Chapter 1

1.

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena.

“Dr. Wallace, I’ve filed for divorce. I want to join your Mars exploration project and move to Houston with the team. I want to lead the development of the next-generation rover’s navigation algorithm.”

I looked the lab director straight in the eye, my tone leaving no room for negotiation.

Dr. Wallace was clearly taken aback. He took off his glasses and studied me for a moment. “Evelyn, you’re the most brilliant navigation engineer I’ve ever met. I’d be thrilled to have you. But a divorce? This can’t be an overnight decision. Does Alex know?”

I lowered my eyes, a cold smile touching my lips. “He’ll be relieved.”

No one knew better than I did―my husband, Alex Vance, had never loved me. In my previous life, I had spent decades lying to myself about it.

In that life, I turned down Dr. Wallace’s invitation. I locked my JPL ID badge in a drawer and gambled my entire life and career on that place I called "home."

And what was the result?

Alex climbed the ladder, becoming JPL's chief engineer. Our son, Leo, got into an Ivy League school and went straight to Wall Street.

On the surface, we were the perfect family, the envy of everyone in Pasadena.

Then, at fifty, I was diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor.

As I lay dying in my bed at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, I finally saw what a ridiculous farce my life had been.

I had always suspected my cold husband’s heart belonged to his college sweetheart, Chloe McKenzie.

But it was my own son, the boy I raised, who confirmed it. He stood by my deathbed and told Alex, "Dad, when this is all over, you should be with Chloe. She’d make a great stepmom."

I wasn't even dead yet, and they were already discussing my replacement.

In that moment, I hated myself for being such a fool.

I hated that I’d fallen for Alex at first sight, shamelessly chasing after him.

I hated that I’d endured a long and agonizing childbirth for him.

But most of all, I hated that I had willingly given up my own universe of stars for a man who didn't care if I lived or died.

Now, I have a second chance.

Dr. Wallace was silent for a moment before finally nodding. “Alright. Handle your personal affairs. You can come to the lab to get familiar with the project in the meantime. We officially move to the Johnson Space Center in Houston next month.”

“Understood.”

Leaving the lab, I saw the familiar coffee shops and Whole Foods of Pasadena standing silently in the sun.

I drove my Subaru back to the place I once called home, a sense of rebirth finally settling in.

As I turned into the driveway, I saw a man walking toward me, holding a child with one arm.

It was Alex, a JPL project manager, just back from an all-night simulation test. He was still wearing his JPL polo shirt.

Our eyes met, and he immediately frowned. “Why didn’t you pick Leo up from preschool today? You just left him at Chloe’s?”

In his arms, Leo stared at me with the exact same accusatory expression as his father, his blue eyes filled with blame.

The scene threw me back to my past life―the two of them, always a united front, treating me like an outsider in my own home.

This time, I wasn't going to fight it.

I took a deep breath and said calmly, “Leo said he wanted to play at Chloe’s a little longer.”

Alex froze, his frown deepening. “He’s five, Evelyn. Are you really taking the word of a five-year-old literally?”

I didn’t answer. The old me wouldn't have, but now I knew better. Children don’t lie. What they say is usually what they truly feel.

Alex didn’t press the issue and carried Leo inside.

That night, after Leo was asleep, I came out of the shower to find Alex at the desk, holding something.

He turned when he heard me, his dark eyes unreadable. In his hand was my newly issued JPL work ID.

“You’re going back to the lab?”

I nodded.

His expression hardened slightly. “Fine. Leo’s in preschool now, you can go back to work. But don’t let it affect things at home.”

He assumed I was just returning to the JPL office in Pasadena. He had no idea my entire project team was relocating to Houston.

“Okay,” I said, offering no further explanation. With Alex’s controlling nature, he would never agree if he knew I was leaving California. It had to be done quietly.

In one month, when my team arrived in Houston, my lawyer would serve him the divorce papers.