Chapter 1

The husband who'd promised to take our son to the amusement park for his birthday.

Yet on my way home from work, there he was, standing in line with Joy Swanson to buy some trendy couples' ice cream.

I rushed over and grabbed his arm.

"Why are you here? Where's our son?"

Otis blinked, startled, then hurried to explain.

"He's at the amusement park. I got him on a ride and settled in, so I slipped away for a bit to help Joy get some ice cream."

Joy looked at me timidly.

"I'm so sorry, Eudora Fox. This ice cream is a limited release, they only sell the couples' set. I just really wanted it, so I asked Otis to wait in line with me."

Watching them hold hands, playing at being a couple, whatever hope I had left drained away.

I said it calmly.

"Otis, this isn't the first time you've dropped me and our son for her."

"Since you can't be a good father, we won't be needing you anymore."

With that, I turned to hurry back to the amusement park to get my son.

I hadn't gone more than a few steps when my phone rang.

The park staffer's voice came fast and clipped.

"Is this Joe James's mother? Your son fell while riding the Velocity coaster. He's already been rushed to the hospital."

"What kind of parents are you? We asked, over and over, whether the boy was ten. We made a point of saying it's dangerous for anyone under ten to ride. How could you still put him on it?"

I couldn't hear another word after that. Cold all over, I turned and looked at Otis.

"Otis, do you know how old our son is this year?"

Looking at the blank, helpless expression on his face, my tears came down like rain.

"Otis, you'd better be able to answer."

"Because if you can't, I won't let either of you off. Not you, not Joy."

……

Otis frowned, thinking.

"Isn't he eight? Why are you asking?"

I stared at him, dazed.

I'd thought he'd only gotten Joe's age wrong.

So it turned out he hadn't even listened to the safety rule the staff kept repeating. He'd only wanted to get our son onto the longest ride as fast as possible, so he could break away and buy Joy her ice cream.

A ridiculous laugh escaped me.

"Otis, we're finished."

I turned to flag down a car, but he seized me, asking in disbelief.

"You want a divorce just because I got our son's age wrong?"

Joy nudged him gently, forcing a smile.

"Otis, forget it. I don't want it anymore."

She glanced at the window she was about to reach, her eyes faintly red.

"We were only a few minutes away, but it's fine. I've given Dad and you both to Eudora, so what's one ice cream on top of that."

Otis's face filled with tenderness for her at once.

"It's just ten minutes. Whatever happened, ten minutes wouldn't have made the difference, would it?"

I wrenched free of him and dropped into the taxi that had just pulled up.

Otis seemed to be calling my name.

But I didn't look back.

When I reached the hospital, Joe was still in emergency care.

A nurse handed me the form.

"The boy fell from a height. There's damage to his head, chest, and abdomen. Sign first, please. Where's the child's father?"

I gripped the pen, my hand shaking so hard I could barely write.

"He's dead."

The nurse gave me a look full of sympathy and asked nothing more.

I sat outside the emergency room, shivering, cold to the bone.

My phone rang suddenly, and on the other end came my mother's furious voice.

"Eudora, all Otis did was help Joy buy some ice cream, and you won't let it go! So what if childhood sweethearts are a little close? Don't think marrying Otis gives you the right to make a scene! "

"Your uncle Reginald Swanson won't even give me a civil look now! Joy finally accepted me as her stepmother. Are you determined to ruin all of it?"