“Anything you want,” I murmured, forcing the words out. They tasted like poison.
Sally appeared in the doorway just then.“Darren, the baby’s crying. Can you come help with the bottle?”
He went instantly, as if she’d pulled a string.
She lingered a moment, her gaze flicking to me. “You know, I was thinking—you’d make the perfect godmother to Alex. Practice for the children you’ll never have.”
Her laughter echoed as she sauntered off.
I gathered the boxes of Darren’s gifts, dragging them outside. One by one, I threw them into the trash, then lit a match. Flames devoured our wedding photo, the diamond earrings, the dress he bought me for our anniversary.
Everything burned. Just like us.
****
It was Sally’s birthday. Darren was throwing her a yacht party.
Something he had never done for me.
“You’re not jealous, are you?” he said, adjusting his beige suit in the mirror. “I’m just making her feel loved since her husband’s gone. On your twenty-sixth, I’ll throw you something bigger. Promise.”
I faked a smile. Nodded. Watched him admire his own reflection.
Once he left, I locked the bedroom door and went to his safe.
The password was laughably easy — Alex’s birth date.