Stacey’s POV:
It had been a long day.
The kind of day that wrapped itself around your shoulders like a weighted blanket. Endless emails, back-to-back lectures, and the constant juggling of motherhood and secrecy. By the time I stepped into the house, the smell of lavender bath soap lingered in the hallway; Chloe must've bathed Tessa already.
“Hey,” she called from the kitchen. “She’s busy in her room with coloring books.”
I dropped my bag with a sigh and kicked off my shoes. My feet throbbed.
“You’re a miracle,” I murmured.
She grinned. “You say that every Thursday and Friday and every time.”
“Because it’s true.”
I went to see Tessa. She sat on the rug with all the seriousness she could muster while coloring what seems to be an animal of some sort.
“Mommy!" She shrieked when she s
