(Sarah POV)

The baby in my arms wouldn't stop crying. I sat in the cheap motel room three hours outside the city, staring down at the red, scrunched face of Lily's daughter. My daughter now. Mine and Alex's.

"Shhh," I cooed, rocking her awkwardly. "Mama's here. Everything's okay."

But she kept crying. That thin, desperate newborn wail that set my teeth on edge.

I'd never been good with babies. Even my own pregnancy had felt more like a means to an end than something joyful. The baby inside me was just part of the plan, proof of my relationship with Alex, a reason for judges to show mercy, a tool...