Chapter 1
My husband and I were throwing a welcome-home dinner for my little sister, Maya Summers, who had just returned from overseas.
When someone at the table asked about her biggest regret, she cradled her empty wine glass and turned her hazy gaze toward my husband.
"Probably not having the guts to keep the baby I had with Leon."
Murmurs rippled through the table.
I clenched the pregnancy test results I had been about to show everyone, my lower abdomen tightening with each wave of shock.
Maya snapped back to herself and covered her mouth with a little laugh. "I'm kidding. We were just friends with benefits for a while, that's all.
"Don't take it personally. You're the one he married, and you're the one he really loves."
*****
Every pair of eyes at the table locked onto Leon Grant and me.
But his first instinct was to look at Maya. Something flickered in his eyes, a flash of tenderness that made my stomach drop.
He didn't notice my ashen face or my trembling hands.
Maya took a casual sip of wine as if the frozen silence didn't bother her one bit, her tone dripping with intimacy.
"Y'know, he used to have the worst temper. I'm the one who trained him into the sweet guy he is now.
"So you're welcome. My favorite older sister gets to enjoy the finished product."
She winked at me. "He doesn't bug you for sex when you're on your period anymore, right?
"And he stopped making you put the condom on with your mouth?"
Leon sat there in silence. He didn't deny a single word.
His silence said it all.
He gave a helpless little smile and placed a plate of steak in front of her.
"Eat up. If you're gonna be part of this family now, you gotta take better care of yourself."
My humiliation was invisible to him.
The suffocating tension in the room didn't ease up after Leon's little performance.
One of Maya's friends chimed in, completely oblivious to the atmosphere.
"Yeah, Maya, you were always so picky. You'd only eat whatever Leon cooked for you.
"That's why you lost the baby, remember? He was away on business and you refused to eat out of spite, and your body just gave out."
I stared blankly at the food in front of me, my mind a thousand miles away.
So that was why Leon knew how to cook.
Three years of marriage, and it took Maya's return for me to learn that Leon could even hold a spatula.
Maya studied my pale face with thinly veiled amusement before breaking the silence, her eyes wide with false innocence.
"I'm so sorry, everyone. Three years away plus all this wine, I just totally lost my filter.
"Let me go splash some water on my face and sober up."
She wobbled to her feet and knocked over her wine glass, splattering red across her dress.
Leon was on his feet instantly, moving with practiced ease.
"C'mon, I'll take you to your old room to change."
I pushed through the cramping in my abdomen and stood up. "Let me help..."
Leon frowned and pushed my hand away. "Don't. Maya doesn't like strangers touching her stuff."
My hand froze in midair.
I remembered trying to replace the old curtains in the guest room after we got married. Leon had shut me down with an irritated, "Why bother? Maya said she liked that color." The curtains stayed.
Every corner of this house still carried traces of another woman's welcome.
They disappeared into the guest room together.
It wasn't long before Maya reemerged.
She was wearing one of Leon's old dress shirts. It hung loose on her frame, making her look delicate and small.
She rolled up one sleeve with deliberate care, revealing a man's watch on her wrist.
It was Leon's everyday watch, the one I'd given him for our first wedding anniversary.
She flicked her wrist in my direction and smiled.
"This watch of his is so cute. I just had to borrow it to go with the outfit. You don't mind, right?"
Leon looked at her with the faintest smile tugging at his lips, then turned to me.
"Yeah, it looks good on her."
The cramping in my lower abdomen spiked viciously.
I dug my nails into my palms and swallowed the cry of pain that nearly escaped my throat.
Watching their effortless intimacy, the invisible blade in my chest twisted one final time.
I sank back into my seat and quietly crushed the pregnancy report in my pocket into a tight ball.
I let out a long, slow breath. Something cold settled behind my eyes. Tonight, Leon and I were going to have a conversation.