That night in the hotel, I expected nothing but quiet. A long day of meetings, a room service tray on the nightstand, my toddler probably fast asleep back home. Logan had promised daily photos, and as far as I knew, everything was normal. Until it wasn’t.
When I opened the baby monitor app, I wasn’t prepared for the image on the screen: a woman I’d never seen before was in my son’s nursery. She moved like she belonged there—calm, tender, familiar. She tucked Ben in, smoothed his hair, and leaned down to kiss his forehead like it was the most natural thing in the world. My stomach dropped. My brain scrambled for an explanation. Babysitter? Neighbor? Friend? But no—Logan never mentioned anyone staying over.
I called him immediately.
“Who’s with Ben?” I asked, my voice already shaking.
His response was a pause. Then a muttered curse. Then silence.
And then he hung up.
I stared at the screen, stunned. Tried calling again. Voicemail. Again. Nothing. My hands were trembling as I called my brother, Aaron, who lived ten minutes away.
Within minutes, he was at the house. Texted me when Logan pulled into the driveway with groceries. I held my breath until he called.
“She’s not a babysitter,” Aaron said, his voice sharp. “They’re arguing. He told her she shouldn’t have gone into the nursery. She said Ben was crying. Then she said something else…”
I gripped the phone tighter.
“She said, ‘When you divorce your wife, Ben will be my son too.’”
The floor beneath me felt like it had dropped away.
By morning, I was on the first flight home. Logan was there when I walked in—red-eyed, messy, defeated. But I didn’t go to him. I walked past him and into the nursery. Ben was curled up, safe and warm. My baby.
I came back out and met Logan’s eyes.
“You left our son with a stranger,” I said. “And you didn’t even tell me.”
“She wasn’t supposed to go in there,” he stammered. “I told her not to.”
“But she did,” I snapped. “She tucked him in. Kissed him. Called him hers.”
He looked down. “I know I messed up. I didn’t mean for it to happen. I’ll do anything to fix it.”
“There is no fixing this.”
The divorce was quick. I filed within the week. I asked for full custody and got it. The judge asked if I wanted to limit visitation—I didn’t. Not because I wanted to spare Logan, but because Ben deserved the truth of who his father was. The rest, I’d control.
Logan cried in court. Pleaded. Said it was a mistake. But by then, my heart had hardened in places it never used to. The man who promised to love me through everything had handed my child over to someone else—and thought he could explain it away.
Weeks later, I found her. Claire. Instagram had quietly offered her to me in the “People You May Know” tab, and the second I saw her smile, I knew. Same face. Same woman from the monitor. Her profile was a collection of pastel outfits, filtered selfies, and motivational quotes.
She worked as a boutique stylist. I booked a session under my middle name and showed up in jeans and a soft sweater. When she greeted me, cheerful and professional, I smiled politely. She offered me tea, complimented my earrings. And then I pulled out my phone.
One screenshot. Her, standing over Ben’s crib.
Her face went pale. I stood slowly.
“He’s fine, by the way,” I said. “So am I.”
Then I handed her a business card. A therapist who specialized in obsessive behavior.
“You might need this,” I said quietly. “Just in case you forget he was never yours.”
And then I walked out.
Logan still calls sometimes. Leaves voicemails that start with “I miss you” and end with apologies. I don’t answer. I don’t need to.
Because these days, my house is peaceful. Just me, Ben, and the soft glow of the baby monitor. And every night, I kiss my son’s forehead—not because I’m pretending to be someone I’m not—but because I never left.
