“I didn’t steal her,” he said fiercely. “I paid her expenses. I made sure she was taken care of, and I took Claire away from a life of neglect.”

His grip on my hands tightened, pleadingly.

“I brought her to you,” he said. “And the moment I put her in your arms, you started living again. You smiled. You ate. You became the woman I loved again.”

I looked at his hands holding mine, the gold wedding band catching the kitchen light.

“You lied to me for twenty years, Richard,” I said.

“I protected you,” he corrected, his voice dropping to a harsh whisper. “I protected our daughter. Can you imagine what it would do to Claire if she found out?”

I pulled my hands away from his grasp and crossed my arms over my chest.

“We had legal adoption papers,” I said, trying to recall the blue folder we kept in the safe. “We went to court.”

“I handled the lawyer,” Richard said quickly. “I told you it was a private placement. I did all the legwork so you wouldn’t have to stress.”