The floor felt unsteady beneath my feet. What? He is in love with me? Since we were kids?
“I know you stopped eating for days after you saw her get engaged,” Charlotte continued. “I know you started smoking when she got married because you didn’t know what to do with yourself. And I also know you quit the next day because she didn’t like it.”
I covered my mouth and leaned back against the wall for support. He had stopped eating because I said yes to Jack.
My heart hammered against my ribs as I made it to the room. I held Lily in my arms, and before my legs gave out, I sank onto the edge of the bed, clutching my daughter to my chest.
Since we were kids. He had loved me since we were kids. Oh my God.
All those years and all the dates he had gone on, all the women he cycled through, that broken engagement with Kelly. Had it all been because of me? Because he couldn’t have what he really wanted?
Lily fussed, and I forced myself to breathe, to rock her gently, to paste on a smile as footsteps approached.
“There you are!” Charlotte appeared in the doorway, Derek behind her. “Are you alright, dear? You look a bit pale.”
“I’m fine,” I lied. “Just needed a moment.”
Derek’s concerned eyes searched my face as he said, “We can leave early if you want.”
“No, no,” I said, standing up and adjusting Lily in my arms. “I’m fine.”
We made small talk as we walked back. As Charlotte chattered on, I felt Derek’s gaze on me, questioning and worried, but I couldn’t meet his eyes.
Before we left, Charlotte pulled me into another hug. “Promise me you’ll come for lunch soon with this sweetheart.” She tickled Lily’s chin, making her giggle.
“I promise,” I said, meaning it despite everything swirling in my head.
Charlotte held me at arm’s length. Her eyes, so much like Derek’s, were warm. “I haven’t seen my son this happy in years, Paige. Maybe ever,” she smiled, squeezing my hands. “And this little bundle of joy is just perfect. You both are perfect for him.”
My throat tightened.
If only she knew. If only any of this were real.
But the worst part? I desperately wanted it to be in a way that terrified me.
Charlotte kissed my cheek, then Derek’s before leaving us. We stood there in silence, and I felt the weight of everything I had learned pressing down on me.
Derek loved me. He had loved me for decades. And his mother wanted us together. For real. Not fake. Not pretend. Real.
Four days later, I sat across from Jennifer in her sleek downtown office.
“And that’s where things get interesting,” Jennifer said, sliding a folder across her desk. “Jack’s claiming you’re unstable. That living with your boss is inappropriate, that you’re unfit for custody.”
My stomach dropped. “He’s really going to fight for Lily?”
“He is posturing, but here’s the good news,” she said, tapping the folder with one manicured nail. “Derek Peterson did this.”
I blinked. “Derek... what?”
Jennifer opened the folder, revealing what looked like hundreds of pages of documentation like bank statements, text message transcripts and medical records.
“This is months of work, Paige. Phone records showing calls between Jack and Olivia dating back to your second trimester of pregnancy. Financial statements proving Jack drained your joint account—over forty thousand dollars moved to a separate account you had no access to. Testimony from your OBGYN about every appointment Jack missed.” She looked up at me with something like admiration. “He built you an airtight case.”
My hands trembled as I reached for the folder. Month after month of evidence, meticulously organized, each document tagged and cross-referenced.
You’ve been in love with that girl since you were a child.
I blocked out Charlotte’s words.
