Chapter 4

Seeing that I wasn't bluffing, William felt a flicker of panic — then steadied himself.

Sia wouldn't actually divorce him. He knew better than anyone how much she loved him.

They had been solid for ten years. She was angry, that was all. She'd cool down.

Reassured by his own logic, William looked back at me and relaxed.

"Take Amy home. Give yourself some time to calm down."

Then he walked over to Freya. His stride had a faint air of retreat.

I put the divorce papers away. I knew it wouldn't be that simple.

Fine. If he wanted to drag it out, he could wait for the lawsuit.

Eight years of infidelity. Everyone in that upscale neighborhood believed William and Freya were married. A few conversations with the neighbors would be enough to establish that — and combined with the bank records, it was plenty to support a bigamy charge.

"Sia, your ex is unbelievable. He used your joint assets to buy her a house and a car. The down payment came from your own savings — the money you brought into the marriage."

My friend was furious in our text thread. "That spineless piece of garbage. By the time I'm done in court, he won't have a thing left."

I stayed calm and sent her Freya's address, then laid out what I needed. She would handle gathering the evidence.

Freya was used to spending freely. I'd like to see how she planned to pay back over a million dollars.

That thought actually lifted my mood. I took my daughter out to dinner.

William dropped Freya off and — for the first time — turned down her offer to stay for dinner.

He wanted to get home. Sia was probably sulking, and he needed to smooth things over. He had been too harsh earlier, and he'd let his feelings get out of control. He'd hurt her. He needed to fix it.

On the way, he passed the butcher. The stall was still open. On impulse, he bought a premium cut.

By the time he came to, it was already wrapped and bagged.

"Want some beef scraps too? Your wife loves them, right? She was just here asking about them a few days ago. I told her — you're a good husband. Real thoughtful."

The gentle embarrassment he had imagined did not come. William's face went pale.

He paid and rushed home.

At the trash bin outside the building, he found a scarf. His scarf — the one he had knitted for Sia. She had thrown it away.

William's mind was a mess. He needed to get upstairs. Fast.

He had this irrational feeling that if he was too slow, Sia would disappear from his life for good.

When he got home, I was just hanging up the phone — I'd been arranging Amy's school transfer.

Her new school in New York was set. My parents had already sorted everything. Amy could start whenever we arrived.

"Sia."

William was disheveled, still catching his breath.

I glanced at the premium steak he was holding. "Not tired of it yet?"

I watched his expression fall, and felt just fine about it. I went back to packing.

There wasn't much in this house that belonged to me. One small suitcase was enough.

"Sia, I—"

"When did it start?"

I cut him off. I still wanted to hear it from him.

Silence stretched between us. Finally, under the weight of my gaze, William broke.

"Eight years ago. When you were in the hospital having Amy, Freya came back to the States."

"She was in a bad place. She wanted to drink, so we met up — and one thing led to another. I swear it was only that once."

His voice cracked with emotion. My expression didn't change.

William let out a hollow laugh.

"I never expected it to happen from just that one time. I didn't believe it — I made Freya get an amniocentesis."

"The results came back. The child was mine."

"William. Do you even believe that yourself?"

A grown man who couldn't push away a woman who came onto him drunk. How convenient.

"The divorce papers are on the table."

"Does it have to come to this?"

My patience was gone. I threw a hard drive onto the table. "Sign it, or see you in court."