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Chapter 40: The Question

مؤلف: Kim castro
last update تاريخ النشر: 2026-03-17 17:14:44

Dinner that night is spaghetti.

Ivy insists on helping, which means there's sauce everywhere and the spaghetti are slightly overcooked. But she's happy. Chattering about school. About how Emma finally admitted she has a crush on Max.

Normal. Beautifully normal.

Until it's not.

We're eating. Ivy twirling pasta on her fork with intense concentration. Lucien asking about her math homework. Me passing garlic bread.

And then Ivy sets down her fork.

"Can I ask you something?"

The way she says it make
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  • The night that ruined my marriage    Chapter 50: Family Therapy

    Dr. Sarah Chen's office smells like lavender and has too many plants.The walls are pale blue. There's a couch that's too soft. Toys in the corner for child patients. A box of tissues on every surface.This is where we're supposed to heal.Lucien, Ivy, and me. Our first family therapy session.Mandated by CPS. Required to show we're "working on family dynamics" and "addressing attachment issues."Dr. Chen is younger than I expected. Thirties. Kind eyes. The look of someone who's heard everything and judges nothing."Welcome," she says. "I'm glad you're here. Who wants to start by telling me why we're all sitting in this room?"Silence. The three of us look at each other.Finally, Ivy raises her hand. "Because the CPS ladies said we have to."Dr. Chen smiles. "That's true. But why do you think they said that?""Because Sera and Daddy had a fight and I got scared.""Scared of what?""That Sera would leave and not come back. Like my mom did." Ivy says it so matter-of-factly. Like it's ob

  • The night that ruined my marriage    Chapter 49: New Beginnings

    The apartment is perfect.One bedroom. Small kitchen. Living room with huge windows that let in morning light. Hardwood floors that creak in all the right places.It's mine.Not Julian's. Not Maribel's. Not borrowed or temporary or conditional.Mine."It's a little small," the realtor says apologetically."It's perfect," I correct."The neighborhood is up and coming. Meaning it's rough around the edges but gentrifying.""I don't need fancy. I need real."She smiles. "Then this is definitely real."I sign the lease that afternoon. Move-in date: two weeks.Maribel helps me pick out furniture. Nothing from the penthouse. Nothing Julian touched. Everything new."You're starting over," she says at IKEA, studying couches."Completely.""How does it feel?""Terrifying. Liberating. Both."We buy a couch. A bed. Kitchen supplies. Towels that are mine. Sheets that have never known Julian's touch.It costs a fraction of what I'm about to receive in the settlement. But it feels extravagant. Choos

  • The night that ruined my marriage    Chapter 48: The Celebration

    Ivy makes a cake.Or tries to. It's lopsided and the frosting is lumpy and there's more icing on the kitchen counter than on the actual cake.But she's beaming. "It's a celebration cake! Because Sera won in court and that means Julian can't be mean anymore!""That's exactly what it means," Lucien says, kissing the top of her head.We're at his apartment. Our first scheduled visit under the new CPS guidelines. Dinner at six. I leave by nine. No overnights. Like we're teenagers with curfews.But we're together. And Julian lost. And I'm free.So we celebrate with lopsided cake and Ivy's infectious joy."Can I lick the bowl?" she asks."Go for it."She takes the mixing bowl to the living room. Lucien and I are alone in the kitchen."Sixty percent," he says. "That's huge.""It's more than I expected. Marcus is already working on liquidating assets. Says I should have money within ninety days.""What will you do with it?""I don't know. Get my own place, probably. Can't live with Maribel fo

  • The night that ruined my marriage    Chapter 47: The Courtroom

    The courtroom is smaller than I expected.Judge Patricia Brennan presides. Fifties. Sharp eyes. The look of someone who's heard every lie and seen every manipulation.Julian sits with his lawyer, Richard Thompson. Expensive suits. Confident smirks. They think they've already won.I sit with Marcus. Lucien beside me. Peter Rodriguez on his other side.A united front. Even if yesterday CPS demoted me to "scheduled visits."Even if I'm still processing how much that hurt."All rise."We stand. Judge Brennan enters. Sits. Studies the files in front of her."This is a hearing regarding the divorce of Julian and Seraphina Ashford. Multiple motions have been filed. Let's start with Mr. Ashford's emergency motion claiming contempt." She looks at me. "Mrs. Ashford, you're accused of violating implied terms of separation by cohabiting with Lucien Crowe and presenting yourself as parent to his minor daughter. How do you respond?"Marcus stands. "Your Honor, there were no terms of separation, imp

  • The night that ruined my marriage    Chapter 46: The Impossible Choice

    The pancakes burn.Not metaphorically. Actually burn. Because I'm distracted, thinking about CPS in three hours, and I forget to flip them.Ivy finds this hilarious. "Sera made charcoal cakes! That's what we should call them!""I'll make new ones," I say."No, I want the charcoal cakes. They're special. Mistake pancakes are the best kind."She eats them with syrup, declaring them delicious. Lucien and Elias exchange a look over her head.We're all pretending. Pretending this is normal. Pretending CPS isn't coming. Pretending our family isn't on trial.At 9:30, Elias takes Ivy to her room. "Let's practice your reading while Daddy and Sera clean up."She goes willingly, not understanding this is strategy. Keeping her calm before the investigators arrive.Lucien and I stand at the sink. Washing dishes in silence."You okay?" he asks."No. You?""No.""Honest. I like it."Peter Rodriguez arrives at 9:45. Suit. Briefcase. Game face."They're coming in fifteen minutes. Final reminders: be h

  • The night that ruined my marriage    Chapter 45: Elias's Confrontation

    The knock comes at 6 AM.I'm already awake. Couldn't sleep. Too much adrenaline. Too much fear about what today brings.CPS at ten. Court tomorrow. Everything on the line.Lucien's still asleep. Ivy too. The apartment quiet except for that insistent knocking.I open the door.Elias. Holding coffee. Looking grim."We need to talk," he says. "Before Lucien wakes up. Before CPS gets here. Just you and me.""Okay." I step into the hallway. Close the door quietly behind me.He hands me a coffee. "You came back.""I did.""Why?""Because I love them. Both of them.""That's not enough." He leans against the wall. "Love doesn't protect Ivy from what's coming. From CPS potentially removing her. From court deciding you're a destabilizing influence. From all of it.""I know that.""Do you? Because yesterday you walked out. You left my brother in pieces. You made a seven-year-old ask where you went. You proved everyone right that you're not stable enough for this."The words hit like punches. "I

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