At forty-five, I became pregnant for the first time, and before I could call my husband with the news, my doctor locked the examination-room door. Her smile disappeared as she turned the monitor away from the hallway. “Meline, the baby looks fine,” she whispered. “But I need you to look at something before you speak to Garrett.”

That evening, the house was quiet.

Garrett came home at 6:30 PM carrying a basket of fresh strawberries and a bottle of non-alcoholic sparkling wine. He looked handsome, wearing a fitted blue button-down shirt, his hair neatly styled.

"Hey, beautiful," Garrett said, walking into the kitchen and leaning down to kiss my lips.

I forced myself to stand still, allowing his lips to touch mine, feeling the cold, sickening detachment that had become my armor.

"How was work?" I asked, watching him set the strawberries on the island.

"Tiring," he sighed, rolling his shoulders. "Dispatch had me driving all over the North District. But hey—I brought your favorite." He pointed to the strawberries. "Dr. Petrova said vitamin C is great for the baby."

"How sweet of you," I said softly, taking a strawberry and taking a small bite. "Garrett?"

"Yeah, babe?" he asked, opening a cabinet to grab two wine glasses.

"Do you ever think about what our life would have been like if we never got pregnant?" I asked, leaning against the counter, watching him closely.

Garrett paused, holding two glasses in his hands. He turned around, looking at me with an expression of profound, tender sincerity—an expression that, three days ago, would have made my heart melt.

"Meline," he said softly, walking over and placing his hands gently on my hips. "I loved you before we tried for a baby, and I’d love you if it was just the two of us forever. You are my home. Everything I do... every long hour I work... it’s all for us. For our future."

The sheer audacity of the lie was breathtaking. He said it with such ease, such practiced emotion, that I almost wondered if he had convinced himself it was true.

"Our future," I repeated quietly.

"Our future," he confirmed, kissing my forehead. "Oh, by the way... Mom called me earlier. She sounded a little down. Said she dropped off some scones at your office and felt like she was bothering you."

"She wasn't bothering me," I said smoothly. "We just had a very enlightening conversation in the basement."

Garrett blinked. "In the basement?"

"About family," I smiled, stepping out of his embrace and walking toward the refrigerator. "About how important it is to protect what’s ours."

Garrett laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "Right. Well... Mom gets emotional. You know how she is."

He poured the sparkling juice into our glasses, handing one to me. "To us, Meline. To the family we’re finally building."

I lifted my glass, touching it against his.