Chapter 2

[Addison]

It is hard to keep my smile from cracking as Michael approaches, but somehow I manage to keep my expression sunny as I make my way over to my family. 

“Addy,” Michael said, out of breath, placing a hand on my shoulder and frowning as he looked up at the decorations. “Why are you here? I thought you had a case to work on.”

“I promised Jayson we’d have a special day,” I replied with a grin, glancing down at my son, who was clinging to Evelyn’s hand, avoiding my gaze. “So I shifted things around. I mentioned it last week…”

“It’s fine,” Michael interrupted, his voice casual. “I just wasn’t expecting you. I was in the neighborhood when I learned Evelyn was interviewing nearby.” He smiled at her, his tone overly friendly for two people who clearly had a past.

“Mommy, why are you ruining my birthday?” Jayson’s voice cracked with anger as he looked up at me. “Mama Evelyn was going to take us for ice cream! And a barbecue! And get me presents…”

I blinked, shocked. “Mama Evelyn?” I raised an eyebrow, glaring at Michael, who blushed and quickly looked away. “Excuse me?”

“It’s just a silly nickname,” Evelyn quickly dismissed, kneeling to hug Jayson. “Right, little bear?”

Jayson smiled, leaning into her embrace, and my heart sank. He never cuddled with me like that anymore.

“I made your favorite dinner, and we have treats waiting at home. You can’t have ice cream, remember?” I said, trying to keep my voice light.

“You never let me do ANYTHING!” Jayson shouted, pushing me out of the way as he ran off towards the playground where the other students were coming out for recess.

Michael’s face turned red with frustration. “I’ll get him back here,” he grumbled, storming off after Jayson.

“Michael, remember, he’s just a kid,” I called after him, but he was already gone. If I weren’t in these impractical heels, I’d have followed them.

“Oh, let them be,” Evelyn said, crossing her arms. “Michael knows how to handle him.”

I turned to her, my patience thin. “This is a family matter. I don’t see how it concerns you.”

Smiling sheepishly, Evelyn holds out her hand. “I guess I haven’t introduced myself. I’m Evelyn Valentine, an old college friend of Mikey,” she uses my husband’s old nickname and I cringe. Nobody’s called him that since college.

“Oh, I know who you are,” I smile back, struggling to keep my tone civil. “Michael told me all about you before we got married.”

Her face blanches and her smile fades but only for a moment before she tosses her long blonde hair over one shoulder, showcasing her elegant swan-neck as she flashes me an even more dazzling smile. “Silly me, of course.”

She then tilts her head to one side, then the other. “It’s strange how much you look like me,” she laughs, “We could almost be sisters. Wouldn’t that be something?”

It feels like she’s trying to press salt into a wound as if I needed it pointed out that I’m like a poor copy of the original. The first time I found her picture in his wallet by accident, I cried.

“It’s just a memory from the past,” he had told me just before covering it with our wedding photo. “See, now it’s fixed.”

Michael had convinced me that he preferred how much down-to-earth and approachable I am. But now, standing next to her, I feel…faded, plain, dull.

Taking a deep breath, I set my smile again and try my best to be pleasant. “So, you’re staying in town for a while?”

“Oh yes, I’m actually going to be a teacher at this school,” her eyes flash brightly as she confesses her exciting news. “That means I’ll be seeing both Michael and Jayson a lot more. I hope this won’t be a problem.”

Her tone isn’t exactly unfriendly, but it doesn’t feel kind either. As I stand there, not sure what to say, her lips curve at the edges, daring me to say something.

I don’t even get a chance to respond before Michael calls me. “Jayson is still upset. I think I need to calm him down first. I’ll bring him home later.”

Guilt creeps in—did I upset Jayson just now? I frown and ask, “All right. You’ll be back for dinner, right?”

Michael assures me before quickly hanging up.

With a sigh, I have no choice but to drive home alone.

On the way, my mind drifts to the past. I’ve been by Jayson’s side ever since Michael brought him home—an abandoned baby left in a basket by the dumpster.

I fell in love with him instantly. From the moment his little eyes locked with mine, I became his mother.

He was a sickly child, with so many issues and illnesses, so I put my career on hold to stay near him, working part-time at Michael’s firm. We even put off having more children so that Jayson could have all of our attention.

“Let’s wait,” he asked the last time I brought up the subject. “Just a little while longer.”

I agreed to wait before having a child of my own because I wanted to give Jayson all the love he deserves.

As soon as I get home, I head straight to the kitchen to make a snack for my son when he comes back home.

“I’ll leave them in his room, near his new presents, so he can have both at the same time.”

As I finish arranging the food on his plate, my phone beeps.

It's a text from Michael. “Sorry babe, I didn't want to disturb you.Jayson is starving so I've taken Jayson for a quick dinner. See you at night.”

“Oh,” I look around at the party I’ve prepared. Balloons and streamers decorate every surface, and a pile of presents sits next to the table.

“I guess we’ll meet up at dinner," I sigh, as I walk around the house, picking up Jayson’s things from school.

I feel guilty about how the afternoon started. I wanted to make it special, but I seem to have just made things worse.

Maybe if I leave him a little treat he'll forgive me.

Smiling at the thought of his reaction when he finds the treat, I place one of his favorite allergen-free cupcakes on his nightstand to find later when he gets home.

But my skirt knocks over the book of fables that Michael reads to Jayson every night at bedtime. Carefully I pick it up, trying to preserve the page they marked with a long thin piece of paper.

“Where did they…?”

As I pick it up to put it back into the book, I notice It’s one of those long strips of photos you get from a photo booth. Micahel is holding Jayson on his shoulders and standing next to a smiling blonde woman who looks up at both of them with love and affection.

“Mommy and Daddy,” the picture says on the back. The time stamp on the corner says this image was taken 3 months ago.

Except that the "mommy" isn’t me.--It’s Evelyn.

What is going on?