Page 146 of The Rules of Dating

She nodded.

I pulled her to me once again, hugging her tightly.

Saylor laughed. “You’re acting weird, Daddy.”

I took a deep breath before releasing her. “Sorry. I missed you, that’s all.”

Deek, whom I hadn’t even noticed in the room until now, walked over. “Hey, kiddo. We just got some new glow-in-the-dark paints. How ’bout you paint your name and then we’ll turn off the lights in the bathroom and check it out?”

My daughter’s eyes grew wide. “Can I, Daddy?”

“Of course, baby.”

Billie waited until they were out of earshot. “What the heck happened? You sounded unhinged on the phone.”

I took a deep breath. “I was unhinged. I thought Maya took Saylor.”

“Why would you think that?”

I explained everything—from talking to Maya in the stairwell to finding her room empty with the determination letter from Immigration on the bed.

“Why did she lie to you, only to bring her here?”

“I have no damn idea.”

Billie held up her pointer. “Here, she gave me this. Maybe whatever’s inside will make sense of it all.”

I stared at the envelope for a moment before ripping it open.

Dear Colby,

The day I showed up at your door with Saylor, I was so worried I couldn’t give my little girl a good life. But it turned out I gave her the best life ever with you, where she belongs. I’m so thankful you’re her father. If I learned one thing from you over the last few months, it’s that words don’t mean anything—it’s actions. Your example has shown me what sacrifice, family, and love mean, and it’s about time I owned up to the mess I’ve made.

Today I mailed a sworn affidavit to Officer Weber at Immigration. In it, I detailed all of my actions, including blackmailing you into marrying me or risk sharing custody of a child with a woman who had nothing but bad intentions. I hope it clears you of any charges the officer decides to bring. I’ve also left pre-signed, no-fault divorce papers with my lawyer.

Tonight I’m flying back to Ecuador to accept accountability for my mistakes. I will participate in the open investigation of the drowning since I left before it could be completed. If I’m lucky enough that I’m allowed to keep my freedom, I hope to work on salvaging my relationship with my family.

Take care of our little girl.

Always,

Maya

I blinked a few times.

“What does it say?” Billie asked.

Still shell-shocked, I handed her the letter. She read and shook her head. “So that’s it? Maya’s gone?”

I shrugged. “I guess so.”

“What do we do now?”

I had no idea what was going to happen with Immigration or the divorce, but I absolutely knew what needed to be done in this moment. I wrapped my arms around Billie and pulled her to me.

“This.” I pressed my lips to hers. “This is what we do from now on…”

CHAPTER 32