LOGINEmily’s POVThe house was quiet except for the soft sounds of a newborn breathing.Emily sat in the wide armchair near the window, sunlight pouring across the wooden floor and warming the pale blanket wrapped around the tiny bundle in her arms. The countryside outside their home stretched in gentle hills and trees just beginning to turn gold with autumn. It was peaceful in a way the city had never been.She looked down at the baby and smiled.Hope’s tiny hand curled around her finger with surprising strength.“Well,” Emily whispered softly, “you certainly made quite an entrance into the world.”Hope made a small sleepy sound but didn’t wake.Emily laughed quietly.“I promise your life will be calmer than the one I had before you arrived.”Footsteps sounded in the hallway and Sam appeared in the doorway, holding two mugs of tea. His hair was slightly messy and his shirt sleeves were rolled up, looking far more like a new father than the intimidating figure many people still associated
Emily’s POVEmily had never expected happiness to feel this calm.For so long, love had meant tension. It meant wondering what mood David would be in when he walked through the door. It meant carefully choosing words so she wouldn’t provoke a cold silence or a cutting remark. It meant pretending not to notice the way his attention always drifted toward Lily.But with Arlington—Sam, though she still kept that name locked safely in her thoughts—everything felt different.It felt easy.That morning the apartment was quiet except for the sound of coffee brewing. Emily sat at the kitchen table with a notebook open in front of her, though she hadn’t written anything yet. She was staring at the window, lost in thought.“Planning the future?” Sam’s voice asked.She turned to see him leaning against the doorway, sleeves rolled up, tie loosened, hair still slightly damp from the shower.“Maybe,” she said with a small smile.He poured himself coffee and joined her at the table. “Should I be conc
David’s POVThe Neighley mansion had always been impressive, but that evening it felt warm in a way David hadn’t noticed in years. The lights in the main hall glowed softly and the scent of something savory drifted from the dining room. When he stepped through the doorway after a long day at the office, he loosened his tie and exhaled slowly, already feeling the weight of the day begin to lift.“Lily?” he called out.“In here,” her voice replied.David followed the sound and stopped in the dining room doorway. The long formal table that normally seated twenty people had been abandoned in favor of a small table near the windows overlooking the garden. Candles flickered softly between two plates, and a bottle of wine rested in a silver bucket. Lily stood beside the table adjusting the flowers in a small vase, her hair falling in soft waves over a pale blue dress that made her look almost ethereal in the candlelight.He leaned against the doorframe and smiled. “What is all this?”She loo
Emily’s POVEmily stood in front of the bedroom mirror longer than she wanted to admit.The soft lamp light cast warm shadows across the room, but her eyes kept drifting downward to the curve of her stomach. It was still small, still easy to hide under the right clothes, but it was no longer something she could pretend didn’t exist. The fabric of her dress hugged her a little differently now.She turned sideways, studying herself.“Okay,” she muttered quietly. “You’re still cute.”Her reflection looked back skeptically.She had chosen a deep green wrap dress that adjusted gently around her waist. It flowed rather than clung, flattering without trying too hard. The neckline framed her collarbone, and she’d left her hair down in soft waves that brushed her shoulders. Simple gold earrings completed the look.Emily ran her hands down the sides of the dress.“I want to look beautiful tonight,” she whispered to herself.Not perfect. Not flawless. Just beautiful.A knock came from the living
Arlington’s POVThe apartment was quiet when Sam pushed the door open.He paused just inside the entryway, listening to the soft hum of the refrigerator and the faint city noise leaking through the windows. The place smelled like coffee and the citrus cleaner Adam liked to use on the counters. It felt strangely domestic for three people who had been thrown together by circumstance more than planning.Adam was at the hospital, working the late shift.That meant Emily was here alone.Sam loosened his tie as he walked further inside, shrugging off his jacket and hanging it by the door. The tension from the meeting with Lily still lingered in his shoulders like a storm he hadn’t fully shaken.He hated trusting her.But if she actually stepped back the way she promised, it might give Emily the breathing room she needed.And if she didn’t… well, that was a problem Sam knew how to solve.He heard movement in the kitchen.Emily stood by the counter, one hand resting on the small of her back,
Arlington’s POVThe café smelled like burnt sugar and coffee grounds.Sam Black arrived twenty minutes early.He always did.The place looked like any other quiet neighborhood café, brick walls, soft music, mismatched tables that suggested charming authenticity. To anyone else it was forgettable. To Sam it was infrastructure.His family owned the building, the neighboring laundromat, and the storage warehouse across the alley. The café itself barely turned a profit. That wasn’t the point.It was safe.He took the corner table facing the door and watched the street through the reflection in the window.Lily McCutchen arrived precisely on time.She walked in like she belonged everywhere she stepped, sunglasses still on even though the café lighting was dim. Her gaze found him immediately. She slid into the seat across from him without greeting.“You look different when someone calls you Sam Black,” she said lightly.Sam didn’t smile.“You’re early,” he said instead.“Curious,” Lily repl
Alice’s POVThe next morning, after the dinner fiasco, I had one more ultrasound and some analysis done on my urine. The doctor returned after breakfast with results and good news.“Well, everything looks in order, no issues with the fetus, or mommy, so I think we can discharge you today,” he smile
Alice’s POVWhen I got back to my building, I greeted Jarod before going upstairs to my floor. Unfortunately, when I got off the elevator, and turned the corner to my apartment, I was brought face-to-face with Lily, who was managing the movers who were clearly moving her things into David’s apartme
Alice’s POVThe apartment was beautiful, with simple gray tones accented with warm yellows and soothing greens. The large couch, armchair, and coffee table took center stage in the living room, where the electric fireplace stood underneath the new flat screen television. The building manager had ev
Alice’s POVHowever, when I got to my apartment that next morning, I was surprised to see movers carrying furniture and boxes into the building still. However, it wasn’t the company that I hired.“Ah, Alice, I was wondering when you’d get here,” Arlington said, coming out of the building. The doorm







