THE THIRTY-DOLLAR HOUSE Every morning, before he left for work, Daniel Harper pulled out his wallet and handed his wife thirty dollars. “Groceries,…
THE BOY IN THE TRUNK Miles Turner had always considered the late drive back from Chicago to be a kind of ritual—three hours…
THE FACE I COULDN’T FORGET The Austin heat hit me as soon as I stepped out of the jet bridge, thick and suffocating,…
The Chandelier Secret Seven years. Seven years that had dragged by like slow-moving shadows across our home. Seven years since Alex had come…
The 100-Day Promise The hospital waiting room smelled faintly of antiseptic and stale coffee. Sunlight filtered through the blinds, painting pale stripes across…
I should have known things would spin out of control the moment I typed “fake boyfriend for hire” into the search bar. It…
I sent my mother-in-law 5000 USD every month for 3 years. But right in the middle of my brother-in-law’s wedding, she stood in…
The Bill I didn’t want to go to the celebration dinner, but skipping it would’ve caused more trouble than showing up. That was…
The storm started rolling in just after midnight, one of those heavy, slow-moving East Coast tempests that rattled the windows and shook the…
THE TILE BEHIND THE TOILET 1. The Hammer If I had known what was behind the tile, I wouldn’t have picked up the…