Chapter 3

Sydney's tears fell, as if she'd suffered some terrible injustice, and she tugged at Howard's sleeve. "I'm fine, Howard."

A flicker of tenderness crossed Howard's eyes, and his arm around me even loosened a little.

I threw his arm off. Caught off guard, Howard stumbled back a few steps and knocked into the table.

Sydney rushed over at once, glaring at me. "Ms. Bell, it's one thing to target me, but why would you do this to Howard!"

She clutched the hand he'd hurt and gently blew on it.

Her eyes were innocent and resolute, as if the two of them were the ones with an invincible true love.

Howard's face darkened too, and he snapped, irritated, "What exactly do you want?"

I flipped Howard's table right over.

Ink splashed out and soaked them both.

Sydney shrieked, "Howard, these are the clothes you bought me, they're expensive!"

No time to come home, but plenty of time to go clothes shopping with someone else.

No wonder she'd ended up on his lap.

Howard soothed her gently. "We'll just buy more."

Then he turned to me, his gaze strange, full of disappointment.

They were the ones who'd crossed the line, yet I was the one acting hysterical, like a shrew.

"Agatha Bell, take a moment and calm down."

I went home dejected and disheveled.

Sometimes I can't understand why two people who clearly love each other end up apart.

The truth is actually very simple. I just don't want to believe it.

A once-familiar heart changes so easily.

Once, Howard truly loved me.

But today, he was aching over someone else's ache.

My house is very clean, because I'm a neat freak.

My heart is the same.

If the person I've let inside it turns filthy, they shouldn't get to stay there.

I called my lawyer, my best friend.

"Draft me a divorce agreement."

The next morning, Vanessa drove over to my place bright and early with the divorce agreement.

After she'd heard me out, she cursed Howard up and down, said he wasn't even human.

But just as I was about to sign, she pressed my hand down again.

She said seriously, "Have you really thought this through? He's no good, sure, but what about Muriel?"

"She's only five, and she's going to be living in a single-parent home. Will she get talked about at preschool? Will it hurt her psychologically?"

"I've seen too many divorce cases."

"But the child is innocent."

My heart was pierced with pain.

I wavered.

Picturing Muriel's innocent, guileless smile, I suddenly couldn't bring myself to do it.

However badly Howard and I got along.

Muriel would never want her real parents to split up at such a young age.

"Think it over some more. If you two divorce and Howard really does marry that Sydney, do you think she'll be good to Muriel?"

"Even if you get custody, Howard still has visitation rights. What if Muriel insists on going to Howard's place and gets mistreated?"

I slowly set down the pen.

Vanessa knows me well.

She knew that was the thing I feared most of all.

Seeing me fall silent, Vanessa sighed.

"Why don't you go ask Muriel what she wants?"

I stood up at once, resolute.

I hurried to my parents' house with Vanessa, only to be told that Howard had already come and taken Muriel.

"Howard came for Muriel first thing this morning, said he was taking her to Disneyland."

"There was someone else sitting in his car too—looked like a woman."

The fire in my chest flared up again.

The thought of Howard and Sydney taking Muriel along sent my emotions spiraling out of control.

I ran back to the car and raced toward Disneyland.

It's supposed to be the happiest place in the world, yet I felt a chill through my whole body.

I was truly scared.

Scared Muriel would get hurt, scared Sydney meant her harm, scared that Howard, who'd barely ever looked after Muriel, might slip up for even a moment.

Disneyland is huge, and finding them should have been hard.

But it seemed even fate was on my side.

I'd walked only a few more steps when I saw them on the carousel.

Sydney and Muriel sat together, while Howard took photos of them from the other side.

Happy as could be, just like a family of three.