Chapter 5

Sitting alone in the pitch-black living room, I repeatedly looked at the message Maren sent to Silas until the phone screen automatically went dark.

After a long while, I put the phone back in its place, pretending I had never seen it, and walked slowly upstairs to pack my luggage.

My landscape design drafts, eight-year stem cell storage vouchers, and pregnancy preparation records were shoved into my suitcase one by one.

Eight years of romance, a home built with heart, and years of yearning for a child plan had all turned to nothing in the end.

At dawn, I dragged…