9. Sophie
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Sophie
I make it two blocks before I let myself smile.
He touched my face. Just to wipe away foam, sure, but the way his thumb brushed against my lip… the way his eyes darkened when he looked at me… the way his voice went rough and low…
I invited him to dinner. I actually invited him to dinner.
What is wrong with me?
Anna babbles happily against my shoulder, clearly thrilled that her favorite person just held her for ten minutes. I bounce her absently as I walk, trying to sort through the chaos of emotions in my chest.
It’s too soon. Way too soon. My marriage just ended. I should be focusing on practical things - lawyers, custody arrangements, finding a permanent job - not getting butterflies over a mysterious neighbor with dark eyes and a protective streak.
But God, those eyes.
And that voice.
And the way he looked at me like I was something precious. Something worth protecting.
No one’s ever looked at me like that before. Not even Caleb, who I thought was the love of my life for three years. Caleb looked at me like a possession. Like something he’d acquired. Like a trophy on his shelf.
Dominic looks at me like he’s seeing me. Really seeing me.
I’m so lost in thought that I almost miss the figure stepping out of the alley in front of me.
“Sophie.”
My blood turns to ice.
Andrea.
She looks terrible. Makeup smeared, hair tangled, wearing what looks like yesterday’s clothes. She’s been crying - I can see the tear tracks cutting through her foundation - and there’s something wild in her eyes that makes me instinctively clutch Anna tighter.
“Andrea.” I keep my voice flat, controlled. “What do you want?”
“I want you to give him back.” Her voice cracks on the words. “Caleb. He won’t talk to me anymore. Not since you left. He says he needs to focus on getting Anna back, on fixing his marriage, and I-” She takes a shuddering breath. “This is your fault. All of it.”
“My fault?” I laugh, and it’s not a nice sound. “You slept with my husband. You sent him pictures in lingerie while I was on my honeymoon. And somehow that’s my fault?”
“You weren’t taking care of him!” She steps closer, and I step back, putting more distance between us. “You were always tired, always with the baby, always too drained to give him what he needed. What was he supposed to do?”
“Not cheat on me?”
“He deserves someone who appreciates him.”
“Then go find someone who appreciates you.” My voice is sharp now, cutting. “Because Caleb never will. You’re just a convenient distraction to him. A warm body when his wife wasn’t available.”
Her face twists with rage. “You don’t know anything.”
“I know that you’re standing on a public street, looking like you haven’t slept in days, chasing a man who’s already forgotten you exist.” I adjust Anna on my hip, keeping my body angled away from Andrea.
“I know that Caleb is using you, just like he used me. And I know that if you have any self-respect left, you’ll walk away now before he destroys you too. ”
“He loves me.”
“He doesn’t love anyone but himself.”
We stare at each other, and I watch the war play out on her face. The desperation. The denial. The tiny spark of doubt that she’s trying so hard to smother.
Then her eyes drop to Anna, and something dangerous flickers in them.
“She should be with her father,” Andrea says. “With her real family. Not being dragged around by a mother who can’t even afford a decent apartment.”
“Don’t.”
“She’s Caleb’s daughter. She belongs with him.” Andrea takes another step forward. “Give her to me. I’ll take her back where she belongs, and then Caleb will see-”
“Touch my daughter and I’ll break your hand.”
The words come out low and vicious, a voice I didn’t know I had. Andrea freezes, startled by the shift in my tone.
“I’m serious,” I continue, and I am. I’ve never been more serious about anything in my life. “Anna is mine. You don’t get to look at her. You don’t get to talk about her. You definitely don’t get to touch her. Are we clear?”
“You can’t-”
“Are we clear?”
She opens her mouth to argue, and that’s when I hear footsteps behind me. Heavy, purposeful, moving fast.
Dominic.
He appears at my side like he materialized from thin air, and the look on his face makes Andrea stumble backward.
His eyes are dark with fury. His jaw is locked so tight I can see the muscle jumping beneath his skin.
His whole body is coiled with tension, ready to unleash at the slightest provocation.
“Leave,” he says, and the single word carries more threat than a full sentence could.
“This is none of your business,” Andrea tries, but her voice wavers.
“I’m making it my business.” He moves to stand slightly in front of me, positioning his body between us and Andrea.
I should object - I don’t need him to fight my battles - but the truth is, his presence is making me feel safer than I have in days.
“Sophie told you to stay away from her daughter. I’m telling you to stay away from both of them. ”
“Or what?”
“Or you find out what happens when you don’t.”
The threat hangs in the air, heavy and real. Andrea’s face goes pale. She looks between us - me clutching Anna, Dominic radiating danger - and something finally breaks.
“This isn’t over,” she whispers, but she’s backing away now, retreating. “Caleb’s going to get Anna back. You’ll see. And then-”
“Leave,” Dominic repeats.
She leaves.
The moment she’s out of sight, the adrenaline drains out of me like someone pulled a plug. My knees go weak, and I reach for the nearest wall to steady myself.
“Hey.” Dominic’s hand is on my arm, warm and solid. “You’re okay. She’s gone.”
“She tried to take Anna.” My voice shakes. “She was going to - she wanted to-”
“But she didn’t.” His other hand comes up to cup my face, tilting it so I’m looking at him. His eyes are still dark, but the anger has been replaced by something softer. Concern, maybe. Or tenderness. “You stopped her. You were incredible.”
“I threatened to break her hand.”
“Like I said. Incredible.”
A laugh bubbles up from somewhere inside me, slightly hysterical. “I don’t normally threaten people.”
“Maybe you should start.” His thumb brushes across my cheekbone, and I realize he’s wiping away a tear I didn’t know had fallen. “You’re stronger than you think, Sophie. I watched you face her down. Watched you protect your daughter. You didn’t need me at all.”
“But you came anyway.”
“I’ll always come.”
The words settle between us, heavy with meaning. I stare up at him, this man I barely know, who keeps showing up when I need him most. Who looks at me like I matter. Who touches me so gently, like I’m something precious.
I should step back. Put distance between us. Remember all the reasons this is a bad idea.
Instead, I lean into his hand.
His breath catches. His eyes darken. For one heart-stopping moment, I think he’s going to kiss me, right here on this public street with my baby on my hip and my entire life in shambles around us.
Then Anna makes a loud cooing sound, and the moment shatters.
Dominic drops his hand and steps back. I feel the loss of contact like a physical ache.
“We should get you home,” he says, and his voice is rough again. Controlled. “Make sure Andrea doesn’t double back.”
“Right.” I adjust Anna on my hip and try to remember how to breathe normally. “Right. Home. Yes.”
We walk back to the apartment building in silence, but it’s not uncomfortable. His arm brushes against mine occasionally, and each time it happens, I feel a spark of awareness that travels all the way to my toes.
When we reach the lobby, he pauses.
“Still okay for tonight?” he asks. “The dinner?”
“Yes.” The word comes out too fast, too eager. I try to dial it back. “I mean, if you still want to. After all that.”
“I still want to.”
Something warm blooms in my chest. “Seven o’clock. Alexa’s apartment.”
“I’ll be there.”
He watches me get into the elevator, and I watch him through the closing doors, and neither of us looks away until the last possible second.
When I get upstairs and Alexa asks why I’m smiling, I tell her it’s nothing.
She doesn’t believe me.
Neither do I.