I Went to Buy a Crib and Found His Other FamilyChapter 3

The next package arrives on a Thursday.

Daniel's name is on the label.

He texts me before I get home.

Something got delivered. Can you bring it inside?

I carry the box in from the porch.

The top seam has split.

Through the gap, I can see the corner of a board book.

I set it on the kitchen table and open it.

Books.

Wooden toys.

A small jacket.

None of it is for a newborn.

I photograph the contents and the packing slip.

Then I leave the box where it is.

Daniel stops when he sees it that evening.

"Oh. You opened it."

"The tape was coming off."

He picks up the jacket.

"It's for Mark's kid. He's been sitting on an approval I need."

"Your boss?"

"Yeah."

"How old is his child?"

"Around one."

I lean against the counter.

"His wife asked me about high schools at the holiday party."

Daniel folds the jacket.

"His grandson. You know what I meant."

I don't answer.

He carries the box upstairs.

A few minutes later, the smell of his dinner turns my stomach.

I barely make it to the bathroom.

Daniel appears in the bathroom doorway.

"You're sick again?"

"Apparently."

"Did you eat something?"

I rinse my mouth and grip the sink.

"I have an appointment tomorrow. Could you come with me?"

He checks his phone.

"Tomorrow's bad."

"Why?"

"Final presentation on the project."

"I thought it was finished."

"The overseas part is finished. There's still reporting."

"Right."

He looks at me in the mirror.

"Take a car. Send me the bill."

"I can drive."

"I'm trying to help."

My phone lights up on the counter.

He's transferred a hundred dollars.

"Get yourself something nice for lunch afterward."

I look at the notification.

Then at the expensive jacket visible through the box he's left outside his office.

"Thanks."

At the appointment, I watch the screen while the technician moves the probe.

There's the small shape I'm still afraid to believe in.

The flicker.

Afterward, the doctor tells me everything looks as expected.

I sit in my car for a long time with the new picture in my lap.

Then I open the resale app.

The crib listing is still there.

The seller profile uses Vanessa's first name and a photograph of a white dog.

I search the name with our city.

It takes less than ten minutes to find a public profile with the same dog.

The newest post is a birthday party.

Blue balloons.

A cake shaped like a bear.

Daniel in the shirt I ironed before his last "trip."

He's holding the baby while Vanessa stands beside him.

Our little boy is ONE. Thank you, Daddy, for making today so special.

Posted twenty minutes ago.

The final presentation.

I save the photographs.

Farther down the page, I find a picture of Vanessa outside a restaurant.

A familiar purse hangs from her shoulder.

The same color.

The same clasp.

There's a pale scratch near the corner.

I enlarge the picture until it blurs.

Then I look at the date.

Six weeks ago.

I put the phone facedown.

For a while, I can't make myself pick it up again.

When Daniel comes home, he smells of beer.

"How was the doctor?"

His eyes stay on his phone.

"Nothing urgent."

"Good. Told you."

He leans over to kiss me.

I turn away.

"I'm tired."

"Okay."

He hardly seems to notice.

"I've got emails. Don't wait up."

From the bedroom, I hear his office door close.

Later, I hear him laugh.

Then I hear a baby fussing through his speaker, followed by Daniel's soft singing.

I lie on my side with the ultrasound pictures tucked into the drawer beside me.

In the next room, my husband sings someone else's child to sleep.