Chapter 1

"When did you start going through my phone?"

Dylan snatched it from my hand, locked the screen. His tone wasn't harsh exactly, but it carried the displeasure of someone whose boundaries had been crossed.

I stared at his knuckles, white around the phone.

Five years of marriage, and he'd never once locked his screen in front of me.

"I wasn't going through it. Lily wanted to watch cartoons, and I opened the cloud album."

"What's in that encrypted folder?"

"Didn't I just tell you?" He shoved the phone into his pocket, walked to the kitchen, and poured himself a glass of water. "Rosie's growth photos. The director at the children's home sends them every month."

"I thought they were taking up too much space on your phone, so I backed them up to my cloud."

"And encrypted them?"

"There are photos of someone else's kid in there. What if the phone got lost? Basic privacy, don't you think?"

"Then let me ask you—how old is Rosie now?"

"Two and a half, I guess? You'd know better than me. You're the sponsor."

He stood with his back to me, drinking water, his tone so casual it almost didn't sound like a lie.

But I knew Dylan too well.

He was a regional manager at Sterling Realty, and ten years in sales had given him a tongue that never slipped.

The calmer he sounded, the more he had to hide.

"Then why is every single photo geotagged to the apartment complex next to your office?"

His hand holding the glass paused. Just for a second.

Then he turned around, brow furrowed, wearing an expression of pure disbelief. "You checked the geotags? Claire, are you interrogating a prisoner?"

"I didn't want to check, but the location data was right there. I didn't put it there."

"Then ask the director. She took the photos—how would I know where she was?"

"Fine. Give me the director's number right now. I'll ask her myself."

Dylan finished the last sip, set down the glass, and walked over to me.

He placed both hands on my shoulders, looked down at me, and his tone shifted from impatient to tender. "Honey, have you been under too much stress at work lately?"

"I just saved some photos for you, and you're acting like I committed a crime."

"If it really bothers you, I'll delete the folder tomorrow. Happy?"

No.

He wanted to erase every trace and move on as if nothing happened.

I knew this move all too well.

Years ago, when I'd caught him pocketing a client's kickback, he'd used the exact same tone.

First deny. Then deflect with a question. Then soothe with tenderness.

A three-hit combo that used to drain every ounce of fight from me.

But this was different.

A kickback, I could pretend I never saw.

A child of unknown origin—I couldn't look away.

"Why would you delete them? Photos from the children's home director aren't anything to hide." I smiled, reached out, and straightened his shirt collar. "I'm just curious what Rosie looks like now. Let me see?"

His Adam's apple bobbed.

"I already closed it. Can't remember the password right now."

"You remember our anniversary every year, but you can't remember the password to an encrypted folder?"

Dylan stepped back half a pace. My hand slipped from his collar.

He started rubbing his temples. "What's gotten into you today?"

"I want to see what Rosie looks like. Is that so wrong?"

The living room went silent for three seconds.

He pulled out his phone, unlocked it, opened the cloud album, and entered the password.

The moment the folder opened, I saw everything clearly.

Photo after photo of a little girl—from a wrinkled newborn to a toddler pulling herself up on a couch.

Pink onesies. Floral bibs. The corner of a gray fabric sofa visible in the background.

I'd seen that sofa somewhere before.

It was right on his colleague Derek Holloway's Instagram—his housewarming post.

The caption: Happy housewarming.

Location: Maple Ridge Apartments.

Exactly matching the geotags.

"Cute," I said.

I set the phone down and didn't press further.

Dylan let out a long breath, pulled me into a hug. "See? Stop overthinking. Tomorrow's Saturday—let's take Lily to the amusement park."

I leaned against his chest, catching the faint trace of cigarette smoke on his shirt.

He'd quit smoking three years ago.

When had he started again?