Meryl met my gaze coolly. “Not particularly.”
There was nothing left to argue, so I stormed away, glancing one last time at her.
***
The drive home was a blur. My hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles ached. By the time I picked up Emily and returned home, rage had crystallized into resolve.
I spent the afternoon methodically packing Greg’s things. By evening, the entryway was lined with his stuff, neatly contained and ready for removal.
When his key turned in the lock, I waited in the living room, Emily already asleep upstairs.
“What’s all this?” he asked, gesturing to the luggage.
“I visited your mother today. At The Grand Apartments. Unit 504B.”
The color drained from his face. He opened his mouth, closed it, then tried again. “Sandra, I can explain…”
“You lied to me. You looked me in the eye and said we couldn’t afford preschool for our daughter while secretly paying $3,400 a month for your mother to live like a queen.”
“It’s complicated…”
“No, it’s actually quite simple. You chose your mother over your child. Over our family.”
“She needed help! She was depressed in that townhouse. She was all alone.”
“And what about Emily? What about her needs and her future? You could have helped your mother without lying to me.”
“I knew you wouldn’t understand. You’ve never liked my mother.”
“This isn’t about liking her! It’s about honesty and partnership and being parents together.” Tears streamed down my face. “It’s about the fact that you didn’t even discuss this major financial decision with me, but you shut me down instantly when I wanted a fraction of that amount for our daughter.”
Silence stretched between us, a chasm too wide to bridge.
“What do you want me to do, Sandra?”
“I want you to leave. Go stay with your mother in her fancy apartment. Figure out your priorities.”
“For how long?”
“I don’t know. Maybe forever.”
***
The weeks that followed were brutal and beautiful. I enrolled Emily in Little Explorers and paid the deposit with the money from our joint account before Greg could empty it. I took on more freelance gigs and operated on four hours of sleep most nights.
Emily thrived at preschool, coming home each day bubbling with stories about new friends and activities. Watching her bloom eased the ache of our fractured family.
Greg texted daily about Emily, occasionally asking about me. I kept my responses brief and focused on our daughter. He saw her on weekends, took her to the park or the zoo, and always returned her on time with a wistful look that I pretended not to notice.
One rainy Tuesday, two months after he left, Greg appeared at our door unannounced.
“Can we talk?” he asked, soaked from the downpour, looking thinner and older.
I let him in.
“Mom moved to Miami… with her new boyfriend.”
“Good for her.”
“She maxed out my credit cards before she left. And the lease at The Grand is in my name for another ten months.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Because you were right… about everything. I let her manipulate me. I betrayed you and Emily. And I’m so, so sorry.”
“Sorry doesn’t fix the trust you broke.”
“I know.” He reached for my hand. “But maybe time could? I miss you. I miss our family.”
“Emily asks about you every night… about when Daddy’s coming home,” I admitted.
Hope flickered in his eyes. “And what do you tell her?”
“That I don’t know.”
“And what would you tell me if I asked the same question?”
I pulled my hand away gently. “That you can rebuild your finances, your trust, and possibly even your marriage… but not overnight. And not without proving that we come first now.”
“I understand. Can I start with dinner? Once a week? The three of us?”
I thought about Emily’s face lighting up when Greg walked through the door.
“Dinner, yeah, once a week. We’ll see where it goes from there.”
Greg smiled. “It’s a start.”
As he turned to leave, I called after him, “And Greg? If you ever lie to me again about anything… money, your mother, or where you’ve been… there won’t be another chance. Some leases can’t be renewed once they’re broken.”
“I know,” he said, his eyes meeting mine with new clarity. “I won’t waste this one.”
