Chapter 2
Once the IV treatment was finished and Sophie's fever came down, I took her home and left her with Mrs. Walker, our downstairs neighbor.
She was retired, and her grown children worked during the day. Sometimes she helped me out by watching Sophie.
I had to get back to the office that afternoon.
When I finally had a spare minute, I saw Claire's new Instagram post.
In the photo, Ethan held Zack on one arm while Claire leaned her head against his shoulder. All three of them were beaming at the camera.
The caption read:
“Happiness really is this simple.”
I stared at it for a long time. It hurt more than I wanted to admit.
I remembered the last open house for Sophie's class.
She'd asked Ethan to come. He'd said he was busy that day and couldn't make it.
Besides, he'd told her, it was only an open house. Mommy could go.
Sophie had been terribly disappointed, but she'd tried to understand.
Yet somehow, when it was Zack's class, Ethan could find the time.
Of course he could.
That evening, I picked up Sophie after work and brought her home.
The rich smell of seafood hit us as soon as I opened the door.
Ethan, Claire, and Zack were eating at the dining table.
A huge spread of king crab and a platter of shrimp sat in the center, surrounded by other dishes.
Sophie had felt miserable all day. She tugged at my shirt and whispered, “Mommy, I'm hungry.”
Ethan stopped serving food and started to get up.
Claire immediately set down her fork and smiled at me.
“Sarah, aren't you and Ethan keeping your expenses separate right now?”
“I didn't know what you'd want, so I didn't make anything for you or Sophie.”
Ethan hesitated. He seemed to remember the punishment he'd imposed on me.
Without another word, he sat back down and went on peeling shrimp for Zack.
I didn't look at any of them. I took Sophie's hand and went straight to the kitchen.
I heated some broth and made her a bowl of chicken noodle soup with an egg stirred in.
She sat at the little kitchen table, eating and stealing looks at the crab in the dining room.
Her eyes filled.
“Mommy, why doesn't Daddy pay attention to me anymore?”
I brushed a hand over her still-warm forehead.
“It's not that, honey. Eat your soup.”
When she finished, I went to run her bath.
A heavy thump came from the living room, followed by Sophie's scream.
I ran out.
Zack had thrown her favorite doll on the floor and was stomping on it.
One of its arms had already snapped off.
Sophie rushed at him, crying, and shoved him away.
He landed on his bottom and immediately started howling.
Ethan strode over, scowling. He lifted Zack into his arms and picked up the broken doll.
“Sophie, why did you push your cousin? Apologize.”
I pulled her close, but she was sobbing so hard she could barely speak. She pointed at the doll.
“Daddy, you bought that for me! He broke it!”
“I said he couldn't play with it, and he grabbed it anyway! Then he stepped on it! He did something bad. I didn't!”
Ethan's expression hardened.
“All this over a toy? I'll buy you another one tomorrow.”
“Say you're sorry to your cousin. Be a good girl, or Daddy won't like you anymore.”
Sophie lifted her tear-soaked face.
“I didn't do anything wrong!”
“I'm not saying sorry!”
Ethan's eyes went cold. He raised the doll and hurled it against the floor.
It shattered.
“Then you don't get to play with it, either.”
Sophie flinched all over and buried herself against me, screaming and crying.
Claire hurried over to take Zack. Her eyes reddened as though she might cry, too.
“Don't blame Sophie, Ethan. This is our fault.”
“It's just me and my little boy now. I know some people don't want us here.”
I looked straight at her.
“If you know you're not wanted, pack your things and leave.”
“This is my home.”
I didn't soften my stare.
“Sarah!”
Ethan stepped in front of Claire, frowning at me.
“You don't get to say that.”
“It's my house. I paid for it.”
“They aren't the ones who should leave.”
I stared at the man I'd been married to for five years.
“So I should?”
He went still. Apparently, he heard what he'd said.
He looked away.
“That's not what I meant.”
I stopped listening. I carried my still-sobbing daughter into our bedroom and locked the door.
We were getting divorced anyway. My name wasn't on this house.
Ethan had bought it before we married.
After I soothed Sophie to sleep, I took out my phone and searched nearby rental listings.
A little later, a key turned in the lock from the other side.
Ethan came in and glanced at the bed.
“Is she asleep?”
I kept looking at my phone.
He came closer, impatience creeping into his voice.
“Sarah, can you stop making a scene?”
“It was a little thing. A doll. Sophie's getting so selfish she can't even share.”
“And where do you think she learned that?”
Then he softened his tone.
“I know it's been hard on you lately.”
“Just admit you were wrong and promise to stop giving Claire a hard time. I'll give you the household money every month like before.”
“You won't have to wear yourself out at work. You can stay home and look after Sophie properly.”
“Wouldn't that be better?”
He wanted an apology.
Unbelievable.
I looked up at him, then opened our messages and sent him a screenshot of Sophie's medical bill from that morning.
“My share of the bill came to ninety-six dollars.”
“You owe me forty-eight.”
His face darkened at once.
For several seconds, he just stared at me.
“Do you have to be this stubborn?”
“All you have to do is admit you were wrong and treat Claire decently. Is that really so hard?”
“Besides, they're only staying temporarily. My brother hasn't been gone that long. Mom asked me to look after them. He's dead, Sarah. I'm the boy's uncle. Why do you keep turning that into something ugly?”
I was the one making it ugly?
He'd transferred tens of thousands of dollars to Claire.
He'd taken charge of her entire life, even giving her a job as his assistant.
He'd moved her into our home.
He'd cut off my money for her sake.
And somehow I was imagining things.
When I didn't answer, he gave a cold laugh and nodded.
He took out his phone and sent me forty-eight dollars.
Then he looked at me without a trace of warmth.
“If you're determined to make your life hard, go ahead.”
I looked at the payment, put my phone away, and closed my eyes.
