Chapter 3

The next morning, I dropped Stella off at my mother's place.

Before heading to the law firm, my mother-in-law, Mary called.

Mary had heard about the incident in airport.

"Nathan's always been loyal. That's not a bad thing."

I glanced at the time.

"Mary, I have somewhere to be."

She didn't let it go. Her tone turned even more serious.

"He owes Sophie's family his life. Would you rather he be an ungrateful man?"

I had heard variations of this story for years.

Sophie lost her job, so of course he had to step in.

She went through a breakup, so of course he had to help.

Now that she was divorcing, he believed he had even more reason to step in.

As long as his wife and daughter didn't make a fuss, their hurt simply didn't count.

"I've never stopped him from repaying that debt."

Mary shot back, "Then why did you take Stella and leave the airport?"

"Because I don't accept him sharing a room with Sophie."

The line went quiet.

After a moment, her voice dropped. "They grew up together. If anything were ever going to happen between them, do you think he'd have married you?"

It sounded like she was defending me.

But in the end, she was still asking me to accept that there were no boundaries between them.

"Whether it's my place or not, it's not yours to decide."

I hung up.

My attorney, Daniel Lawson, listened to everything before asking three questions.

Did I have a steady income?

Who was Stella's primary caregiver?

Had Nathan ever behaved in a way that could make him unfit for custody?

For years, I had illustrated children's books and even designed a family activity guide for the city planetarium.

The income was modest, but I'd never completely given up my career.

Since Stella was born, I'd handled every doctor's appointment and every school drop-off and pickup.

I scheduled her activities, and whenever she got sick, I was almost always the one taking care of her.

"You have a strong case for primary custody."

Daniel closed his notes and continued, "But if he contests custody, things would be difficult for you."

"I understand."

"Alright."

As I left the law firm, an alert from our smart lock flashed on my phone.

Someone had opened the front door of our apartment.

I opened the video doorbell app.

Sophie stood in our entryway with a suitcase in tow.

By the time I got home, Nathan was pushing a second suitcase through the door.

They were still in the clothes they'd worn to the airport. They had clearly just landed.

When Nathan saw me, he spoke first, "I changed our flight tickets."

My gaze settled on his face. "Why?"

Nathan rubbed the bridge of his nose, exhaustion in his voice.

"Didn't you want me to come back and talk things through last night?"

He sounded as though cutting the trip short was already a concession he'd made for me.

Sophie stood off to the side and said softly, "Nathan was worried you'd be home alone overthinking things, so he came back early with me."

I shot her a cold look.

"Then what are you doing in my house?"

Sophie dropped her gaze immediately and explained, "I-I just didn't want Nathan coming back alone."

I laughed.

"This is his home. What's there to worry about?"

She paled, at a loss for words.

Nathan stepped forward, blocking my line of sight.

"Don't take it out on her. Sophie just got divorced, and she's barely holding it together. I couldn't just leave her alone so far from home."

I looked at Sophie, still hiding behind him.

"Then take her to her parents' house."

Sophie tightened her grip on the suitcase handle and said quietly, "My parents aren't well. I don't want them to worry."

"Then let her stay in a hotel."

"Her ex-husband's been looking for her," Nathan cut in. "A hotel isn't safe."

I looked at him. I already knew the answer.

"So what then?"

Nathan paused before he said, "She'll stay here for now."

The living room fell silent.

I stared at him, my gaze turning colder. "Say that again."

Nathan frowned, sounding as though nothing was wrong.

"Just for a few days. She'll be in the guest room. It won't affect you."

"You bring another woman into our home and tell me it won't affect us?"

Nathan's patience finally snapped.

"Zara, do you have to make it sound so bad? She's in trouble. I'm just giving her somewhere safe to stay. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?"

So once again, I was the one causing trouble?

I looked at Nathan, who was shielding Sophie, then at the two suitcases standing side by side in the entryway. The last thread of hope inside me snapped.

But that was fine.

None of it mattered to me anymore.