The phone call was from Ava’s teacher, informing me that Ava’s father had picked her up. It threw me off. Why on earth would Matthew suddenly decide to pick up Ava?

I hurriedly dialed Matthew’s number. The once familiar digits now felt strange and cold. It rang for a long time before he answered, his voice filled with tenderness.

“Honey!”

I was furious. “Matthew, what are you doing? Who asked you to pick Ava up?”

“Honey, calm down. I just missed our little girl. It’s been so long since I’ve