My Perfect Marriage, His Secret Sons

he lukewarm coffee cup

sy Brooklyn cafe, Zoe Chen watche

e," Maya said. Her vo

Maya. You

"I need to disappear. I

are you talking abo

felt heavy, like stones. "I want Eth

aned forward. "Maya, what

on opened

rough Maya's mind

ens, overwhelmed by the polished confidence around her. He was Ethan Hayes, h

wing for the literacy program at her old com

a job as a barista in a tiny coffee shop nearby, just to bring her co

rd the whispers. Ethan didn't care. He told them he'd walk away fr

from the outside. He bought her a house with a state-of-the-art lab in the basement

gifts, trips, public

ery single one. He said it was simpler. He put a GPS tracker on her car, o

ted him. Dee

s ago, the pic

is laptop. He usually guarded it, but he'd le

ped up. A bank transfer.

at always made Maya feel a small, sharp unease. Etha

e, made Maya click. She foun

o baby boys. And in their tiny faces,

tched back over a year. Duri

left May

led her back to the caf

"He has a family, Z

were sta

n Doren. They

ing to her mouth. "No. E

ers. Everything." Maya's voice broke. "

red, sp

my teens, they said my health was too delicate. It was a dream, you k

f expensive French perfume – Chloe's signature scent – and somethi

er, tell her how much

excitement. He'd been talking about a n

ulling her close. He kissed her hair. "And soon, maybe w

didn't know she knew. He didn't kn

stomach. "Anything's possib

d felt

oolish part of her had wanted to g

ken up with a plan. A

y fabricated meeting for one of her tech projects

now," Ethan had said, already reaching

From Chloe. *"The boys have their do

"Actually, tomorrow is impossible for me. I ha

ent. He didn't offer to resc

n," Maya said, her vo

cal time for the company." He glanced at h

zed Chloe.

t. The final, tiny

cafe, Maya looked a

hoice. Now I'm

laced by a calculating look Maya knew well. Zoe, the cybersecurity p

ched Maya's lips. "I kn