Being rejected and despised by his own son again hit William hard.

His face twisted in pain as he lowered his voice, "Tommy, I'm your dad. Do you really hate your father this much?"

"You don't deserve to be my dad," Thomas snapped, pulling Hopey away with him.

Seeing her son leave first, Sophia turned to William and advised, "Just leave him alone. He's mature for his age. If you'd just keep your distance from us, he wouldn't hate you this much."

These words cut ...