Growing up, Mia had been used to being criticized and overlooked. Charlie, though she loved Mia dearly, was always consumed by the burdens of life. Exhausted and drained, she simply didn’t have the energy to offer Mia emotional support or encouragement. Ensuring Mia was clothed and fed had already pushed her to her limits.
Later, when Mia married Nick, the Ford family was relentless in their criticism. Nick’s mother looked down on her and found fault in everything she did. No matter how hard Mia tried, it was never enough to win her approval.
Nick’s father was even worse. He barely acknowledged Mia’s existence.
In the five years Mia had been married into the Ford family, none of them had.ever truly accepted her as part of the family.
Living in an environment filled with constant criticism and suppression had shaped Mia into someone overly sensitive and deeply insecure.
+25 BONUS
Chapter 21
However, Zoe’s unreserved praise began to rebuild her confidence, like a ray of sunlight piercing through a sky thick with dark clouds. That warmth shattered the gloom and Illuminated Mia’s world in ways she hadn’t thought possible.
Mia was surprised to realize she wasn’t as unworthy as she had been made to believe.
She discovered she was beautiful. In this new environment, she had admirers–people who treated her with respect instead of tearing her down, as Nick once did. They praised her, calling her graceful and captivating, with a presence that seemed almost ethereal.
She realized she was talented. Her art exhibition garnered widespread praise, and her work resonated with many people.
She learned she was capable. Her cooking impressed everyone who tried it. One of her neighbors, an older gentleman, even asked her to teach him how to make some of her signature dishes.
For so long, Mia had been blind to her own strengths, trapped in a stifling environment that kept her from seeing her worth. But now, she had finally broken free. She was surrounded by people who loved her, people who saw the best in her.
Her art exhibition gained a fair amount of attention locally and was featured in the arts sections of several major international news outlets. But Mia wasn’t concerned. She knew Nick had always dismissed artists, deeming them frivolous and their work overpriced garbage for gullible buyers. He never bothered with art news, so she assumed he wouldn’t see these. reports or learn of her whereabouts.
In fact, she even joked to herself that it wouldn’t matter if he did. Nick was probably already married to Xena by now, far too preoccupied to care about where she was or what she was doing.
But Mia had underestimated just how wrong she was.
