Chapter 2
1062 Words
We came home to a quiet house.
The motion sensor in the entryway flickered on, casting a soft glow across the hall.
Our family portrait hung on the wall, taken on Sunny's third birthday. Nathan holding her, me leaning against his shoulder.
Everything looked perfect.
Perfect enough to give me a headache.
"Mommy, I'm hungry."
Sunny tugged at the hem of my shirt.
"All right, Mommy will make dinner." I bent down to change my shoes, the motion so practiced it moved through me on its own.
Through the frosted glass panel, I could see the swing in the backyard.
Nathan had built it himself, when Sunny was two.
"I'm going to build my daughter a swing she can fly on," he'd said.
He'd worked until midnight. By the time he finished, his palms were raw with blisters.
I'd scolded him for being an i***t while dabbing ointment on his hands. He just smiled and kissed my forehead.
"Anything my girls want, I'll give them."
We were so good, back then.
We'd met in college. He was a broke student without a dollar to his name. I was the daughter of Riverside's wealthiest man.
Everyone said we were mismatched.
But Nathan drove himself with a ferocity that silenced every one of them, and built his own world from nothing.
"Serena," he used to say, "I'm going to prove to your father that I deserve you."
The night he proposed, he rented out the entire riverfront.
A thousand drones lit up the sky, spelling out: Serena Wells, marry me.
He'd been running his company for just three years. That proposal nearly wiped out every dollar he had.
I cried and told him it was wasteful.
He went down on one knee, ring in hand.
"After everything you've done for me, this is nothing."
I put on that ring.
After we married, I ran his company alongside him while keeping our home together. I reviewed every contract he signed. I sat across from every major client he courted.
The company is what it is today because of his talent and my own hard work.
I used to think this was what love was supposed to look like: from campus to wedding vows, from nothing to something, fighting side by side.
And now?
The pasta rolled in the pot. I stirred it mechanically.
"Mommy, it's going to overcook." Sunny's voice pulled me back.
I turned off the heat and served the bowls.
I'd just set them on the table when the front door unlocked.
Nathan was home.
"Smells amazing."
"Just pasta." I turned back toward the kitchen for the silverware.
He followed me in and lifted the bowl from my hands. "Let me."
The moment our fingers touched, I pulled away, a reflex I couldn't stop.
"You okay?" He looked at me.
"Fine. Just hot." I squeezed out a smile.
Dinner was quiet. Just the soft clink of silverware against bowls.
"Oh, by the way," I said, taking a sip of broth, casual as anything, "something strange happened at the hospital today, when I took Sunny for her checkup."
Nathan's fork stilled. "What kind of strange?"
"The nurse said Sunny was scheduled for kidney donor matching. Apparently you specifically added it."
I looked up at him, expression pleasant and mildly puzzled.
"I was trying to figure out who in the family might need a transplant. So I went to the nurses' station to ask, and you'll never guess what I found."
His throat moved.
"I found a form. The patient's name was Phoebe Bailey. And the next of kin listed? You."
I watched him with a warm, curious smile.
"I figured it must be some relative's child, so I went up to check on her. And there's a woman there, Tina Lynn. Says she's your distant cousin?"
Nathan's expression froze.
"How do you know about them?" His voice came out slightly dry.
"I'm looking out for you."
I picked up a piece of egg and set it in his bowl. "Your cousin comes all the way here with her sick daughter and you don't say a word? I could've helped. I have connections at that hospital."
The tension drained out of him. His shoulders dropped.
"I just didn't want to add to your plate." He looked back down at his bowl. "You're already stretched thin with work. The last thing you need is family drama on top of it. I figured I'd take care of it myself."
A seamless explanation.
If it weren't for Phoebe's face, I might almost have believed him.
"Fair enough." I smiled and let it drop.
After dinner, Nathan went to take a shower. The rush of water filled the apartment.
His phone lit up on the nightstand.
I walked over. The screen showed three w******p notification previews.
Tina: Your wife showed up at the hospital today. I'm terrified.
Tina: What if she tries to hurt us?
Tina: When are you coming to see Phee? She keeps asking for her daddy.
The water shut off.
I stepped back and sat down on the bed.
Nathan came out toweling his hair, and paused when he saw me.
"Still up?"
"Waiting for you." I smiled.
He picked up his phone, glanced at it. His face gave nothing away. His thumbs moved quickly across the screen.
Before he turned out the light, he kissed the top of my head.
That gesture used to make my heart race. Now it just felt hollow.
My phone buzzed in my pocket.
I took it out. A file from Charlie.
I opened it.
The first page was a timeline.
Seven years ago, Nathan made his first trip to Riverside for business.
Six years ago, money started moving from Nathan's account to Tina's. Memo: living expenses.
That same year, Phoebe was born.
The father's field on the birth certificate was left blank. The emergency contact was Nathan's number.
Four years ago. Three years ago. Two years ago.
Multiple trips to Riverside every year. Spending records each time. Transfers to Tina each time.
Nathan and I were married six years ago.
Sunny is five.
Phoebe is six.
While I believed we were building a future together, he had already built another life.
My phone buzzed again. Another message from Charlie.
Charlie: Ms. Wells, one more thing. The night you went into labor, Mr. Bailey was out celebrating Ms. Lynn's birthday.
- Writer
