Chapter 2

Cole texted before I'd finished reading.

"The clinic can squeeze us in tonight," Maya announced. "Early pregnancy can be unpredictable. Take me there."

I didn't move. Cole's car pulled up instead, and Maya climbed in without another thought.

The following day, we attended what was supposed to be our wedding-menu tasting. Cole was already sitting beside Maya's mother.

"Mom, you really don't have to," he said, accepting a generous cash gift.

Maya's mother had told me I'd earn the right to call her Mom once we were married. Apparently Cole had earned it overnight. Maya barely glanced at me.

Cole was allergic to shellfish, so Maya had the seafood course removed from our menu. My father had personally selected it after the tasting, and Maya had promised to keep it.

"Your dad can eat shrimp any other day," she said. "Cole could have a reaction."

Then her mother raised another issue. "Since you're legally married, Cole ought to have a ceremony too. We'll hold a little garden wedding the day before Gavin's big event. No need to waste those decorations."

Maya nodded. "That makes sense."

I stared at her. "You're wearing the same dress?"

"It's only a few pictures. Don't make it weird."

My fiancée was planning to marry her childhood friend in my wedding venue—then change grooms for the public ceremony the next day.

"What about our house?" I asked.

"Cole should stay there until the pregnancy is stable," Maya said. "The baby's father needs to be nearby."

I'd spent six months arranging that house, down to the curtains and doorknobs. I'd never slept there.

At eight that night, my phone lit up with a notification from the front-door smart lock.

NEW FINGERPRINT ADDED. USER: COLE BENNETT.