"Graham," Emily said through sobs, "if I divorced Dean, would you marry me?"

Graham looked at her for a long second. "If that's what you want, I'd marry you anytime."

His words exploded in my mind like a thunderclap.

Years ago, when I first found out I was pregnant, I had hopefully asked him, "Should we get married? It'll make things easier for the baby, especially with paperwork."

He had frowned and told me, "Nora, marriage feels like a burden to me. The baby can have your name or mine, it doesn't matter. I don't need a marriage license to give you both a good life."

He gave me everything I asked for for five years, except commitment.

I had truly believed he didn't believe in marriage. But now, I knew the truth. It wasn't about marriage. It was about who he wanted to marry.

I let out a bitter laugh, turned to head back inside, and walked downstairs with the resignation letter in my hands.

Dean's car had already pulled away from the curb.

Emily was still crying in Graham's arms. He held her carefully, wiping the tears from her face.

But when he noticed me, he stiffened and instinctively stepped away from her.

"Emily and Dean had a fight," he said quickly. "She's crashing here for a couple of nights."

Emily blinked at me in surprise. "Nora? What are you doing at Graham's house? What's your relationship to him?"

Before Graham could open his mouth, I smiled and answered for him. "I'm the housekeeper. My daughter's still little, so I work two jobs to save up for a better school."

Graham's expression darkened.

Emily tilted her head thoughtfully. "A housekeeper? I thought maybe you were his lover, but that wouldn't make sense. The woman Graham likes is..."

She glanced at him, then back at me. "Since you're the housekeeper, could you bring my suitcase upstairs? I'll be staying here for a few days."

She turned and walked off like she owned the place.

Graham picked up her heavy suitcase and followed her.

I stepped in front of him and held out the resignation letter. "I've got a document here that needs your signature."

He looked at me like I was an annoyance. "What kind of document's so urgent?"

"It's a client proposal. They need the signed copy this morning, but I've been waiting all day for you."

Graham pressed his lips together. He took the folder, flipped it open, and as he scrawled his name across the bottom, he glanced up at me.

"Why didn't you tell her the truth?"

I actually laughed. He was asking me why I hadn't told Emily I was his girlfriend?

"If I had, you think you wouldn't have been upset?"

His pen faltered slightly. He didn't meet my eyes.

"Just sign it," I said. "I need to bring Ms. Caldwell's suitcase to her room."

Graham quickly scribbled the last of his signature, too distracted by the matter with Emily to even glance at the title on the top page.

Before he could flip through the rest, I smoothly slid the document back into my bag.

After that, I brought the suitcase upstairs to Emily's room.

She glanced at me and said with a smirk, "You're something else, you know that?

"Dean helped you through college, and now you're working for Graham. Looks like every man in my life has ended up connected to you."

I looked her straight in the eye. Dean had become her husband while Graham was her loyal lapdog. I never said a word about it.

"You've got me beat, Ms. Caldwell. You have a wealthy man like Graham as your backup. But I really wonder, if you're trying to have both of them, will you end up with either one?"

Hearing this, her smile vanished.

I didn't wait around. I went straight to Naomi's room, but I stopped just outside the door when I heard Graham's voice inside.

"I ran into Emily on the way home," he said gently. "She was really upset, so I had to take care of her. That's why I didn't get your cake. But tomorrow, I'll get you an even bigger one. Deal?"

Naomi's voice brightened immediately. "Really? That's awesome, Daddy! I'll wait for you to bring it!"

Through the crack in the door, I saw her throw herself into his arms, beaming.

I stood there with a frown.

Our flight was tomorrow evening. If he really brought the cake in the afternoon, maybe Naomi would leave without any regrets.

By noon the next day, Graham really came home with a cake.

Naomi's eyes lit up. She threw herself into his arms with a bright smile. "Daddy, you really got me a cake!"

Graham took her hand and said warmly, "Come on, let's go make a wish."

The scene in front of me was one I hadn't seen in a long time.

Seeing Naomi smile so happily, I couldn't help but smile too.

As long as my daughter was happy, so was I.

Naomi climbed onto the chair, bracing her little hands on the edge of the table, bouncing with excitement. "Mommy, hurry! Help me open the box!"

"Alright." I untied the ribbon and opened the box. The peach cake sat there, perfectly decorated.

But Naomi's smile faded, and so did mine.

Graham didn't notice. He grabbed the plastic knife and cut a piece, placing it on a plate. "Happy birthday, Naomi."

Naomi didn't reach for it. She looked at him disappointedly.

Graham blinked. "You don't like it?"

I clenched the ribbon in my hand, trying to hold back my anger. "Graham, she can't eat peaches. She's allergic. The one who likes peach cake is Emily."

Last year, Naomi had an allergic reaction after eating peaches. Graham had been the one to rush her to the hospital and stay by her side the entire night.

But now, he had completely forgotten.

Was it because Emily and Dean had a fight? Did he think he finally had a chance? Was that why he had only remembered Emily's preferences?

Graham froze, like the memory had finally hit him. His face shifted with a flicker of guilt.

"I'm sorry. I really forgot," he said apologetically.

He looked at Naomi and added, "Emily got alcohol poisoning last night. She's in the hospital. I need to go see her. I'll bring home a new cake tonight and we'll celebrate again, okay?"

It was Emily again!

I could take him brushing me off, but never my daughter.

I took a sharp breath, ready to finally say everything I'd been holding back.

But before I could speak, Naomi lowered her eyes and shook her head. "It's okay, Mr. Ashford. You should go take care of her."

Graham stiffened. "Mr. Ashford? Why are you calling me that?"

I smiled. "Isn't that what you wanted? Mr. Ashford, my daughter is only doing what you wished."

He looked torn, like he wanted to say something else. But in the end, all he said was, "I'll be back soon."

The front door slammed behind him, and the house fell silent again.

When I turned to Naomi, I saw that her eyes were reddened.

I wrapped her up in my arms, my heart aching. "Sweetheart, there's been a change with my job. We're going abroad together, okay?"

She choked back a sob and nodded.

I stroked her hair gently. "But we probably won't see Daddy again. Is that alright?"

Surprisingly, Naomi hugged me tighter. Her voice came out through tears. "I know. He wants to take care of Emily. He doesn't have time for me or you.

"I know he doesn't want us. But it's okay. You have me, and I have you. That's enough."

Something broke inside me. My eyes burned, my chest clenched so tightly I could barely breathe.

"Alright, sweetheart. Let's go."

Graham didn't want us. So, we didn't want him either.

I handed in my resignation and left the office. Then, I took Naomi's hand and headed straight to the airport.

...

Graham came home that evening with another cake in hand.

But when he stepped into the quiet, empty house, a wave of panic washed over him.

He quickly pulled out his phone to call me, but it went straight to voicemail. He tried again, but there was still no answer.

I never turned off my phone. Not once in the years we'd been together.

Graham felt uneasy, sensing that something wasn't right.

He quickly called his assistant, Adeline Hamilton. "Check for me. Is Nora still at the company?"

There was a pause on the other end. "Mr. Ashford, didn't you approve her resignation yourself? She turned in the letter this afternoon. She's been gone for hours. She is probably already out of Eastmoore."