My Six-Year-Old Told Me About His Sister Before My Husband Did Chapter 03

My Six-Year-Old Told Me About His Sister Before My Husband Did Chapter 03

When I paid the clinic bill, I removed Thayer’s card from my Apple Wallet.

A second later, a bank transfer from him came through.

[Izzy, don’t be stubborn. Take it. I don’t want you short on money.]

I didn’t reply.

He thought he had kept me soft, pretty, and dependent.

But I had always made my own money drawing webcomics.

Without him, I was not helpless.

I found a public library, downloaded a divorce settlement template from a legal-aid site, and drafted it myself.

Then I booked the cheapest one-way ticket to the coldest place I could find.

I would leave in three days.

When I got home, the house was dark.

Thayer had not brought Coralie and Twyla back.

Deep into the night, a pair of cold hands woke me.

Snow still clung to Thayer’s shoulders as he held me from behind and murmured against my ear.

“Izzy, add my card back. I know you need time to accept this. That’s why I came back to make it up to you.”

“I won’t bring Coralie and Twyla here. But you need to meet me halfway too. Don’t leave comments on Coralie’s posts and upset her. I’ll let this slide once. Just once.”

“Didn’t you say you wanted to build a snowman? It’s snowing outside. I’ll go with you.”

His lips brushed my neck.

His hand settled low on my stomach, where our child had been.

But his body smelled like another woman’s perfume.

I kept my eyes closed and nodded.

He was wrapping a scarf around me when his phone rang.

After a few seconds on the call, he grabbed his coat in a rush.

“It’s Twyla. She has a fever.”

I looked at him, my voice very soft.

“We’re not building the snowman?”

Thayer frowned, his voice rising before he could stop it.

“At a time like this? Are you seriously competing with a little girl?”

We had dated for two years.

We had been married for eight.

It was the first time he had ever yelled at me.

For one second, we both froze.

Tavish followed behind him, shouting that he wanted to go too.

I instinctively stopped him.

“No, Tavish. It’s freezing out. You just got over a cold.”

He bit down hard on my hand.

He looked at me like I was the one keeping him from his real family.

“I’m going to see Twyla. She’s the most important.”

I stood there for a long time.

Only when the cold wind made me shiver did I open my laptop in a daze.

I opened the divorce settlement and quietly deleted the line asking for primary custody of Tavish.

I sat at the foot of the bed until dawn, unable to sleep.

Then I opened my phone.

Coralie had updated her feed.

[This is what happens when someone lies…]

The photo showed two empty condom boxes.

A minute earlier, she had replied to a comment.

[Twyla’s dad said we don’t need them anymore. He wants me to have another baby. Should I say yes?]

I replied, [Say yes.]

On the nightstand sat the positive pregnancy test I had tied with a neat little ribbon.

Thayer had not noticed it.

I picked it up, tore it apart, and dropped the pieces into the trash one by one.

Just like our marriage.

Someone knocked at the front door.

It was Reeve, Thayer’s assistant.

He held out a box of strawberry shortcake and gave me an awkward smile.

“Mrs. Wescott, Mr. Wescott asked me to keep you company outside. He said you wanted to build a snowman. He said this is his apology, and he’ll make it up to you tomorrow.”

I pulled the receipt off the packaging.

“Two?”

“Yes. The other one was Miss Venn’s lemon tart. It’s already been delivered.”

Thayer had always been good at logistics.

So thorough.

So considerate.

I remembered the days when we hid in our old walk-up apartment and ate boxed mac and cheese because he couldn’t afford a birthday cake for me.

He had stacked slices of pound cake with canned whipped cream and called it a cake.

Then he cried and said, “Izzy, I don’t have much right now. But whatever I give you will be yours alone.”

“When I have money, I’ll give you the good life you deserve.”

Now we had the good life.

Only none of it was mine alone anymore.

I smiled at Reeve.

“I don’t like cake anymore. Throw it out, please.”