The Day Our Promise Breaks

Chapter 181

Dahlia's eyes brimmed with tears of joy when Charles told her the date was set for the 26th. Sitting on the sofa, Charles watched as her face lit up with happiness. This was the kind of reaction you'd expect when a long-held dream finally comes true.

He should have felt the same, right? After all, they both had waited so many years for this moment. They had spent years apart and could finally make it official. He was about to fulfill the promise he had made to Dahlia ages ago-to marry her and give Sandy, who had drifted from place to place with her mom, a real home. He promised to cherish and love her for a lifetime. So why was there no joy in his heart? "Daddy, when people ask me who my daddy is, can I now proudly say, 'Charles Jenkins is my daddy?"" Sandy was thrilled. She leaped into Charles' arms, hugging his neck tightly. Her excitement was bubbling over.

"Yeah," Charles replied, though a wave of mixed emotions washed over him. He gently placed Sandy on his knee and asked, "Do kids at preschool really ask stuff like that?"

"Totally! They even brag about their dads picking them up!" Sandy said, her lips forming a playful pout. "Daddy, will you wait for me at the gate like the other dads?"

his status, he always stayed in the car. Dahlia would fetch Sandy, and they'd drive off

course!" he murmured, though his mind was clearly elsewhere. Sandy's words had stirred memories of Charlie. Because of a misunderstanding with Evelyn, he'd harbored a bias against her, leading him to suspect ulterior motives in everything. He had kept his distance, both emotionally and physically, and as a result, he neglected Charlie, the child born from that mistake. He even forbade Charlie from mentioning

"I've got some important stuff to deal with; you and Sandy should get

he immediately called

"No," Aiden replied.

never stopped searching for Charlie. "Increase

and widened the search. It baffled him how

to find that it was filled with pictures of Sandy, not a single one of Charlie. His heart

drove to Evelyn's