Chapter 1 - The Woman by the Window
“Wellness retreat?”
Leah repeated the words before she could stop herself.
Simone slowly turned her phone face down on the blanket.
For a moment, neither woman spoke.
Then Simone smiled.
It was not an embarrassed smile.
It was the cold, amused expression of someone who had just realized another person knew too much.
“My husband worries,” Simone said.
“So I simplify things for him.”
Leah stared at her.
“You told him you were at a wellness retreat when you’re eight months pregnant in a hospital?”
Simone reached for a bottle of expensive moisturizer.
“You’d be amazed what people believe when they desperately want to believe you.”
Something about the sentence made Leah uncomfortable.
Before she could respond, the door opened.
Doreen Carver entered carrying a bouquet of white roses large enough to hide half her body.
Nathan followed several steps behind her.
Leah immediately noticed Simone go still.
Nathan noticed too.
His eyes met Simone’s for less than a second.
But it was enough.
Simone looked away.
Nathan cleared his throat.
“Hey.”
Leah felt a strange pressure settle inside her chest.
“You know her?”
Nathan frowned.
“Who?”
Leah nodded toward the other bed.
“Simone.”
Nathan glanced over casually.
“No.”
The answer came too quickly.
Simone laughed softly.
“Should I be offended?”
Nathan did not answer.
Doreen placed the flowers on Leah’s bedside table.
“You look tired.”
“I am tired.”
“That isn’t surprising.”
Doreen’s gaze traveled over Leah’s face with unsettling concentration.
“You’ve always struggled with stress.”
Leah frowned.
“Have I?”
Nathan immediately stepped between them.
“Mom just means pregnancy has been hard.”
Doreen smiled.
“Exactly.”
She reached into her handbag and removed a folder.
“Dr. Rusk mentioned there may be paperwork later.”
Leah looked at the folder.
“What paperwork?”
“Nothing important.”
Doreen placed it beside Leah’s water pitcher.
“Hospital authorizations.”
Leah opened the folder.
Several pages had yellow tabs beside signature lines.
One page was titled Temporary Medical Decision Authorization.
Another referred to emergency guardianship.
Her stomach tightened.
“Why would I need this?”
Nathan stepped closer.
“It’s just precautionary.”
“Precautionary for what?”
“In case something happens during delivery.”
Leah looked at him.
“And why would your mother need authority over my baby?”
The room became very quiet.
Simone was pretending to look at her phone.
But Leah noticed she was listening to every word.
Doreen’s smile hardened.
“You’re exhausted.”
“That wasn’t an answer.”
Nathan lowered his voice.
“Leah.”
“No.”
She pushed the folder away.
“I’m not signing anything.”
Doreen’s expression changed for only a fraction of a second.
It was irritation.
Pure and unmistakable.
Then it disappeared.
“Of course.”
She picked up the folder again.
“We can discuss it later.”
Leah watched her return it to her handbag.
Simone suddenly shifted beneath her blanket.
Her phone lit up.
A message appeared across the screen.
Leah could not see everything.
She saw only three words before Simone grabbed the phone.
DON’T LET LEAH—
Simone turned the screen away.
Leah looked at Nathan.
May you like
His phone was in his hand.
And his thumb had just moved away from the screen.
