Chapter 1

I call my husband to pick up our son, but my son answers from fifteen years in the future.

I freeze when my son’s face appears on my screen.

He looks almost exactly like Ryan.

I get excited.

“Jason, do you have a little sister now?”

“Is Dad still busy with work? Does he still take us out on the boat every year?”

But with every question I ask, Jason’s expression gets colder.

Until finally, he looks at me with nothing but disgust.

“Why haven’t you divorced Dad yet?”

“You knew Dad didn’t love you. Why couldn’t you just let him go? Why couldn’t you let him be with Sophie?”

“If you hadn’t refused to leave him, Sophie wouldn’t have gotten depressed and jumped off a boat.”

The call suddenly ends.

I stare at the blank screen, still trying to make sense of what Jason just said.

Then the front door swings open.

“Mom!”

Jason runs inside and throws his arms around me.

I freeze.

His face is exactly the same as the one I just saw on my screen.

Only younger. Still my little boy.

Ryan comes in right behind him, carrying Sophie's bag.

And Sophie is right beside him.

“Mom, I ran into Sophie after school. Can she stay for dinner?”

Jason hugs me even tighter.

And then I remember something.

Whenever the three of us went shopping, Ryan would carry my bag.

He’d carry Sophie’s, too.

Back then, I thought he was simply being a gentleman. I never imagined there was something going on between them.

Ryan hands me a bottle of perfume.

“I saw it at the mall and thought you’d like it.”

I glance at the brand on the bottle.

My heart sinks.

I saw its official account post a promotion this morning:

Buy the necklace, get the matching perfume.

I look at Sophie.

She’s wearing that exact necklace.

I look away quietly, then force a smile.

“Dinner’s ready. Let’s eat.”

Jason is already climbing into his chair.

He reaches for the dinner rolls and passes one to Sophie.

“Sophie, here. This is for you.”

She smiles and runs her hand through his hair.

Ryan immediately frowns.

“Mom worked hard on dinner. Why aren’t you getting Mom some?”

He reaches across the table and puts a piece of roasted chicken on my plate.

“You like this.”

I press my lips together.

I don’t eat dark meat.

Sophie laughs and picks it right off my plate.

“Ryan, seriously? What kind of husband are you? Claire doesn’t eat dark meat. I’m the one who likes it.”

Suddenly, everything on the table tastes like nothing to me.

Jason says he’s still hungry.

Ryan gets up and brings him another dinner roll.

Sophie reaches over and gently straightens Jason’s napkin.

The three of them sit beneath the warm dining-room light.

Somehow, I’m the one who looks like I don’t belong.

After dinner, I get up to clear the plates.

“We’re out of fruit,” I say, looking at Sophie. “I’m going out to get some. Sophie, Want to come?”

Ryan’s eyes briefly meet Sophie’s before settling on me.

“You don’t look well. Just sit down and rest. I’ll go with Sophie.”

Sophie shoots me a quick glance.

“Is that okay?”

Ryan smiles.

“You two have been friends forever. Claire won’t mind. Right?”

I stack the dishes and nod.

He grabs his keys.

Then, without even thinking about it, he picks up Sophie’s coat too.

The door closes behind them.

The apartment goes completely quiet.

Once they’re gone, I go into the bedroom, take the old tablet from the nightstand, and open the app connected to our car camera.

The screen flickers on — Ryan is just shutting the car door.

The next second, Ryan has Sophie pinned against the passenger seat.

He kisses her so hard she can barely breathe.

His hand is on the back of her neck. The other slides under her coat.

Sophie tilts her head back, her voice shaking.

“How much longer are we going to keep doing this? I don’t want to sneak around anymore.”

Ryan lowers his head and lightly bites her ear.

“Just wait a little longer.”

“What about the divorce?”

“I’ll tell her.”

Tears fill Sophie’s eyes.

“You always say that.”

Ryan pulls her into his arms and speaks softly.

“Sophie, just give me a little more time.”

The tablet slips from my hand and lands on the carpet.

I crouch down to pick it up.

My hands are shaking so badly I can barely hold it.

But the footage keeps rolling.

Ryan reaches for the zipper on Sophie’s dress.

Sophie gasps and starts undoing the buttons on his shirt.

I run into the bathroom and grip the sink as I gag.

My face looks ghostly in the mirror.

Even my lips have gone pale.

Eighteen years ago, I met Ryan outside the university library.

I was helping a classmate carry some books when they slipped out of my hands and scattered across the ground.

Ryan crouched down and helped me pick them up.

One by one.

He spent the next four years chasing me.

On graduation day, he proposed to me in front of everyone.

Sophie was my roommate during my sophomore year.

When something happened to her family, I spent seven days straight running around with her.

The police station. The hospital. The funeral.

She had nowhere to go, so I gave her one of the bedrooms in the two-bedroom apartment I rented.

Once, she came down with a fever of almost 103°F.

I carried her downstairs and flagged down a car for her.

I always thought I was lucky.

I had a husband who loved me.

A family.

A best friend I thought would stay by my side for the rest of my life.

Turns out, I was just the joke.

I put the tablet back in the drawer and splash cold water on my face.

That night, Ryan comes into the bedroom like nothing happened.

He wraps his arms around me from behind and rests his chin on my shoulder.

I don’t move.

He reaches up and tucks a strand of hair behind my ear.

“I got you the perfume because I wanted to make you happy.”

“There’s something else too. I was going to tell you when you were in a better mood.”

I pull away and turn to face him.

“What is it?”

The bedside lamp throws a soft yellow light over his face.

Ryan looks completely calm.

“I gave the promotion to Sophie.”