I booked a private island to save my marriage, but he arrived with his mother and his ex: “You’re going to cook while we enjoy ourselves”… so I canceled everything in front of them.

I looked at Caleb, waiting for him to defend me or at least correct the blatant lie his mother had just told.

He did neither, choosing instead to adjust his sunglasses and offer a satisfied smirk to his father.

I found myself smiling back at them, but it was no longer the soft smile of a wife trying to please her husband.

It was the expression of a woman who had finally woken up from a long and expensive nightmare.

None of the people standing on that dock had any idea what was about to happen next.

“You are absolutely right, Margot, and I see now that I have been doing far too much for far too long,” I said with a calm that seemed to unsettle them.

Tessa let out a small, high-pitched giggle and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

“I am glad she finally understands her place in the family,” Tessa murmured to Margot.

I did not bother to offer a response to her comment, instead pulling my phone from my bag and walking a few steps away into the shade of the terminal.

I opened the luxury travel agency’s mobile application and looked at the reservation, which included the island, the villa, the seaplane, the premium bar, and all the private excursions.