The Velasquezes stared at Jeff, aghast, while the girls, unaware that anything was amiss, played happily with Sophia's pearls and Hector's beard.

"Jeff, you don't mean that," Goldie responded, her face ashen. "We just need to talk, that's what being married is all about, right? There's nothing we can't talk through—"

Jeff stared at her. "Are you out of your mind? It's obvious he's telling the truth—" he waved the report in the air and gestured toward the girls. "It's obvious the girls know these people. How did that happen? Is that where you've been taking them when you went out jogging?" Jeff took a step toward Goldie, and she took a step back, unable not to.

"She felt so bad for us, she only did it out of kindness," Sophia tried to explain. "They were never in any danger, I assure you—"

"I'm sorry, you're going to have to leave," Jeff said, walking to the door and opening it. "I can only cope with one issue at a time, and I need for you to go." He gestured toward the girls' mostly unused playpen, which was filled with stuffed animals.

The Velaszuezes quickly deposited the girls and left. Goldie could see Sophia's face crumping into tears as she turned to mouth the words "I'm so sorry," from the door.

Goldie shook her head to indicate the older woman had nothing to be sorry about.

"You as well, Mr. Edwards," Jeff said stiffly, still holding the door.

Griffen gathered the few things he'd spread out and left, lifting an eyebrow in Goldie's direction as he, too, walked out the door.

"And now you," Jeff repeated, not looking at Goldie as he spoke.

"But—"

"No, on second thought," Jeff said, and Goldie's heart leapt up hopefully. "On second thought, go upstairs and gather your things, I don't want you to have any reason to return."

Swiping at her tears, Goldie ran up the stairs.

*

When she came down the stairs, dragging her pull case behind her, she saw that Jeff had gotten the girls out of the playpen and was on the floor, playing with them.

"I couldn't fit it all in one bag," she said to Jeff. "I'll have to come back for the rest of it."

"Fine," he responded shortly. "I'll let you know when we'll be out and you can return for the rest of your things."

Goldie nodded, fresh tears spilling over.

"Godie cry," Genie noticed, looking concerned. "Ouchie?"

"Godie ouchie?" the other two repeated, rising and going towards her.

"Oh no, no, I'm okay," Goldie tried to reassure them, putting down the pull of the case so she could hug them.

"Goldie's going bye-bye," Jeff told the girls. "Wave bye-bye, girls."

"Godie bye-bye?" Jemma's little face began to darken. "No bye-bye."

"No bye-bye," Genie and Pippa echoed, with Genie throwing in a head shake.

Oh dear lord.

Jeff finally came and pulled the girls off her, leaning in but averting his gaze once again so there was no eye contact.

"Godie no bye-bye," the girls wept, tiny hands unwilling to release her hoodie.

Goldie quickly grabbed her case and went to the door, where she turned once more to address her husband. "I love you, Jeff."

Jeff shook his head, still unwilling to look at her. "If that were true, you wouldn't have lied to me. Now go."

"Everything okay, Miss Goldie?" the doorman asked solicitously in the lobby.

"I'm fine," she said, wiping her eyes on the sleeve of her hoodie.

"Do you want me to get you a cab or Uber?"

Goldie shook her head. The truth was that she had no idea where to go. She walked out into the cold but bright day, and aimlessly began walking north, keeping her eyes on the pavement in front of her.

She looked up after about half an hour and saw that she was only a few blocks from a boutique hotel where her parents had stayed when they came to visit her, so she headed there. Ironically, now that she was officially homeless, she had plenty of money for a place like this, which she couldn't have afforded a year ago.

She lay down on the bed and closed her eyes for a moment, trying not to relieve the morning, the horrible way Jeff had looked at her, the way the girls had grabbed at her.

What was she going to do?

Her phone dinged with an incoming text, and Goldie grabbed for it.

It was from Griffen.

Sorry you got all jammed up back there. I was just trying to save my case.

You have no "case" anymore, the Velasquezes dropped the suit.

Maybe not after what just happened, Sorenson. This was followed by a winking emoji. Your husband didn't seem very happy when I left. Did he actually make you leave?

He's a good person. He would never hold my actions against the Velasquezes. Goldie ignored his question.

IDK, he seemed pretty pissed at all of us.

What do you want?

I was wondering if you were with them? Hector and Sophia? They aren't answering my calls or texts, IDK where they are.

No, I'm not with them.

OK. You'll be hearing from me soon regarding the case.

Like I said, you have no case, and I no longer work for you.

I think, given what happened, all bets are off. And again, the odious winking emoji.

Goldie sighed and put her phone down, not wanting to turn it off in case Jeff tried to contact her.

Surely this wasn't permanent? Jeff would come to his senses, wouldn't he?

She sent him a text. If I could just explain.

Nothing to explain. You were doing a job. The response came back almost immediately.

Yes, that's how I came to be there, but then I fell in love with you, and all I could think of was to finish the horrible assignment so I could just be your girlfriend.

Wife, you were my wife.

Goldie swallowed, hard, at Jeff's use of the past tense.

I need your mailing address? Jeff continued.

I don't have one. Goldie was confused.

Wherever you're staying, I need the address, so I can have the annulment papers sent to you.

Annulment papers?

We can't get an annulment, we've already consummated our marriage!

Under NY statutes, if one partner entered into the marriage fraudulently, that's grounds for annulment.

Oh my god.

Goldie began to cry as she read, letting the tears course down her cheeks unheeded.

You lied to me. You were employed by someone else, sent into my home, my life, to dig up dirt on me, to spy on me. You weren't in a position to accept my proposal, or indeed even my romantic advances, while this existed between us, but you moved forward anyway. All of this, coupled with the brevity of our actual marriage, should be plenty of grounds for annulment.

Through her tears, Goldie looked at the address stamped on the emergency evacuation placard in the drawer, and typed it into her phone.

Perfect. You'll be hearing from my attorneys shortly.

Goldie threw her phone down, and then herself, proceeding to weep stormily into her pillow. She eventually fell asleep, from stress and fatigue, and woke up a few hours later, disoriented in the near darkness of her room.

The events of the day came crashing down on her, and she sat up, looking around.

She was in a hotel because Jeff had thrown her out. He now wanted an annulment, and would probably get it.

She might not ever see him again, or the girls.

Goldie could feel the tears coming again, and shook her head. She was not going to cry anymore, not today, anyway.

She resolutely got off the bed, took a shower, and ordered room service while she considered what to do. She eventually turned on the TV, where one of the first things she saw was a commercial for Kylie McFaddon's make up line, starring Kylie herself, looking slinky and beautiful, as usual.

What if Jeff went back to her? Would he do that while he was married to her, Goldie?

But Jeff considered their marriage a lie, subterfuge put on him by Goldie herself.

So, to answer her own question, of course he would, once he got lonely enough. If you thought about it, the fact that he'd entered into a relationship with her after so soon after Maggie's death was all she really needed to know. Surely there should've been a longer period of mourning before he found someone new?

Goldie stopped eating as she considered this. Did this mean that she was just his rebound? Did a person even have a rebound after someone died, or was it only after really bad breakups?

All of these thoughts were making her depressed and giving her headache, so she put them out of her head and finished eating.

When she was through, she put her hoodie back on and headed out into the cold Manhattan night. She told herself she was just going for a walk, but she knew exactly where she was going. Her feet retraced her steps from the morning, and she wound up at Jeff's in less than an hour.

She crossed the street so she could see his windows better, windows which were lit up welcomingly.

She was just getting ready to cross the street and ask to be let up when she saw someone leaving the building, all bundled up against the chill.

Kylie McFaddon.