Three days passed in a blur of domesticity and quiet happiness.
Lily taught me card games with rules she made up as we went. Ethan and I cooked together, learning each other's rhythms in the kitchen. We watched movies bundled under blankets. Built snowmen that Lily insisted needed elaborate backstories.
It felt like playing house. Pretending at family.
Except it didn't feel like pretending.
The roads had partially cleared. News reported the main highways were passable. I could leave if I wanted.
I didn't want to.
Ethan didn't ask me to go. Didn't mention it at all. Just kept making coffee for two every morning. Kept setting three places at the table.
Kept looking at me like I was something he was afraid to lose.
On the fourth morning, I woke to raised voices.
Not Ethan and Lily. S
