Chapter 2

So my daughter wouldn't have to watch her own father line up on a team with someone else's kid, I called in sick for Nina on the day of the family field day. Instead, I took her to an amusement park for the whole day.

Watching her laugh with that long-lost, unguarded joy on her face, something in my chest finally eased.

My phone buzzed with a message from a friend: [Rachel, I got an answer on what you asked me about. Your school-district house has one open spot at Lincoln Elementary. But—that spot's already been given to Crystal Shaw.]

I sat there holding the phone, and it took me a long moment to find my voice.

We'd spent a fortune on that house, all so Nina could get into the best elementary school in the city. My mother had even cashed out part of her retirement savings to help us afford it. All of it, so Nina could have the best.

And now, the school spot I'd paid for had become a tool for Ethan to win points with his precious first love.

A fire built in my chest. I dropped Nina at home and took a cab straight to Ethan's office. I wanted an answer, face to face.

His office door wasn't shut all the way. I was about to push it open when I heard a girl's voice from inside.

"Papa Ethan, can I go to Lincoln Elementary? All the kids at preschool say they're going there. I want to go too."

My hand froze in midair. I stood there as if nailed to the spot.

Ethan's voice answered gently, "Of course you can, sweetheart. You're such a good girl. Of course, you get to go to Lincoln.

"In a bit, Papa Ethan's going to take you and your teacher out to dinner, so you can get to know each other a little first."

Over Crystal's delighted squeal, Vivian's voice rose up. "Ethan, you've really gone to so much trouble for us. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have any idea how to get Crystal into a school this good."

"Vivian, don't mention it. It's the least I can do." His voice was tender in a way I'd genuinely never heard before. "After all, Crystal calls me Papa Ethan."

I let out a cold, humorless laugh, ice settling in my chest.

He was always this gentle, this attentive, when it came to Vivian. Not only had he handed over the school spot, he'd pulled strings to arrange a dinner with the teacher so Crystal could get a head start.

And my daughter? She had nothing.

For my daughter's sake, I could accept that I would never matter to Ethan the way Vivian did. I could swallow that. But my daughter—she didn't have to.

I pushed the door open.

The cozy little scene inside cut into me like a dull blade. Ethan sat in his office chair with Crystal curled up in his lap, a lollipop in her hand, grinning so wide her eyes had folded into crescents. Vivian stood at his side, bent slightly, one hand resting on the back of his chair, the pose easy and intimate.

The moment Ethan saw me, all the warmth drained from his face. His brow knit, his tone turning short. "What are you doing here?"

The way he said it, you'd think I was the one intruding on some happy little family of three.

I let out a cold laugh. "You're my husband. This is your office. Some other woman gets to walk in here, and I don't?"

Vivian's face went pale. "Rachel, don't be upset—you've got it all wrong—"

I cut her off. "Wrong about what? Wrong about how you seduced my husband? Wrong about how you stole my daughter's school spot?"

Before I'd even finished, Ethan was on his feet. He stepped in front of Vivian, shielding her, his face dark. "Rachel, this is not the place for you to make a scene. If you want Nina to still have a whole family to grow up in, get out."

He was using our daughter against me. Our own daughter, his and mine, turned into a threat.

Blinking back tears, I looked at this man I'd been married to for eight years and felt like I was looking at a total stranger.

Back when we'd loved each other, I'd handed him every fragile, aching piece of myself. He knew exactly where I was weakest. He knew exactly what I'd spent all these years enduring, and why.

He'd promised me once, too. "Rachel, don't worry. I won't repeat your father's mistakes. I'll give you and our daughter a home that's warm, always."

And now, that old tenderness had become the very blade he was using against me.

It was cutting me too deep to breathe.