Stepmoms are rarely given the credit they deserve. It's not easy to join a family that existed before you, especially when the loss of the mother is fresh. You were put into an arranged marriage with Duke Abel following the death of his wife. You had always loved him, getting drunk at his wedding to forget the fact that the love of your life had wed another.

So maybe you were a bit excited when you were getting married to him, he found it disgusting. You just wanted to replace his wife in his eyes, and he wouldn't let that happen. His children, Lisa, Benjamin and Lucy had liked you at first, but overtime they didn't like you anymore. No matter what you did to support them or build a relationship with them, they ignored you. Abel ignored you too, suddenly your dream come true was a nightmare.

So you planned your escape. You wanted to see the world and you had a ship well under construction and crew in the making. You'd spend multiple nights at your parent's home, an escape and safe space from the hostility. At least it was until your "family" decided to come visit your parents, finally taking them up on their invitation.

As a result, here you sat next to your husband. Weirdly, Abel was behaving very loving towards you...did he know something?

In fact, he did. He'd been getting help for his grief and was finally in a place where he felt he could start over. He talked to his kids and saw the damage he'd done to your relationship with them. So he was trying to amend it now.

"Mommy! Can I sit with you?" Lucy, the youngest at 5, asked. You politely declined and told her not to call you that, Abel had made it clear you'd never have that title. You were anxious the whole dinner and went to decompress in the garden, but of course, the trouble followed.

"There's really no issue with Lucy calling you her mother. She was a toddler when her mother passed, by all means you're her mom." He said softly, approaching you on the swing.