Chapter 94 Birthday Celebration

"Did I say something wrong? Everyone knows you love Kate!" Dora argued.

Anna glimpsed Joseph; she felt jealous when she saw he was focused on Kate.

"Kate!" Cassie called out.

Kate looked towards the direction where the voice came and saw Cassie in a red dress standing at the door. She smiled and said, "Hi, Mom!"

Cassie was quite pleased to hear her call her mom. She wrapped her arms tightly around Kate, as Anna stood by watching, "Oh, my dear. I missed you so much!"

Anna saw the glare in Cassie's eyes and immediately knew she was trying to aggravate her. Anna clenched her fists and told herself that one day Cassie would regret treating her the way she did.

Dora also kept her anger to herself and said, "Mrs. Smith, Joseph, and Kate are not a couple now. I think it is not suitable for her to address you, mom."

Cassie's smile disappeared when she turned to Cassie, "I don't care if she and Joseph are divorced or not. In my eyes, she is still my daughter and is allowed to call me mom. It is none of your business. You are nothing by a slut who climbs into the bed of married men, and you have taught your daughter to do the same!"

Dora was embarrassed by Cassie's insults and was infuriated that she was so cruel in front of their children, "I was polite with you, but you are trying to shame me. Since you are the one who mentioned my daughter climbed into your son's bed, I would like to ask you, will Anna have a chance with Joseph?"

"Don't speak so loud, Mom," Anna was pleased that her mother finally said something in public, but she had to look as if she was upset. After all, she wanted everyone to talk about her and Joseph being together.

"I didn't want to ruin this happy day, Vincent's birthday. However, Cassie started this…"

"Enough!" Cassie interrupted. She knew that Dora and Anna were only there to cause trouble and ruin the party; she was not going to be fooled by them.

"I don't want to talk about the immoral things you have done. I only want to warn you that if you cause trouble at my father's party, you will not leave here without being punished," Cassie smiled. She was a rational person and knew it was not the time or place to have that conversation.

Cassie grabbed Kate's hand and said in a friendly voice, "Kate, this is your home, forever! Please know that you are always welcome!"

"Thank you, Mom...Mrs. Smith." Kate called Cassie mom without thinking, but then quickly remembered what Dora had said.

Cassie patted her hand and told her, "Call me Mom."

"Thank you again, Mom!" Kate smiled.

Dora also walked into the house holding her daughter's hand and rolled her eyes at Kate when they walked by.

She was surprised, she looked at him and then lowered her head. Her eyes were focused on his coat; it reminded her of when she met him in college. He was 6-feet tall and often wore a long coat. He was undoubtedly the most attractive man in the school, and since then, he only became more handsome. Kate thought the world revolved around him, but he hurt her, and her world gradually collapsed.

"What's wrong with you?" Joseph waved his hands in front of her face.

Kate snapped back to reality and avoided eye contact with Joseph so he would not see how hurt she was.

"If you think it too noisy in here, you can go out to the back yard. Noelle is here somewhere; she would probably join you."

"She is here?" Kate had not seen Noelle for a long time. They had met at her eighteenth birthday party and been close since.

"Yes, she called and asked about you the other day," Joseph smiled.

"I'll go see if I can find her. Thank you for letting me know," Kate replied.

Kate was surprised that they had been so calm with each other. She began to wonder why Joseph was speaking so kindly.

"Mm…I was accustomed to calling you mother, Mom; it will take some time to stop calling her that. I hope you don't mind. I will be more careful next time," Kate quickly explained.

Joseph was confused because Cassie told her that she was still her daughter, "Who told you not to call her Mom? Who said that I mind?"

"You…I…" Kate did not know what to say.

"We got a divorce, so I should change how I address her. I don't want to cause trouble."

"My mother asked you to call her as you did before," Joseph said decisively and then walked away. He was not angry with how Kate spoke to Cassie; he assumed that she was trying to disconnect from him and his family.

Kate watched Joseph until he was out of sight. She was confused, but there was nothing she could do; they were divorced. She walked into the house with her gift; Vincent was in the middle of the living room, accepting gifts and hugs from the guests. Again, Kate wanted to go unnoticed, so she planned to be one of the last ones to speak with him. However, Gina saw her, "Kate, you were just discharged from the hospital and are still weak. How about you come up first and then rest?"

Though Gina appeared to be respectful and modest in public, she was two-faced. She knew that Kate and Joseph were divorced, but she acted as if she didn't know. She wanted to cause trouble and make the evening unpleasant for everyone, including Vincent. After all, Vincent wanted a great-grandchild, but the hope was gone when Kate had a miscarriage.

Joseph heard what Gina said, and he was not happy. He watched Kate walk toward Vincent.

Kate hugged Vincent and kissed him on the cheek, "Grandpa, I hope you stay in good health, and every day is a blessing."