Lu Jianjun reminded himself, she was bound to leave eventually—it was the only logical outcome. Just as his path inevitably led to marriage, her path would take her away from his domain, free to pursue her own aspirations. His mind circled around the facts, trying to shield himself from the sting of losing her presence. After all, she wasn't truly Little Tiger's birth mother anymore, so why would she stay? What claim did she have on his son, and what obligation could she possibly feel to towards the child? None!
A flicker of bitterness crept in at that thought. If not for this forced alteration… He let the notion drift, unspoken, but it thrummed beneath the surface, an uncomfortable reminder that she owed them nothing—especially since the originalLi Na, the child's real mother, had never bothered to fulfill her role. If the woman who gave birth to Little Tiger chose not to put him first, why would any other woman—no matter how kind or nurturing—shackle her own life to his?
