Three years ago, Alex had collapsed at home without warning.
The doctor said it was just exhaustion from pulling too many late nights, but I'd been worried there might be something else going on.
So I asked the doctor to run a full workup. Just for peace of mind.
When the results came back, everything finally made sense.
A full year together. No protection. Not once. And I'd never gotten pregnant.
It wasn't what Alex had always told me—that our "time with a child just hadn't come yet."
The truth was that he would never be able to have a biological child. Not in this lifetime.
The thought crossed my mind, and I let my gaze drift deliberately to Layla's belly.
Alex, however, took my silence as proof he'd hit a nerve.
He draped his arm around Layla's shoulders, chin tilted up with the smugness of a man who believed he held all the cards, the corner of his mouth curving into a lazy smirk.
"Three years gone by, and your little jokes are just like you—haven't improved one bit."
"Same tired trick, over and over. Even if you're not sick of it, I sure am."
"But I'll give you credit for loyalty."
"Even after Layla's baby has my name on the birth certificate, you'll still be my one and only girlfriend."
I frowned and cut him off before he could make me any more nauseous.
"The day you left three years ago—did you not get my text?"
Alex went rigid.
"What text? My phone got stolen at the airport."
So that explained the unshakable confidence. He'd spent three years convinced I'd be waiting here like a good girl, ready to play the other woman when he waltzed back.
I folded my arms across my chest and repeated the text I'd sent that day, word by word.
"We broke up. Three years ago."
"You ditched your girlfriend to travel the world with your first love. I wished you a beautiful reunion, and I wished you'd crash and burn all over again."
Silence.
Then two mocking laughs rang out in unison.
It didn't matter what I said. They both assumed I was just lashing out.
I couldn't be bothered to waste another second on these two idiots. I grabbed the toy and headed for the register.
Just as I was about to pay, Alex cut in front of me and slapped a black card on the counter.
"Everything in this store. Wrap it all up."
He glanced down and pointed at me. "Including whatever she's holding."
I swallowed my fury. "Layla's baby is still floating in amniotic fluid. What's it going to play with?"