Mark rushed through the double doorways after hearing his daughter’s sudden desperate screams.
His heart dropped into his stomach as he saw the terrible scene unfolding live.
Lily was covered in ruined cake frosting, weeping hysterically while shaking beside the table.
Brenda was standing over her with a cold, haughty expression on her face.
Mark dropped to his knees instantly, pulling his crying daughter into a tight embrace.
Mark: Daddy’s here, sweetie!
Lily: She pushed me into the cake!
Mark wiped the thick frosting away from his daughter’s eyes with his silk handkerchief.
His hands trembled with extreme shock and overwhelming anger as he comforting her.
He held Lily securely against his chest, feeling her tiny body shivering continuously.
Mark stood up slowly, turning his full gaze directly toward his stunned fiancée.
His eyes were wide with intense fury as he glared at Brenda’s pale face.
Mark: You hurt my daughter!
Brenda: It was only a simple harmless joke, Mark.
Brenda tried to play off the incident, putting on a faint, careless smirk.
She had not realized Mark was standing right outside the dining room door.
Even now, she thought her beauty and charm could easily resolve the whole situation.
She stepped forward, attempting to touch Mark’s arm to calm his obvious anger.
Mark reacted instantly, stepping up and grabbing Brenda firmly by her white dress shoulders.
He pushed her backward with powerful momentum away from his frightened sobbing daughter.
Brenda stumbled hard against the long dessert table, shattering ceramic serving plates violently.
The tall three-tiered birthday cake collapsed onto the floor in a sticky mess.
Brenda gasped in utter shock as she bumped against the heavy wooden table edge.
She looked up at Mark, realizing for the first time that she had crossed.
The warm, gentle man she had manipulated was completely gone in this moment.
In his place stood a fierce father ready to protect his only child.
Mark: Don’t ever touch her again!
Brenda clutched her bruised wrist, her cool posture completely shattering under his furious stare.
She looked around the grand room, now ruined with broken glass and crushed cake.
The sudden turn of events left her completely speechless and deeply terrified now.
Mark stood like an unyielding wall between his crying daughter and his fiancée.
He had seen Brenda’s true character, and there was no turning back anymore.