“Hey, Paige. You look beautiful, but I’m sure you already knew that,” I replied.
Her eyes did that familiar roving thing, taking me in.
“No, just trying on clothes to see how they fit. You remember this dress?”
I took a closer look and then burst out laughing. “Isn’t that the dress I bought you for your birthday? What was it, eight years ago?”
She smiled brightly and laughed. “It was nine years ago, remember? I saw it in the window and mentioned I liked it. You said we couldn’t afford it, but you didn’t tell me you got that promotion. Then you surprised me by coming home with the dress and the good news.”
“I remember,” I said with a nostalgic smile. “We celebrated that night at the new Italian restaurant.”
Her gaze shifted, and she added softly, “That’s also the night we conceived the twins.”
Pleasant memories flooded my mind, recalling how close we were that night. But suddenly, those happy memories turned dark. I pictured myself struggling to please her while she was half asleep, only for another man to replace me in my mind. Though I didn’t remember Derek’s face, the thought of him haunted me.
The room felt heavy with unspoken tension. I shook off the thoughts and said coolly, “I have something for you.”
I dropped a manila envelope on the bed, and her expression darkened as she looked at it.
“Wow, you didn’t waste any time getting that ready, did you?” she said bitterly.
“Well, it did take me a year,” I joked, hoping to lighten the mood.
But she didn’t laugh or smile. She just turned back to the mirror, expressionless, as if the papers didn’t matter.
“I’ll look at them when I get a chance,” she said flatly, dismissing me.
I left the room puzzled by her reaction. I didn’t expect a celebration, but I thought she’d at least be relieved to start the process. I found Josh first, playing video games in his room.
“Is your homework done?” I asked sternly.
He turned quickly, guilt written on his face. “Almost,” he mumbled, looking away.
Seeing my expression, he added, “I’ll finish it now.”
“Good choice.”
He grumbled under his breath as he turned off the game, but I pretended not to hear. Sometimes it’s best to walk away before you have to discipline your kids for something minor. Next, I found Ally in the living room flipping through a photo album. The cover was our wedding album.
No need to ask about homework; she was always on top of it. I sat next to her and put my arm around her.
“Hey, pumpkin, what are you looking at?” I asked.