Chapter 1

The first year Julian transferred to headquarters, he video-called me every night until midnight.

The second year, it dropped to once a week.

The third year, the calls stopped. He switched to texts.

I told myself I understood.

Then one day, he sent me a message.

"Mom wants you to come back. She says there's something to discuss."

I took time off work and flew out.

Eleanor was sitting in the living room. A woman I'd never seen before stood beside her.

"Sienna, honey, I'm not asking you two to divorce. I just want you to be gracious about this. Give Vivienne a proper place in this family."

"She's been by Julian's side at headquarters all this time. You've seen it yourself — his numbers have never been better."

I looked at the woman.

She lowered her head and said softly:

"I'm already pregnant. My baby needs a father."

Eleanor picked up where she left off.

"You haven't given us a single child in three years. Something's got to be wrong with you. I've found a top specialist — you should start seeing him."

I sat on the sofa and said nothing.

Then I stood up, picked up my bag, and walked to the door.

I had just stepped outside when Julian's car pulled up.

He got out and saw me. He froze.

The passenger door swung open.

A little boy, no older than two, reached out his arms and called out:

"Daddy, up."

Two years old.

Nine months of pregnancy, plus two years.

That put it right at the start of his first year at headquarters.

The man who used to call me every night until midnight. Who once ordered me food delivery at two in the morning because I mentioned I forgot dinner. Who still flew back every few months, just long enough to make me feel like he was still mine. That man had gotten another woman pregnant.

Julian clearly hadn't expected me to walk out.

His hand hung in the air, frozen. He'd forgotten to close the car door.

The little boy in the passenger seat kept squirming, calling out for his daddy in that soft, babbling voice.

Vivienne came rushing out of the house and grabbed my arm.

"Don't blame Julian. This is all my fault."

"I'd had too much to drink that night. I wouldn't let him go. He never stopped loving you."

I shook her off and fixed my eyes on Julian.

Julian finally snapped out of it. He crossed to me quickly and stepped in front of Vivienne.

"Sienna, let me explain."

I looked at his face — that face I knew so well — and felt my stomach turn.

"Explain what?"

"Explain how you spent your days in her bed and your nights calling me your wife?"

Julian went pale.

He dropped his voice, and something close to pleading crept into it.

"Don't make a scene. Mom's still inside watching."

I almost laughed.

So in his mind, calling out his lies made me the problem.

Eleanor had followed us out by then, peeling a piece of fruit in her hands.

"Sienna, men stray. It happens. That's just how it is."

"Besides, Vivienne's already given him a son, and there's another one on the way."

"You couldn't even give him one child in three years. You can't expect the Harlow name to die with you."

I turned to Eleanor.

"I can't give you a child?"

"Julian, did you forget to mention that you drank yourself sick chasing deals, and I spent months caring for you around the clock until my own hormones crashed?"

Julian looked away.

He couldn't meet my eyes.

Vivienne's eyes filled with tears on cue. She shrank behind Julian.

"I know you're hurting."

"I don't need a name on paper. I just want to be near Julian."

"When the baby comes, you can be its mother. I'll be the nanny."

How noble.

How selfless.

Julian heard those words and the guilt in his eyes turned to tenderness in an instant. He put his arm around Vivienne's shoulders. When he looked back at me, his voice had hardened.

"Sienna, Vivienne has already given up this much. What more do you want?"

"If she hadn't been at headquarters managing my relationships these past two years, I never would have made it where I am."

"You stayed home. You have no idea how hard it's been for me."

No idea how hard it's been for him.

What I knew was that the startup money he'd taken to headquarters — I'd sold my grandmother's house to put it together.

What I knew was that I used to read his weekly texts over and over, a dozen times each.

I took a slow breath and reached into my bag. I pulled out a small black voice recorder.

He'd had it custom-made and sent to me during his first year away.

Inside was his voice: "Three years, Sienna. Give me three years and I'll bring you here myself. You'll never have to wait again."

I pressed play right in front of him.

His voice carried down the empty street, warm and full of promise. It sounded almost grotesque.

Julian's breath caught. He reached out to grab it.

I let go.

The recorder hit the ground.

I raised my heel and brought it down hard.

The plastic cracked with a sharp, clean snap.

"Julian, we're done."

I turned and walked away.

Julian called my name. But his footsteps stopped when Vivienne let out a cry behind him.

"Julian — the baby — something's wrong—"

I didn't look back. I flagged down a cab and pulled the door shut behind me.