“That’s all?”
“No.”
Rowan waited.
Dad remained calm.
“I also think Phoebe married you because she believed you were more than your worst decision. Whether she still believes that is something only she can answer.”
I stood silently in the hallway.
Then Dad added, “You should probably stop worrying about my opinion. Mine isn’t the one that matters.”
That evening, Dad asked me to walk with him.
We left Leo with Rowan and went to the small park two blocks away.
Early spring had softened the air, and daffodils were beginning to open.
“You’re thinking too loudly,” he said.
“Sorry.”
“Your mother used to do that.”
I smiled slightly.
“What would she say?”
“That depends.”
“On what?”
“Whether she was talking to you or talking to Rowan.”
I laughed.
It felt strange after everything.
But good.
Dad stopped beside a bench.
“Phoebe, I want to tell you something before you make any decisions.”
“I’m not staying because of Leo.”
“I know.”
“And I’m not leaving because you’re angry.”
“I’m not asking you to.”
He looked toward the playground.
“Marriage is rarely decided by one terrible day,” Dad said. “But sometimes one terrible day shows you something you’ve been refusing to see.”
I studied him.
“What do you think I’ve been refusing to see?”
“That is for you to discover.”
Then he started walking again.
Typical Dad.
Even billionaires could be irritatingly vague.
The following morning, Selina called.
I nearly ignored it.
Curiosity won.
“Hello?”
“Phoebe.”
Her voice was unusually controlled.
“Selina.”
“I understand your father is visiting.”
Of course that was where she began.
“Yes.”
There was a pause.
“Rowan explained who he is.”
“I imagine that was interesting.”
“I had no idea.”
“No.”
Another pause.
“I think perhaps we should meet.”
“No.”
The answer came out so quickly that even I was surprised.
Selina inhaled.
“I’d like to apologize.”
“You can do that over the phone.”
Silence.
“I shouldn’t have said what I said while you were in labor.”
“No.”
“And Rowan should have left dinner.”
“Yes.”
“I was upset.”
“I know.”
“It was my sixtieth birthday.”
“I also know that.”
Her tone softened.
“It felt important.”
“My son’s birth felt important too.”
“I realize that now.”
Something about her sounded almost sincere.
Almost.
Then she said something I hadn’t expected.
“I was wrong about your father.”
I leaned back.
“That’s not the part you need to apologize for.”
“I know.”
For the first time, Selina sounded tired rather than defensive.
“I spent years believing Rowan needed to prove himself. I thought marrying you would make him dependent on your family.”
I said nothing.
“And when I discovered who your father was, I realized I had been judging you based on something I didn’t even know.”
“You were judging me before you knew him.”
“Yes.”
Her answer came quietly.
“I was.”
That honesty surprised me.
“What changed?”
“Rowan.”
I frowned.
“He told me he had seen you with Leo.”
My chest tightened.
“He said you didn’t scream at him. You didn’t throw him out. You didn’t humiliate him.”
“That doesn’t mean everything is forgiven.”
“I know.”
She paused.
“He also told me you asked him why he didn’t come.”
“Yes.”
“And he told me what he answered.”
I closed my eyes.
For once, neither of us needed to say more.
Selina continued.
“I spent years teaching my son that keeping me happy was his responsibility.”
I stared at the wall.
“That isn’t something you can fix with one apology.”
“No.”
Her voice cracked slightly.
“But perhaps I can stop making it worse.”
I believed she meant it.
I wasn’t sure whether that was enough.
But it was something.
That afternoon, Rowan came into the bedroom while I was feeding Leo.
He didn’t sit.
He stood in the doorway.
“I need to tell you something.”
I looked up.
“What?”
He hesitated.
“It isn’t about your father.”
That immediately caught my attention.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.
“I found something.”
He placed it on the dresser.
I picked it up.
There was an email from his bank.
Then another.
Then several transaction notifications.
My stomach tightened.
“What am I looking at?”
“I don’t know yet.”
I opened the first statement.
A transfer had been made from Rowan’s personal account to a company I didn’t recognize.
Then another.
Then another.
The amounts weren’t enormous individually.
