But now, that ring sat on the finger of a complete stranger.

My expression went cold. I forced down the shock roiling through me and kept my voice steady.

"That's a beautiful ring. Where did you get it?"

Alberta let out a scoff, her face dripping with contempt.

"My husband's idiot ex-wife gave it to him. Too bad she didn't last long. Died five years ago."

"Though I suppose she died for a good cause."

"Right before she croaked, she left my husband a house, a car, and this pair of diamond rings."

"Now every neighbor on the block tells me I hit the jackpot."

My fists clenched at my sides. My eyes burned as I looked up at her.

"Your address. Is it 502, Unit 2, Building 6, Crestview Residences?"

Alberta blinked. Suspicion flooded her face instantly.

"How would you know that?"

"Who the hell are you?"

A bitter smile tugged at the corner of my mouth.

So it was true.

502, Unit 2, Building 6, Crestview Residences.

That was my house. The home I'd bought five years ago for my wedding to Stewart.

I'm the idiot ex-wife you keep talking about.

But that thought never left my lips.

Five years ago, Stewart had gotten into trouble with a group of drunks who'd been harassing him. He'd fought back too hard. Excessive self-defense. Involuntary manslaughter.

The moment I found out, I told him we needed to call the police.

He grabbed me and wouldn't let go.

He dropped to his knees right in front of me, eyes red and brimming with tears, begging.

"Baby, please, you have to save me..."

"I didn't mean to do it. If they lock me up, my career, my future... my whole life is over!"

He begged me to take the fall for him.

He cried so hard he could barely breathe.

I hesitated. This was prison. This was gambling away my entire life.

No matter how blinded by love I was, I couldn't just agree to something like that.

But then he said something that made my decision instant.

Something that made me willing to sacrifice everything, even my own life.

He said,

"I promise, I'll take care of our baby..."

His hand rested on my stomach, tears streaming down his face.

I stared up at him in shock. "What did you say? I'm pregnant?"

No wonder my belly had gotten bigger lately. I'd thought I was just overeating.

I'd gone in for a checkup, and the results had come back. He'd known and hadn't told me.

Stewart nodded.

"I was going to tell you the good news tonight. I never expected something like this to happen."

"If I go to prison, you'll be all alone with a baby. How would you raise a child by yourself? You'd suffer more than you can imagine."

"But if you confess, the baby can be delivered and I can raise it on the outside. You might even get a reduced sentence..."

"This is the child we've been praying for ever since we got married. Three years of trying, all those remedies, all that hoping. And it's finally happening."

My throat closed. I couldn't speak.

He was right. This baby was nothing short of a miracle.

We'd even gone to fortune tellers, and more than one had told us we were destined to be childless, that conceiving would be nearly impossible.

For the sake of this precious, hard-won baby.

I gritted my teeth and agreed.

"Stewart, promise me. When I give birth, you'll take good care of our child."

"The manslaughter charge. I'll confess."

And just like that, I was gone for five years.

In the beginning, Stewart still sent things through people now and then. Letters, too.

Then gradually, the messages stopped coming.

He said it was because the baby was so young, and taking care of a child alone wasn't easy. He was just too overwhelmed.

I understood. I never pushed him about it.

In prison, I poured everything I had into being a model inmate, day after day.

All I'd wanted was to get out early and reunite with my family.

Now I was out.

And I'd discovered that my husband had built a second home while I was gone. He'd even found himself a new wife.

Alberta must have noticed the look on my face, the way I'd gone quiet and still.

She frowned, pulling the baby closer, and took two subtle steps back.

"Who even is this woman?" she muttered to the security guard beside her. "So strange."

Then she saw my eyes turning red.

That stopped her short. She fumbled for a tissue and thrust it toward me.

"Hey, sweetie, what's wrong? Did something happen? Don't cry."

"Just tell me what's going on. What do you need my husband for?"

I forced the tears back and managed a thin smile.

"I've been away from home for five years. Hearing you talk about how much you and your husband love each other just reminded me of my own family, that's all."

Alberta's expression softened.

"Well, why didn't you say so?"

Her gaze drifted downward, landing on the T-shirt under my jacket. Her eyes lit up.

"Is that a Graystone University shirt?"

"What a coincidence! My husband went to Graystone too. You two are alumni!"

I nodded, following her lead.

"That's right. I was Stewart's junior."

Alberta's face broke into delight. She patted my shoulder.

"Why didn't you say so sooner? You're practically family!"

"You've been standing out here in the cold forever. You must be starving. Come on, dinner's on me."

I wanted to refuse, but Alberta was impossible to turn down. She tucked the baby against one hip, grabbed my arm with her free hand, and pulled me to a restaurant near campus.

She waved the server over and ordered dish after dish without blinking.

"Don't be shy! These are all local specialties. Eat as much as you want."

Then she pulled out a bank card to pay, and I froze.

That was my card. The one linked to our family savings.

Stewart had given her that too?

I watched her sample the dishes she'd so extravagantly ordered. A bite here, a taste there, then she'd push the plate aside.

Wasteful didn't begin to cover it.

"Are you the one who handles the finances in your house?" I asked, keeping my voice casual.

"Of course! My husband is so good to me. The moment we got together, he handed over all the money."

"His favorite thing to say is, 'Where a man's money is, that's where his heart is.'"

"I always tease him about it. 'Aren't you afraid I'll go crazy spending it all?'"

"You know what he says?"

"He says if I'm spending too much, it just means he isn't earning enough." She laughed. "Honestly, where do you even find a man like that?"

My grip tightened around my chopsticks. I could only imagine what my face looked like.

Five years of marriage, and Stewart had kept every penny under lock and key. He'd never once been that generous with me. Not once.

If it weren't for how perfectly every detail lined up, I could have sworn the Stewart she was describing and the man I'd married were two completely different people.

Alberta was still gushing, animated and bright-eyed.

She picked up a piece of sweet-and-sour pork, took one bite, and wrinkled her nose, pushing the plate away.

"This chef is mediocre. Not half as good as my husband's cooking."

I stared at that piece of pork with its single bite missing, and something twisted inside my chest.

Every time I used to come home on leave, Stewart would have his signature sweet-and-sour pork simmering on the stove, ready and waiting for me.

Five years.

Ever since I'd gone to prison in his place, I hadn't tasted a single bite of his cooking.

I thought about the year I'd gotten sick. I'd begged people to carry a message home for me, asked them again and again, just so Stewart would come see me.

All I'd wanted was one taste of his sweet and sour ribs.

I'd sent messages through every channel I could find, again and again, but I never once saw Stewart in person. All I ever got back were his apologetic replies.

"I'm sorry, babe. I really can't find the time."

I told myself it was all for our child. That was the only way I could swallow it and keep going.

What I never expected was that while I sat in prison serving his sentence, Stewart had already built another life on the outside. A new home. A new wife.

And all those times he said he couldn't find the time? He'd been in the kitchen making sweet and sour ribs for another woman.

Alberta noticed I hadn't touched my chopsticks. She picked up a piece of the shredded pork and chewed it twice before setting her own down.

"My husband's version is way more flavorful. He knows I can't stand ginger, so he always minces it so fine you can't even taste it."

My hand clenched around my fork. My knuckles went white.

When Stewart used to cook for me, he never bothered picking out the ginger. He'd just say it was good for circulation, and when I complained, he'd glare at me and lecture me like I was being ungrateful.

"You're lucky to have food at all. Stop being so picky."

"Babe, if you want to stay healthy, you can't be fussy about what you eat."

But now, with something to compare it to, the truth was painfully clear.

It wasn't that he didn't know how. It wasn't that he didn't care. He simply hadn't wanted to do it for me.

A wave of acid surged up my throat, churning my stomach inside out.

"Hey, you okay?"

Alberta's voice pulled me back.

The child in her arms whimpered softly and reached for a toy car on the table.

"Do you think I'm too high-maintenance?" Alberta laughed. "My husband says the same thing, but he still cooks everything the way I like it."

She bounced the little girl on her knee, her eyes full of warmth.

"Look at this little one. She's only three or four and she already takes her daddy's side. Last time I pretended to yell at him, this girl grabbed my hand and bit me."

"Doesn't help me out at all. I have no idea who she takes after."

That one sentence made my head snap up.

Could it be... that Stewart had his reasons for all of this?

Had everything he'd done been for our child?

For the first time, I truly looked at the little girl. Before I'd gotten pregnant, Stewart and I had already agreed: boy or girl, the baby's name would be Amelia.

My eyes burned. My vision blurred as I stared at the child.

"What's your daughter's name?"

"Amelia."

I knew it.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

Stewart hadn't betrayed me. Maybe life had forced his hand, and he'd had no choice but to live with another woman. But he'd kept our baby. He'd brought our child into this world.

I could barely contain myself. Carefully, I rose from my seat and crouched down beside the little girl.

"Sweetheart, can you call me Mama?"

Alberta stiffened instantly. She pulled the child behind her, shielding her.

"What is wrong with you?"

"You can't just ask someone's kid to call you Mama!"

I hurried to wipe my tears, trying to pull myself together.

"I'm sorry. She just reminded me of my own daughter."

"When I left my husband and child, my baby hadn't been born yet. She'd be about your daughter's age by now."

Alberta blinked. Something like guilt flickered across her face. "Oh... I see."

She scratched the back of her head, and then, as if to comfort me, she pushed the little girl into my arms with surprising generosity.

"Well, in that case, you can be her godmother from now on."

"Amelia, say hi to Mama."

I hadn't expected Alberta to be so open-handed.

I just wondered whether she had any idea that this child wasn't her biological daughter.

Back at the table, I picked up a piece of broccoli and put it in my mouth. It tasted like nothing at all.