How could I love their baby when mine lay buried beneath the damp, dark earth?
Just as I was about to compose myself, my phone vibrated on the nightstand. I frowned as I saw Leon’s name flash across the screen.
[Tomorrow. Harvest Café. Nine o’clock. I’ve got what you need.]
My heart skipped a beat. He had done it.
A new identity.
An identity that would erase Wendy Clark from this world.
I hadn't objected when Archie asked me to settle Zac for his nap. Regardless of his origins, the baby was innocent. His presence was merely a tool for his selfish parents, and I couldn’t bring myself to hate him for that.
And yet, as I cradled him in my arms, I couldn't ignore the way my chest ached. Looking at Zac was like staring directly at their betrayal. At the night they had spent together, tangled in passion, exchanging whispered promises and sweat, conceiving the child now nestled in my embrace.
I had seen enough in the way Archie looked at Claire—so deeply, so reverently. The gaze that had once belonged to me was now hers entirely.
Soft footsteps approached, the sound of heels tapping against the marble floor in a careful, deliberate rhythm. I didn’t need to turn my head to know who it was.