatever you eat, we eat. As long as you don’t go home, we can’t either! Those were Mom’s exact words, and she looked really serious when she said them. I think she means it!”
The youngest had already kicked off her shoes and was bouncing on the bed. “If we don’t go back, that’s fine. I like Daddy’s place.”
Ethan frowned. This was one of Claire’s dirty tricks—using the girls to tug at his fatherly feelings and make him feel sorry for them.
Fine. Then don’t blame me.
He packed his things, left the two younger girls in the room, and took the eldest down to the front office with him to check out. On the way, he asked, “How did you get here?”
“Mae dropped us off and left. And don’t even think about trying anything! If you don’t come home with us, Her Majesty won’t let us off the hook. Please, just do us a favor and come back.”
“Nat, do you know why I won’t go back?”
“You’ve spent all these years under Her Majesty’s thumb, and now you want to rebel a little. I get it, I get it! Well, you’ve rebelled. We’ve all seen it, and you’ve made your point. Now just accept your fate and come home with us. I already made plans with my friends. If I didn’t have to come get you, I’d be out having fun right now. So stop making trouble for me, or I won’t take your side either.”
“You’re in high school, and you’re almost sixteen. You’re practically an adult, so there are some things you should know. Nat, I’m divorcing your mother. That’s why I’m not going back.”
Natalie was shocked. “What? Divorce? Old man, are you serious? If Mom hears you say that, she’ll tear you to pieces.”
“She knows. She’s known for a while. And not just her—your grandparents know too. The divorce is moving quickly. All your mother has to do is sign, and then she and I will have nothing to do with each other.”
“You’re really getting divorced? Why?”
“Because of you.”
“Me? Hey, old man, if you and Mom are fighting, what does that have to do with me? You can’t just dump all the blame on me ... Wait. Old man, have you been fooling around with other women, and Mom caught you? As controlling as Mom is, she’d never forgive you. That has to be it!”
Natalie jumped straight to that conclusion. Some of her friends and classmates had divorced parents, and it was always because the husband had cheated or done something rotten until everyone was so fed up that divorce was the only option. If her own parents were splitting up, it had to be the same soap-opera story.
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