So was Sarah’s.
Bella’s too.
The legal fight over Sarah’s stolen inheritance was moving through the courts.
My bookkeeping job had become full-time.
The house I’d once been terrified to leave was no longer something I missed.
Some evenings, Sarah and I still struggled.
A year of separation doesn’t disappear simply because the truth comes out.
She was angry that I hadn’t protected her sooner.
She had every right to be.
And I had to learn that apologizing wasn’t enough.
Trust had to be rebuilt through actions.
Slowly, we started finding each other again.
One evening, while I rocked Pauline beside the window, Sarah sat across from me.
“You know what I hated most?” she asked.
“What?”
“I kept thinking you’d choose him.”
The words hurt.
Because once, I probably would have.
Not because I loved him more.
