One week after their coffee shop meeting, Daniel’s pattern became clear: sporadic visits that felt more like checking a box than genuine involvement, and conversations that consistently steered away from Emma toward reminiscing about their relationship.
He would show up unannounced sometimes, usually when Kassie was in the middle of dinner or helping with homework, acting surprised when she couldn’t drop everything to talk. Other times, he’d make plans to visit and cancel at the last minute with vague excuses about work or feeling under the weather.
“He came by yesterday,” Kassie told Sarah over the phone while Emma napped in her bouncy seat. “Stayed for maybe twenty minutes, held Emma for about five of those, then spent the rest of the time asking if I remembered that restaurant we used
