Chapter 1

The paperwork was done. I was Mrs. Mercer again.

A few weeks ago, Kieran found me at a flea market, selling handmade hair clips while Rosie napped in her stroller. He took one look at us and sighed. "Come back. She's too young to live like this."

For Rosie, I said yes.

He pulled into the driveway. I held her hand as we walked up to the front door—the house I'd left two years ago.

I pressed my finger to the smart lock. Nothing.

Tried again. Still nothing.

Before I could say anything, the door opened from inside.

Simone. Wearing Kieran's old college t-shirt—the faded blue one I used to sleep in.

"Oh! Wren, I'm so sorry." She smiled, stepping aside. "I was cooking and got sauce everywhere. Didn't bring extra clothes."

She made no move to leave. Behind that apologetic smile, I caught it—that familiar flicker of triumph she could never quite hide.

Simone was Kieran's late sister's best friend. When his sister passed, Simone told him her dying wish was for Kieran to take care of her. So he did.

Her daughter Hailey was curled up on the couch, watching cartoons on a tablet.

Rosie tugged my sleeve. "Mommy, that's my iPad."

It was. The pink case, the crack in the corner from when she dropped it last year.

I waited for the tantrum. The tears. The Daddy, that's mine!

But Rosie just looked at the floor.

"It's okay," she whispered. "Can I use your phone?"

Something twisted in my chest.

I handed her my phone. She tapped around, then looked up. "The WiFi doesn't work."

I hesitated.

Two years of cheap apartments and bad connections. Two years of library WiFi and borrowed hotspots. We needed the password—I just didn't want to be the one to ask.

Kieran was watching me. I kept my voice light. "What's the new WiFi password?"

Simone answered before he could. "Oh, I changed it last week! The old one was too hard for Hailey to remember." She smiled. "It's her birthday now. Zero-three-one-seven."

March 17th. Hailey's birthday. On the home network my husband paid for.

Rosie didn't react. She just took my phone to the corner and sat down, knees pulled to her chest, volume barely audible.

She used to scream about things like this. Used to cry that Daddy was hers, that this was her house, that Hailey couldn't touch her things.

Now she just made herself small.

Four years old, and she'd already learned—some things in this house weren't hers to fight for.

Kieran frowned. "Simone, you should be more careful about boundaries. People will talk."

Soft. Almost gentle.

Simone's eyes went wide. She hugged herself, shrinking back. "You're right. I'm so sorry—I'll leave right now, please don't be angry—"

Hailey ran over and wrapped herself around Kieran's leg. "Daddy, my leg hurts. Mommy didn't bring the car. Can you take us home? Please?"

Daddy.

The two of them pressed together, trembling. Like I was the threat here.

Kieran looked at me, waiting.

The old me would have exploded. Screamed. Cried. Made him choose, right here, right now.

But I'd learned where that got me.

I smiled. "She needs you. Go ahead."

Something shifted in his face. Surprise, maybe. He opened his mouth—

I turned and walked toward the kitchen.

"I won't be long," he called after me. "We'll talk when I get back."

I didn't answer.

The door clicked shut. The car started and pulled away.

Only then did Rosie look up. "Mommy? Are they gone?"

"Yeah, baby."

She let out a breath, long and shaky, and finally uncurled her legs.

We had the house to ourselves. It should have felt like coming home.

It didn't.

That night, my phone buzzed.

A photo from Simone. Hailey sitting in Kieran's lap, holding Rosie's iPad, both of them watching cartoons together.

"Hope I'm not overstepping—Hailey wanted to finish her show and Kieran said he'd stay a bit. I'll make sure he comes home soon!"

I stared at it for a long time.

Then typed back: "Sure."

Kieran came home the next afternoon. I was reading Rosie a bedtime story.

I didn't ask where he'd been. Confrontation only made things worse. Rosie was always the one caught in the middle.

After she fell asleep, he found me in the hallway, holding a box.

"I got you something."

Inside was a handbag—limited edition, the one I'd wanted years ago. Back when we were happy. Back when wanting things felt safe.

The old me would have thrown my arms around him.

Now I stepped back. "Thank you. But I don't need it."

"Wren—"

"Someone grabbed my bag on the subway once. Rosie was with me." The memory surfaced, flat and distant. "I couldn't chase him—I couldn't leave her alone. After that, I stopped carrying anything I couldn't afford to lose."

His hand froze. The box hung between us, unclaimed.

I walked past him to the bedroom.

The next day, I took Rosie shopping for new clothes. She'd outgrown almost everything—growth spurts and thrift stores don't mix well.

We stepped into a children's boutique.

And stopped.

Simone was there. Hailey beside her. And Kieran.

A saleswoman hovered nearby, holding up a swimsuit. "Mrs. Mercer, this one just arrived! Perfect for Hailey's pool party."

She was talking to Simone.