Chapter 3

A kind nurse brings me a bottle. My daughter drinks it all in a rush, then finally closes her thin little eyelids and falls asleep.

But less than an hour later, some guy shouting into his phone in the hallway wakes her up.

I carry her to Ethan's office.

"I need a room."

"Denied."

He doesn't look up from his charts.

"Everyone in this hospital has eyes on me. I can't pull strings to get you a room."

I back down a little.

"Then can we just rest in your office? Nobody's gonna talk about that."

Ethan raises his head.

"If you're both in here, how am I supposed to work?"

Ethan's been a workaholic since the day I met him in college. He barely replies to my texts. When he does, it's just "k."

I always thought he was that way with everyone.

But right in front of me, he picks up Chloe's call on the first ring. His voice goes soft and warm.

"Don't worry about it. I'll come burp the baby."

"Mm, it's fine. Work can wait. You can't."

Oh, so he does know how to burp a baby.

Our daughter has been alive for a day and he hasn't held her once.

I grab his arm.

"Ethan, why does Chloe get the private suite while me and our daughter are shoved in a hallway?"

He looks down at me. The coldness in his eyes makes me step back.

"You're really gonna act like you don't know why?"

"That winter. You pushed Chloe into the pool. She's had health problems ever since."

"Without me taking care of her, she would've died on the operating table."

"Sophia, you just can't stand seeing her okay, can you?"

I open my mouth. I've said it a hundred times. They never listen.

I didn't push her. But they only believe her tears. They made up their minds years ago.

Ethan smirks.

"That's the difference between you and her."

"If she found out you were doing well, she'd be genuinely happy for you."

"But you? You're never satisfied. You're always losing your mind over nothing."

I clench my fists. My nails dig into my palms.

He's already walking away.

He's the one who pulled me close and said he wanted a baby with me. I thought we were getting better.

I never thought we'd end up here.

I hold my daughter tight and say it quietly.

"If that's how you see me, then there's nothing left to say."

"Ethan, let's get a divorce."

His back goes stiff for a second.

I've been standing too long. The pain in my belly comes in waves. I lean on the desk to steady myself.

I open the door. A young nurse is standing right outside.

"Ms. Lawson, Dr. Mercer asked me to take you to a room."

The girl looks at me a few times, then asks in a low voice.

"What's Dr. Mercer to you?"

"I heard he picked up another doctor's weekend shift to get you this room."

I almost laugh.

"Just a friend."

Finally a real room where I can sleep.

I rock my daughter to sleep, patting her back real soft.

Her tiny chest rises and falls. Peaceful for the first time since she was born.

I pull out my phone and contact the best lawyer I can find.

The lawyer texts back fast. "Get me proof. Save everything. Calls, texts, photos. All of it."

Ethan keeps talking about rules. Fine. Let the rules judge him.

If this family won't protect my daughter, the law will.

But after a while, her skin feels too hot under my hand.