Chapter 1

Three years after our "paper" divorce, my six-year-old daughter, Lily, walked for two hours through the cold streets just to find me.

She gently tugged at the edge of my coat.

"Mommy, I’m so hungry."

My heart dropped.

On the way to get her food, a post on my Snapchat suddenly flashed through my mind.

It was a photo Julian had posted just a few hours ago.

It was a picture of a beautifully prepared, organic kid's meal.

His caption read: Nothing is too good for the kids. Always homemade with love.

"Didn’t your daddy make you dinner?" I asked, my voice trembling.

Lily shook her head.

"No. That was for Leo."

I froze in my tracks.

Leo was Celeste's son. Celeste, his first love.

In that instant, the cold truth washed over me. There was never a "paper" divorce. He had left me for real.

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I pushed the menu in front of Lily.

But my eyes kept drifting downward.

I saw the worn-out, scuffed edges of her little sneakers.

I couldn't bear to think about how she had walked such a long distance all by herself.

Lily flipped to the very back of the menu and pointed to the simplest thing on the page—a small bowl of Mac and Cheese.

My chest tightened. It physically ached.

"Why only that, sweetheart? You can have whatever you want with Mommy!"

I thought she was just feeling distant because we hadn't seen each other in a month.

Forcing a smile, I took the menu back and ordered three more of her favorite dishes.

But Lily shook her head fearfully.

"Daddy doesn't let me eat that much."

"He says girls need to stay skinny to look pretty."

"Mommy, I was just so hungry... that's why I came to find you. Please don't tell Daddy."

She looked up at me, her eyes filled with an anxiety that no six-year-old should ever have.

We had only been apart for a month. How did she become like this?

My heart was bleeding.

Tears blurred my vision, and I quickly began piling food into her plate to hide them.

"You’re only six, baby. You need to eat to grow."

"Didn't Mommy send you those bags of pecans last week? If you were hungry, you should have eaten some of those."

Regret hit me like a tidal wave.

I should have packed her more snacks. Even some crackers would have saved her from this misery.

The last time I saw her, her cheeks were chubby and rosy.

Now, she looked like a shadow of herself.

Lily looked up and saw a tear slip down my cheek.

She stood up on her chair, reaching out her tiny hand to wipe my tears away.

But the moment her fingers touched my face, a cold sweat broke out across my back.

I grabbed her wrist.

Her tiny, delicate hands were covered in raw, healing cuts and bruises.

"What happened to your hands?"

I tried to keep my voice steady, but I was crumbling inside. My voice shook violently.

But Lily just gave me a small, innocent smile.

"I got them from shelling the pecans."

"Daddy said the dog would choke on the shells, so he made me shell them all and grind them into powder for the dog's food."

"I shelled two whole bags, Mommy! Aren't I strong?"

She tilted her head up, waiting for my praise.

But the words caught in my throat.

It felt like swallowing glass.

I excused myself, walked out of the restaurant, and dialed Julian's number.

It rang three times before he finally picked up.

"What is wrong with you?" I screamed. "You starve Lily, and then you make her shell the pecans I sent her just to feed your damn dog?"

"Julian, do you even deserve to be a father?"

The rage I had kept locked in my chest exploded.

Julian’s voice on the other end was cold, indifferent.

"She eats less now so she won't have to suffer through diets when she’s older. I’m saving her from ending up like you, obsessing over weight every other week."

"And stop sending those cheap organic snacks. Who knows where they’re sourced? You can’t even guarantee they’re clean."

Before I could speak, the line went dead.

He was right about one thing.

Julian was a billionaire's son. He grew up in absolute luxury. Even his kid's meals were topped with caviar.

But Lily didn't get caviar. She didn't even get her pecans.

She had nothing.

I stood there, listening to the heavy thud of my own heartbeat.

I wiped my face, refusing to let my daughter see me break down.

But Lily was too smart. She noticed the moment I walked back in.

She lowered her fork, not daring to look me in the eye.

"Mommy... is Daddy mad at me?"

I forced a warm smile and stroked her hair.

"No, sweetie. Daddy wants you to eat up."

"After this, Mommy will take you to your piano class, okay?"

She was too young.

I didn't want her to carry the weight of our broken family.

But Lily just looked at me blankly.

"The piano class?"

"Daddy said Leo needed it more. He gave my spot to him."

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