“I’m sorry I came here first,” Jenna said, standing up. “But I couldn’t watch Leo ask one more time if Sam was really going to be his daddy. I needed you to understand that this isn’t about Sam not loving you. It’s about him loving his son more.”
“Does Sam know you’re here?” I managed to ask.
“God, no. He’d be furious with me for coming here.” Jenna wiped her eyes, looking genuinely conflicted. “He really does love you, Chloe. But I’ve watched my son cry himself to sleep wondering if he’s going to have a daddy who stays this time. I can’t… I can’t watch him go through that uncertainty anymore. I’m sorry this is happening to you. I really am.”
And with that, she collected Leo from the exam room and walked out of my clinic without a backward glance, leaving me to deal with the wreckage she’d created.
I sat in my office chair, surrounded by the diplomas and certificates that represented years of education and dedication, staring at the door where moments ago had stood the woman who’d just demolished my entire life with surgical precision.
“Chloe, I’m so sorry—”
Sam’s words from last night echoed in my head. I’d thought he was apologizing for not telling me sooner. For keeping secrets. For the stress and distance. But what if he’d been apologizing for something else entirely?
What if he’d been apologizing because he’d already made his decision? Already chosen to give Leo a two-parent home. Already decided he was willing to try to build a family with Jenna.
I’m sorry I’m breaking up with you. I’m sorry I’m choosing my son over you. I’m sorry I can’t marry you like I’d planned.
The pieces all fit. Sam’s distance. The lies. The “I’m sorry” that I’d interrupted. The text this morning saying he couldn’t wait to see me — probably because he wanted to finally get this conversation over with, to stop living with the guilt of what he was about to do.
And the worst part? I couldn’t even be angry at him for it.
Because if I were in his position — if I had a four-year-old child who needed stability, who’d already been abandoned once — wouldn’t I do the same thing? Wouldn’t I sacrifice my own happiness to give that child what they needed?
Of course I would.
Sam did love me. I believed that. But he loved Leo more. And he should. Leo was his son. Leo needed him. I just wish it didn’t hurt so much to be the one he was sacrificing.
A knock on my door. Sarah poked her head in. “Dr. Parker? Your 11:30 has just cancelled.”
I glanced at the clock. 11:20 AM. I’d planned to be home by 1 PM for my talk with Sam.
“That’s fine. I’m going home now.” I stood up, gathering my things with mechanical efficiency. “Remember, I’m not available for the rest of the day. Any emergencies should go to Dr. Castle’s clinic.”
“Are you okay?” Sarah asked, her voice full of concern.
“I’m fine. Just need to deal with some personal things.”
I grabbed my bag and walked out before she could ask anything else. Better to go home and wait for Sam than sit around here thinking about what Jenna had said.
Chapter 12
Chloe - Six Days After Chloe’s Birthday
The drive home took twelve minutes. Twelve minutes of gripping the steering wheel so hard my knuckles went white, twelve minutes of replaying Jenna’s words on a loop, twelve minutes of trying to breathe through the tightness in my chest.
We talked about it over breakfast this morning.
Breakfast. While I’d been watching baby alpacas and texting Sam about our talk this afternoon, he’d been having breakfast with Jenna. Or had he? Nothing made sense.
I pulled into the driveway and sat in my truck for a moment, staring at the house we’d shared for eight months. My house, technically. I’d bought it before Sam and I got serious. But we’d made it ours together — choosing paint colors, picking out furniture, turning the spare room into our shared home office.
All of it was about to change.
Or was it?
The thought came unbidden, cutting through the fog of Jenna’s words. Sam wouldn’t do this. Not like this. The Sam Iknew wouldn’t have breakfast with her, planning my dismissal while texting me “I love you” and “can’t wait to see you.”
That wasn’t Sam. That was…
