PART 2:
Reid sat at the head of the conference table in a dark charcoal suit.
He looked almost exactly as I remembered him—calm, commanding, and nearly impossible to read.
For the briefest moment, irritation flickered across his face.
Then he noticed the baby resting against my chest.
His expression changed so suddenly that several people turned in their seats to see what had startled him.
Reid rose slowly.
His eyes moved from Elodie to me, then returned to Elodie as though his mind could not understand what he was seeing.
“Maren?”
I stepped fully into the room and closed the doors behind me.
“Hello, Reid.”
His attorney, Tobias Crane, immediately stood and positioned himself between us.
There had been a time when Tobias behaved like a trusted friend of our family. He attended our wedding, advised us when we purchased our first home, and repeatedly promised that his only concern was protecting both sides of our marriage.
Now there was no friendship in his expression.
Only alarm.
“This is a confidential meeting,” he said sharply. “You were instructed to remain in the legal reception area until the documents were prepared.”
“I know exactly why this meeting is happening,” I replied. “That is why I came in before anything could be finalized.”
Reid still had not looked away from Elodie.
“Whose baby is that?”
The question wounded me more deeply than I had expected.
Not because he had asked it.
But because someone had worked very hard to ensure that he would have to.
I placed a protective hand against Elodie’s tiny back.
“Her name is Elodie.”
