Chapter 2: The Truth I Wasn’t Ready For
I locked myself in the guest bathroom for exactly four minutes.
That was all the time I allowed myself.
Four minutes to cry.
Four minutes to breathe.
Four minutes to look at the photo again and pretend it was some kind of mistake.
It wasn’t.
The picture showed Cole and my mother outside a restaurant.
His arm was around her.
Her face was pressed against his chest.
The timestamp was from six months earlier.
Six months.
I was already pregnant.
I remembered that week clearly.
I had been sick every morning. I had barely been able to keep food down. Cole had held my hair while I threw up and promised me I was the strongest woman he knew.
That same week, he had been meeting my mother.
I wiped my face and walked back into the hallway.
My baby shower decorations looked different now.
The pink balloons weren’t cute anymore.
They looked like a cruel joke.
When I entered the kitchen, Cole and Darla were still there.
They looked terrified.
Good.
They should have been.
“I want answers,” I said.
Cole opened his mouth.
Darla spoke first.
“Emily…”
“No.””
I pointed at my mother.
“You first.””
She looked down.
“I never wanted this to happen.””
I stared at her.
“You never wanted me to find out.””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“That’s not fair.””
I almost laughed.
“Fair?””
I looked around the kitchen.
“At my baby shower?””
Cole stepped between us.
“Emily, this isn’t what you think.””
I looked at him.
“Then tell me what I think.””
Silence.
That silence told me more than words could.
“You cheated on me.””
Cole shook his head.
“It wasn’t that simple.””
“Then make it simple.””
I walked closer.
“Did you sleep with my mother?””
Darla covered her mouth.
Cole looked away.
And that was my answer.
My knees almost gave out.
I grabbed the counter.
“No.””
“Emily—”
“No.””
I looked at Darla.
“You knew I was trying to build a family.””
“I know.””
“You helped me pick the nursery colors.””
“I know.””
“You held my hand when I was scared about becoming a mother.””
Tears fell down her face.
“I know.””
“And all that time…”
My voice disappeared.
Because saying it out loud made it real.
Cole reached toward me.
I stepped back.
“Don’t.””
His face tightened.
“I love you.””
The words made me feel sick.
“If you loved me, you wouldn’t have done this.””
Darla whispered, “It started because I was lonely.””
I looked at her.
“That’s your excuse?””
“No.””
“Then what is?””
She shook her head.
“I don’t have one.””
For the first time all day, I believed her.
Not because she was honest.
Because she finally stopped trying to protect herself.
The front door opened.
Someone called out.
“Emily? We brought the gift table decorations!””
Sarah.
My best friend.
I quickly wiped my face.
Cole noticed.
“You’re not going to tell them?””
I looked at him.
“Are you worried about them knowing?””
His jaw tightened.
“I’m worried about you.””
“No.””
I shook my head.
“You’re worried about yourself.””
He didn’t answer.
That was enough.
I walked toward the living room.
But before I reached the door, Darla grabbed my wrist.
I froze.
Her hand was gentle.
But I pulled away anyway.
“Please.””
Her voice was barely a whisper.
“There’s something else you need to know.””
I stared at her.
“What?””
She looked at Cole.
Then back at me.
And the fear in her eyes wasn’t guilt.
It was panic.
“Cole didn’t tell you how long this has been going on.””
My stomach dropped.
“What does that mean?””
Darla opened her mouth.
But before she could speak, Cole’s phone started ringing.
He looked at the screen.
And his expression changed completely.
May you like
Because whoever was calling him wasn’t someone he expected.
It was someone I knew.
