Chapter 2: It Was Already Decided
Nobody moved.
Jason opened his mouth.
Closed it again.
I walked toward him slowly.
"What did you tell our son?"
"It's not what you think."
"Then explain it to me.
Right now."
Lauren quietly reached for the zipper.
I turned to her.
"Don't."
She froze.
I looked back at Jason.
"How long has Max known about this dress?"
Jason looked at the floor.
"A few weeks."
"A few weeks."
I repeated it because I needed to hear it again.
"You told our seven-year-old I was leaving before you told me?"
Max was still standing in the doorway.
Small.
Watching everything.
I knelt down in front of him.
"Sweetheart.
What else did Daddy tell you?"
He looked at Jason first.
Like he was asking permission.
That look broke something in me.
Then Max reached into his little jacket pocket and held out a folded piece of paper.
"Daddy said to give you this.
But only if you found out."
My hands were shaking when I took it.
I unfolded it.
It was a date.
An address.
And four words at the bottom.
*It was already decided.*
I stood up and looked at my husband.
And for the first time in eleven years of marriage, I didn't recognize his face.
---
What was on that paper — and who else knew?
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What Jason said next made everything worse.
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