Chapter 3

Theodore never made it back before the party ended.

I saw the guests off, took Lucia home, and started packing.

My phone chimed with a message from Brynn.

In the video, Theodore was playing games with Amy.

Theodore was a neat freak. Once, Lucia got just a little red ink on his shirt, and he couldn't stand it. He took the shirt off and threw it in the trash.

After that, my sweet, thoughtful girl never brought her paintbrushes into his office again.

Now he was letting Amy cover his face in paint.

At the end of the video, Brynn turned the camera on herself.

The pigeon blood ruby earrings she wore looked familiar.

The earrings were beautifully crafted, a one-of-a-kind pair by a famous French designer. They were worth a fortune.

I loved them, and I'd mentioned them to Theodore a few times.

Theodore had told me a wealthy businessman had bought them at auction and he couldn't track them down.

Yet here they were, dangling from Brynn's ears.

Brynn stroked the earrings and smiled. "All I did was say they were pretty, and Theodore bought them for me. He's just as gentle and thoughtful as his brother was."

Before, I would have stormed over and demanded to know why Theodore had lied to me.

Now Brynn's gloating just seemed absurd.

Some people aren't worth the effort.

Theodore came home late with a beautiful gift box. Inside was the collectible figure Lucia had recently become obsessed with.

Lucia knew her dad was busy, so she rarely told him what she liked. She hadn't expected him to know.

Lucia's eyes lit up with surprise.

Theodore stepped forward and picked her up. "Happy birthday, my princess."

He turned to me. "I'm sorry. Amy is my brother's only child. If anything happened to her, Brynn would fall apart. I'm just helping look after her."

When I said nothing, he stroked Lucia's hair. "I promised to take Lucia to the amusement park last time, but we never went. Tomorrow, we'll all go together.

"I promise. Nothing will get in the way this time."

I was still hesitating when Lucia grabbed the hem of my shirt. "Mommy, I want to go!"

I couldn't bear to let her down, so I nodded. "Okay."

Lucia happily carried her new toy to her room. The moment her door closed, Theodore wrapped his arms around me from behind.

His voice was gentle, but there was a probing edge to it. "Lucia's been pulling away from me lately..."

My heart tightened.

Then Theodore leaned down, kissed the corner of my mouth, and whispered, "Delia, I know I've neglected you and our daughter because of Brynn and Amy. I'll make it up to you."

He held me so close I could hear his heartbeat. "I'll settle Brynn and her daughter somewhere else as soon as I can. Then I'll give you and Lucia all my attention."

For a moment, warmth reached the part of my heart I'd shut away from him.

My resolve to leave wavered. His tenderness and patience reminded me of how things used to be.

In church, he'd sworn on his life that he'd always love me, take care of me, and put me first.

In the delivery room, he'd gazed at our tiny baby, so happy his eyes welled up. He'd kissed away my tears and thanked me for giving him a little princess.

We were so happy back then.

If he kept his promise tomorrow and let nothing interrupt our time together, I'd tell him the truth and give him a chance to start over.