I had just changed into my uniform when I saw Jonathan at the entrance, holding Ethan in his arms.
Dark shadows ringed his eyes, proof of sleepless nights.
Ethan was wrapped snugly in his embrace, with his round eyes staring straight at me.
He looked exhausted in a way that made my chest ache. He stood there like he’d been waiting for me to decide something that would either save or break us.
“Angela.” His voice was hoarse, tentative, as he walked carefully toward me. “Come home with me, please? Ethan cried for you last night. He’s never spent a night without you.”
Hearing my name come out of his mouth like that touched a part of me I thought I’d protected. It briefly tugged at the part of me that remembers promises, lullabies, and the steady, boring comfort of shared mornings.
The clerks instantly perked up, their gazes darting between us, whispers bubbling to the surface again.
I could feel the shop leaning in like an audience waiting for the next scene. It made me want to be anything but the woman they were ready to pick apart.
“See? Didn’t I say her husband treats her well? Look how humble he is in front of her," my coworker murmured again.