Chapter 252

William was outside playing with Harper and Isaac.

Seeing the smile on Harper's face, William's heart softened.

If only life could always be this simple and happy.

"This candy is really good, you should try it," Harper said, handing one of the caramels to Isaac.

Isaac unwrapped the candy and popped it into his mouth. His eyes lit up immediately. "Wow! This is really delicious."

"If it wasn't good, I wouldn't have recommended it," Harper said, putting a caramel in her own mouth.

She chatted with Isaac while chewing, but suddenly, the candy got stuck in her throat.

A wave of panic hit her.

Harper tried to cough the candy out, but no matter how hard she tried, it wouldn't budge. Her face turned bright red.

William was the first to notice something was wrong.

He quickly picked Harper up, placed one fist above her belly button, and with his other hand, he pressed upward on her stomach.

Finally, the candy dislodged from Harper's throat.

She took deep breaths, gasping for air.

"Harper, are you okay?" William asked urgently. "Does it still hurt?"

Harper shook her head. "I'm okay now, thanks, Dad Cavendish. I was so scared, I thought I wouldn't see Mom again."

William felt a wave of relief.

Luckily, he had been paying attention and wasn't distracted by something else, or it could have ended badly.

Isaac, still too young to fully understand what had happened, looked concerned and confused. "Harper, what happened?"

"She choked on the candy," William explained, setting Harper down.

He looked seriously at the two kids. "From now on, you need to chew your food slowly and don't talk while eating. Mom's almost done with dinner, so let's put these snacks away for now."

He made a mental note to talk to Christina later about not giving the kids candies or jellies unless an adult was around.

"Okay, I understand," Harper nodded.

Isaac obediently put down his snacks.

William played with them for a while longer until Christina called from the kitchen, "Harper, Isaac, go wash your hands. Dinner's ready."

The kids ran off happily.

William followed Christina into the kitchen, picking up a bowl to help serve the rice. He wanted to do something to help her.

But the next second, Christina took the bowl from his hands.

"I don't need your fake kindness," she said coldly. "The only reason I let you in is because Isaac is here. They're good friends, and I didn't want to ruin Harper's day. Other than that, I don't want to see you at all."

William felt a sharp pain in his heart.

Christina really hated him now.

He knew he hadn't done enough.

"Christina..."

"Don't say my name," she interrupted. "Why don't you go find your precious Jennifer instead of disrupting my and Harper's lives?"

"I'm Harper's biological father, Christina. Harper has been with you all these years, she only has a mother's love, not a father's. And we aren't divorced yet. I have a right to be part of her life."

Christina's face darkened at the mention of custody.

Raising Harper alone all these years, she had thought about this. If William ever tried to take custody from her, she would never give in.

Even if it cost her everything, she would never let William take Harper.

"If you're here to fight for custody, let me tell you, as long as I'm alive, Harper is mine," Christina said firmly.

In their past life, William and Jennifer's entanglement had hurt Harper.

She wouldn't let her daughter go through that again.

William knew she misunderstood. "I'm not here to take her away. I just want to help take care of Harper. A mother can't replace a father's role. A child needs a complete family to grow up healthy."

"You don't deserve to talk about a complete family, William. What responsible father acts like you? What have you ever done for Harper?" Christina struggled to keep her anger in check.

She didn't want the kids outside to hear. Adult issues should be handled by adults. She didn't want to involve the children.

Harper just needed to be happy every day.

"And don't tell me you'll make it up to me. I don't need it. Just stay away from me and the kids. That's the best thing you can do. Today, I let you in for Isaac's sake, but this is the last time."

Before Christina could finish, the kitchen door opened.

Harper peeked in, smiling sweetly. "Mommy, we washed our hands. When can we eat?"

"Right now, as soon as I serve the rice," Christina replied gently to her daughter.

William followed her out of the kitchen.

At the dinner table, neither of them mentioned the earlier tension.

Christina used serving chopsticks to give each child a drumstick. "Eat up, and tell me how Mommy's cooking is."

"Dad Cavendish, you have some too," Harper said, standing up to give William a drumstick.

Christina was momentarily stunned.

Harper was still just a child. She didn't understand everything. Children naturally wanted the love of both parents. It was normal.

Compared to other kids, Harper only had her mom. Christina knew she owed her daughter that.

"Mommy, you have a drumstick too. When I choked on the candy earlier, Dad Cavendish saved me," Harper said, giving Christina a drumstick.

Christina tensed up. "How did you choke? Are you still feeling unwell?"

"It's okay. Once I got the candy out, I felt much better. Don't worry, Mommy, I'm fine now," Harper reassured her with a smile.

Harper and Isaac enjoyed their meal, but the two adults barely touched their food.

Christina had no appetite. Her mind was filled with Harper's earlier words.

Harper had almost choked to death on the candy.

If William hadn't been there...

Christina's feelings towards William were complicated. She disliked him, but he had just saved Harper's life. She had to give him some credit for that.