Chapter 2

For one second, nobody speaks.

Then Ethan looks at Noah.

Not at Vanessa.

At Noah.

That hurts more than anything she has said.

Grandma pulls him closer.

“He is Claire’s brother.”

Vanessa lifts both hands.

“I didn’t say he wasn’t. I said this is a common trope.”

“You just called my brother my son.”

“I asked a question.”

“No. You made an accusation.”

Ethan exhales.

“Claire, calm down.”

I stare at him.

“Why should I calm down?”

His mother speaks carefully.

“Well… there is a big age gap.”

Grandma’s face burns.

“Claire’s mother had Noah during Claire’s senior year of high school.”

Vanessa nods like Grandma has just handed her more material.

“Easy enough to prove.”

She looks at me.

“Take a DNA test.”

I laugh once.

No one else does.

Vanessa continues.

“And since everyone is already here to talk about marriage, a financial agreement would make sense too.”

Ethan’s mother finally looks interested.

“What kind of agreement?”

“One that makes it clear Ethan won’t be expected to support Claire’s whole family.”

Grandma grips my hand.

“We have our own money.”

Vanessa smiles.

“Great. Then signing should be easy.”

I look at Ethan.

He knows I have never asked him for money.

He knows I have paid my own bills the entire time we have been together.

He knows I bought his mother gifts, took time off work when she had surgery, and spent two weeks helping her recover.

I wait.

Again.

Ethan says, “Just take the test.”

My chest goes still.

He reaches for my hand.

“Then nobody can say anything.”

I pull away.

“You really need a test to believe me?”

“It’s not about what I believe.”

“Then what is it about?”

He glances around the table.

“Our families are here. Vanessa already said all this. If you prove her wrong, it ends.”

“No. It proves that you needed evidence before you would stand beside me.”

His face tightens.

“You’re making this bigger than it is.”

Vanessa laughs under her breath.

I turn to Ethan.

“We’re done.”

His expression changes immediately.

“What?”

“I said we’re done.”

He stands.

“Claire, don’t be ridiculous.”

Vanessa actually claps once.

“There it is.”

I look at her.

She smiles at Ethan.

“Oh, I know what comes next. You leave, and you think he’ll beg you to stay. Just like in those novels.”

Ethan’s jaw hardens.

“Claire, don’t use breaking up to pressure me.”

I almost cannot believe this is the man standing in front of me.

Three years.

He held me through the nights after my parents died.

He drove fourteen hours with me when the police called.

He slept on the floor beside my bed because I kept waking up screaming.

And now one woman says I am running a scam, and he wants paperwork.

“I’m not pressuring you.”

I pick up my bag.

“I’m leaving you.”

Grandma is already crying.

Noah clings to my coat.

Ethan steps in front of me.

“You’re pregnant.”

“Yes.”

“With my child.”

I look at him.

“That didn’t stop you from asking whether I got pregnant to trap you.”

His face goes pale.

For the first time, he looks like he understands what he said.

Too late.

I walk around him.

No one stops us.

In the car, Grandma keeps wiping her eyes.

Noah is silent in the back seat.

At a red light, my phone rings.

Maya.

I answer.

Her voice blasts through the car.

“Claire Morgan, do you remember you own part of a company?”

Despite everything, I almost laugh.

“What happened?”

“What happened is I’m opening another division, I haven’t slept properly in two weeks, and my silent partner is apparently committed to being silent forever.”

I close my eyes.

Maya and I started with almost nothing in college.

After my parents died, I put part of the life-insurance payout into her tiny beauty and lifestyle startup.

The brand grew fast.

I kept my shares, but I stepped away from day-to-day work after graduation.

Mostly because Ethan lived in another city.

Maya keeps talking.

“I need you here.”

I look through the windshield.

The light turns green.

This time, I do not hesitate.

“I’ll be there Monday.”

For the first time in three years, I make a decision that has nothing to do with Ethan.