smelled like old mon

e she didn't recognize. Gone was the man who'd traced constellations on her skin in Santorini, who'd whispered her name like a pr

ripped of inflection. "Fair terms. Reasonable custo

he papers away, not bothering to read them. "

's eyes were cold, distant-boardroom eye

uld have warmed her. Inste

her chair scraping against imported marble. "I came here because you asked me to hear you out. But this?" She gestured at t

e enclosed space. "You don't know what you're afraid

e out sharper than she intended, edged with

same scent that had been on her skin when she'd woken up alone in Santorini. "Because from where

unilateral decisions? You ambushed me with a lawyer befor

ugh his dark hair, leaving it disheveled-more human. "You show up, drop this bomb, then tell me you don't need

elf, protecting the tiny cluster of cells currently making her nauseous at the smell

r mother: *Mija, did you talk to the clin

ousand decisions she had to make while her body rebelled against everything from morning to night. T

e shook. "Try being present. Try being someone who shows u

s not

partner who chose me, not a legal obligation with quarterly custody swaps." She grabbed her bag, a thrifted canvas thin

tched between th

ice was raw. "My father left when

halfway t

back at her from the floor-to-ceiling window overlooking Fifth Avenue. "She worked herself to death trying to prove she could

n still water, creating ripple

omething I'm terrified of destroying." He turned to face her, and the vulnerability in his eye

od help h

unt and trusting it to last

ursday," Lily heard herself say.

. Not exactly. But it w

at worked. "I

're going to treat it like a business meeting. Don't c

searching for the word. "As someone

softly, a reminder of the un

ost more than her camera equipment. She turned back once, catching Ja

h Street," she said quietly. "For

do something stupid like cry or ask him to hold her

while her stomach churned. Morning sicknes

th Avenue, her phone buzzed a

ell you about the night in Santorini. Somethin

blood r

ould there