Verity describes reaching a breaking point after the birth of the twins. Even with Jeremy helping when he is home, Verity feels trapped by constant crying, feeding, and exhaustion, and she dreads the moment Jeremy must return to work because they cannot afford outside help.

Once Jeremy goes back to his real estate job, Verity discovers a routine that relieves her stress in a deeply disturbing way. She wakes with Jeremy and performs the role of attentive mother while he is there, but after he leaves, she puts the babies back in their cribs, unplugs their monitors, uses earplugs, and goes back to sleep while the girls cry for hours. Because their room is isolated, no one else hears them, and Verity begins sleeping more than ever.

The extra daytime sleep lets Verity create the appearance of a successful, composed household by the time Jeremy returns. Before he gets home, she feeds and bathes the babies, starts dinner, and presents calm children and a functioning home, which convinces Jeremy that she is handling motherhood well. Verity also tells herself that the babies' exhaustion makes nights easier and gives her time to write.

Verity then turns her focus to sex, believing that keeping Jeremy sexually attached is essential to preserving their marriage. Although Jeremy refuses intercourse until her doctor clears her after the cesarean, Verity deliberately arouses him in the middle of the night until his restraint breaks. Jeremy has sex with her before the recommended recovery period ends, and afterward Verity feels reassured, not by emotional intimacy or shared parenting, but by her belief that Jeremy's desire for her body still belongs to her.