"Tomorrow?" "No." She smiled. "Good."
Miguel realized with painful clarity that whatever happened between him and Sofia, he could not make Lucia pay for his job schedule and his marriage at the same time. He made pancakes. Sofia came downstairs halfway through and quietly set plates on the table. The three of them ate with a normality so fragile that every clink of a fork seemed loud.
Later that morning, Miguel asked Sofia to sit in the den while Lucia played in the backyard. He told her he wanted three things before discussing reconciliation, separation, or anything in between: complete no-contact with Daniel, a written timeline of the affair, and professional help for Lucia that did not involve forcing the child to describe adult behavior. Sofia agreed immediately to the first two and hesitated only at therapy because she feared making Lucia think something was wrong with her. "Something is wrong around her," Miguel said. "That's different."
Sofia nodded. "Okay." He added a fourth condition. "You tell Daniel yourself, in writing, that it is over and that he is not to come here or contact Lucia. I see the message before you send it."
Sofia did it. Daniel replied twelve minutes later: I understand. I'm sorry for the damage. Tell Miguel I won't come near the house.