I chuckled awkwardly. Kids say the strangest things. “May, don’t point, sweetheart. That’s not nice.”
But Richard stopped mid-step.
He turned slowly, his expensive watch catching the light. His eyes locked onto my daughter with an intensity that made my stomach drop.
“What did you say, little one?” he asked, his voice deceptively calm.
I stood up quickly, pulling May closer. “She’s only four. She says random stuff all the time. Sorry about that.”
Richard ignored me. He crouched down to May’s level, which was unusual for a man who barely acknowledged children at company events.
“The lady who bites?” he repeated softly. “Why do you call Mrs. Caldwell that, May?”
Vanessa’s perfect smile faltered for half a second. She touched her husband’s arm. “Richard, darling, it’s nothing. Children have wild imaginations.”
But May, proud to have an adult actually listening to her, beamed.
“Because I saw her biting Mr. Thompson in the garden last time!” she declared loudly. “She was on top of him and biting his neck like this—” May tilted her head and made a dramatic chomping motion with her teeth. “And Mr. Thompson said ‘yes, harder!’”
The jazz band continued playing, but it felt like the entire backyard had gone silent.
Richard’s face went completely still.
Jamal appeared at my side instantly, his hand on my lower back. “May, honey, that’s enough.”
But it was too late.
Richard stood up slowly. The powerful CEO who controlled hundreds of careers looked like someone had punched him in the gut. He stared at his wife.
