"Mommy, why are you sad?" Lily's small voice broke through the heavy fog of my thoughts.
"I'm not sad, sweetheart," I lied, brushing a hand through her soft curls. My voice wavered, and I knew she wasn't fooled.
Her big brown eyes narrowed. "You look like when I lost Mr. Fluffy."
I forced a smile, though it felt brittle. "I'm just thinking about grown-up things, Lily. Nothing for you to worry about."
Lily tilted her head. "Does Mr. Gabriel make you sad?"
Her innocent question hit me like a punch to the gut. I opened my mouth to deny it, but the truth stuck in my throat. Gabriel wasn’t the problem—or maybe he was. The chaos swirling around us had become too much. Between Colin's sudden lawsuit for custody, my parents' judgmental reappearance, and Gabriel's corporate scandal, I couldn't
