Mia smiled—small, real. “Thanks, Dan. For checking in. For not giving up.”
“Never,” Dana said simply. Then, softer: “There’s something else. Before you sign.”
Mia’s stomach tightened. “Okay.”
Dana exhaled—slow, reluctant, like she was bracing herself.
“Lucas… he’s seeing Sienna again.”
The name hit like a cold wave. Mia’s fingers stilled on the mug. She didn’t speak.
“And there’s more,” Dana continued, voice dropping even lower. “They’re engaged.”
The words landed like a stone dropped into still water—slow ripples spreading, cold and heavy.
Mia closed her eyes. Let the silence stretch. The kitchen clock ticked louder than it should have. Outside, a sparrow landed on the fence post, head cocked, then flew away.
“When?” she asked finally, voice barely above a whisper.
“Announced last week. Quiet at first—charity gala photos. Then the papers picked it up. Whirlwind romance, they’re callingit. Some of the tabloids are less kind—rebound, especially after her last engagement to that Spanish footballer fell apart. But she’s wearing the ring. They’re planning something next year.”
Mia opened her eyes. Watched another sparrow land on the fence post outside—same spot, same curious tilt of the head.
“He’s moved on,” she said—testing the words, tasting them. They felt foreign in her mouth, sharp-edged and wrong.
Dana made a low, frustrated sound. “I don’t believe a fucking word of it, Mia. Not one. This is Lucas doing what he always does—trying to deny what he’s feeling again. Burying it under something safe and shiny so he doesn’t have to look at the mess. He’s just… running. Same way he used to run from everything that scared him before you.”
Mia’s throat tightened. She could hear the anger simmering under Dana’s words—the protective edge, the loyalty to both of them. But it only made the ache worse.
“Dana,” she said quietly, cutting her off before the rant could build. “Don’t. Please don’t get angry.”
Dana stopped. Exhaled hard through her nose.
“I’m not angry at him,” she muttered. “I’m angry for him. And for you.”
Mia swallowed. “I understand. He needed to move on. He needed… something simple. Something he already knew. Sienna’s uncomplicated. She fits the life he’s always had—the spotlight, the expectations, the approval. What we had… it was too much. Too messy. He couldn’t keep carrying it. And I couldn’t ask him to.”
There was a long pause on the other end.
“You really believe that?” Dana asked, voice softer now, almost careful. “That he just… needed easy?”
Mia stared at the roses through the window—still blooming, still reaching for light even as the days shortened.
“He told me he loved me,” she said slowly. “I know he meant it in that moment. I don’t think he was ever ready for that. Not really.”
Dana was quiet again—longer this time.
“Okay,” she said finally. “If that’s what you need to believe to keep breathing, then okay. But Mia… I saw him after you left. He wasn’t pretending to be fine. He was barely holding it together. And I don’t think Sienna’s fixing that. I think she’s just… filling the silence.”
Mia didn’t answer right away. She let the words settle, let them ache.
“Maybe,” she said at last.
Dana sighed—half surrender, half frustration.
“And you?” she asked. “What do you need?”
Mia looked at the roses again—still blooming, still refusing to fade.
