Souls Remember What Matters — Corey Gibson 8
008 – Dangerously Close To Jealousy
DARIUS
I spent the whole afternoon locked in my study, staring at contracts and financial reports that might as well have been written in a foreign language. My mind kept wandering to empty closets and suitcases, to the way Sera’s eyes had looked right through me at the hospital.
The numbers on my computer screen blurred together. I rubbed my temples, trying to focus, but it was useless. My work efficiency was complete garbage today.
By evening, I gave up pretending to be productive and went to find Luna.
She was sitting at the kitchen table, picking at her dinner with a fork. Maria had made her favorite–mac and cheese with little hot dog pieces–but she was just pushing it around her plate.
“Not hungry, sweetheart?” I sat down next to her, my chest tight at the sad look on her face.
“Where’s Mommy?” she asked in a small voice. “She always cuts my hot dogs into stars.”
I looked down at the round slices on her plate. Such a tiny thing, but it mattered to her. “She had to go away for a little while. But I’m here.”
Luna nodded, but I could see the confusion in her eyes as she ate. Kids her age didn’t understand adult problems. They just knew when something was wrong.
After dinner, I carried her upstairs for her bath and bedtime story. She picked out three books, the same ones Sera usually read to her. I did my best with the voices, making the bears growl and the princess sound sweet, but Luna kept correcting me.
“That’s not how Mommy does it,” she said, frowning. “The bear sounds more rumbly.”
“Like this?” I tried again, making my voice deeper.
She giggled a little. “Better,” She smiled, eyes twinkling as she looked at me.
I laughed, relieved at her approval for some reason.
I didn’t realize just how hard it was to tell bedtime stories. Sera did it every night, never making seem like it took much effort.
When I finally got Luna tucked into bed, she looked up at me with those serious eyes that were so much like mine.
“Dad, can you tell Mom that I’m not mad at her anymore?” Luma’s little hand reached up to touch my cheek. “I gave Vivienne my favorite doll today. That means Vivienne will forgive Mom for hurting her, right?”
My heart stopped. So that’s why she’d given away her most precious toy. She thought it would fix everything between Sera and Vivienne. The innocence of it made my chest ache.
“Okay, baby. I’ll tell her.” I kissed her forehead, breathing in that sweet smell of children’s shampoo. “Mom will come back tomorrow to tell you a bedtime story.”
The promise came out automatically, but as soon as I said it, I wondered if it was true. Would Sera come back
1/4
008 Dangerously Close To Jealousy
+25 Bonus
tomorrow? Or was she going to drag this out for days?
“Really?” Luna’s eyes brightened.
“Really.” I stroked her soft hair until her breathing got slow and steady.
Back in my bedroom, I sat on the edge of the bed and stared at my phone. My thumb hovered over Sera’s contact, but I couldn’t make myself press call.
What would I even say? Come home? Apologize for something I wasn’t sure I’d done wrong? Beg her to stop acting like a child?
Just as I was about to put the phone down, it started ringing. Sera’s name flashed on the screen.
I answered on the second ring. “Hello.”
“Is Luna asleep?” Her voice sounded different. Stronger somehow.
My muscles grew tense as I found myself calculating the right things to say in my head.
“She just fell asleep. She complained that my storytelling was terrible compared to yours. She wants you to come back tomorrow for bedtime stories,” I explained with a hint of impatience in my voice. She needed to know she did something wrong by leaving her child.
There was a pause. “I can’t come back tomorrow. Please ask Lucy to tell her a story,” She said. Her voice was quiet yet, it was firm and final.
What?
I sat up straighter. “Lucy is just Luna’s nanny, not her mother. She needs her mother,” I pushed, my patience wearing thin.
This wasn’t like Sera at all. She guarded every moment with Luna like they were made of gold. She’d never let Lucy do something she could do herself, especially something as important as bedtime stories.
Where the hell had she gone that was more important than tucking in our daughter?
“I found a new job in New York,” she said after another long pause. “I won’t be back for a while. I’ll call every day to check on Luna and come visit on weekends.”
My brain felt like it was short–circuiting, “What? How did you move to New York in half a day and find a job? Sera, what the hell is going on
The line went dead. She’d hung up on me.
I tried calling back immediately. Straight to voicemail.
I stared at the phone in my hand, my jaw clenched so tight it hurt. A job in New York? What kind of job could she possibly have gotten that fast? She’d been a housewife for five years. Her resume was basically blank.
Something wasn’t adding up.
The next day, Luna kept asking when Mommy was coming home. When I had to tell her Sera wasn’t coming back that night either, she cried silent tears that broke my heart into pieces.
2/4
Join Our WhatsApp Channel For Fast Update Or More Novels: 
Join Our WhatsApp Channel For Fast Update Or More Novels: