Rebecca had spent her entire life around men who used vagueness as a weapon. Yet there was something different in his expression. Not calculation. Fear.

She let the question go, but it did not disappear.

On the drive home, Lucy slept between them, hugging Toby. Rebecca watched the passing streetlights. “My mother chose you because she thought you were insignificant.”

Matthew’s hands tightened on the wheel. “I know.”

“She believed no one would care when the marriage ended.”

“I care.” The words came so quietly that Rebecca almost thought she’d imagined them. Matthew kept his gaze on the road. “People aren’t objects you use until a contract expires,” he continued.