I Chose Dignity When She Chose Her Affair

I always thought Sophie Souza and I would be happy together forever.

The prenatal report was sitting right there on the nightstand, not yet put away, and I saw it plain as day.

But when Sophie and I first got together, she told me she didn't want children. I loved her too much to make her go through any kind of procedure, so to make sure there were no accidents, I went to the hospital myself and got a vasectomy.

Now that report hit me like a slap across the face.

My mind went blank. All I wanted was to find her and get some answers.

I stood outside her office building and dialed her number. "Soph, are you done with work yet?"

She sounded like she was in a good mood. "Not yet. What's up, Miles? Is something going on?"

"Come home early tonight. I'll cook you something nice."

She hesitated. "Miles, I really wish I could. I love your cooking. But there's so much going on at the office today, and I've got a client dinner tonight, so I probably can't make it home. I'm sorry."

By the end, she actually sounded guilty about it.

"Don't push yourself too hard. Get some rest," I said.

I hung up and looked across the street at Sophie, sitting not far from where I stood. Across the table from her was her assistant, Dylan Hart.

Dylan picked up a slice of apple and gently fed it to her. Sophie gazed at him with pure happiness on her face.

A chill crept through my body. I started shaking and couldn't stop.

I had no idea how I made it home. I sat alone in the empty living room as that smile of hers, that look of perfect happiness she'd been wearing, played over and over in my head.

Tangled up with it were older memories, the way she looked when she told me she loved me, and the tears in her eyes when she said yes to my proposal.

The pain in my chest wouldn't let up, even as everything in me was screaming to hold it together. Meanwhile, the oversized wedding portrait on the wall looked like a cruel joke.

Sophie didn't come home all night.

Why? Why would she do this to me when I loved her this much? She told me she loved me too.

I still needed to hear it from her. I went to her office the next morning, but they said Sophie wasn't in.

I found them outside the hospital. Dylan was at her side, one hand hovering near her arm, guiding her every step.

Sophie laughed at him. "The baby's only three months along. You really don't need to hold me up yet."

"Doesn't matter. You and the baby mean everything to me. Of course I'm going to be careful."

The happiness on Sophie's face disappeared the second she noticed me.

She motioned for Dylan to wait nearby, then walked toward me, unhurried. "Miles, what are you doing here? Are you okay?"

I looked at her and said nothing. She reached for my hand, but I pulled away.

I couldn't hold it in anymore. "Tell me about the pregnancy."

I'd been awake all night, and the redness around my eyes must have gotten to Sophie.

She let out a quiet breath, looking conflicted. "It was an accident, Miles. Let me explain."

"Mr. Norris, don't blame Sophie for this. It really was an accident."

Dylan walked over, perfectly composed. Every wall I'd built inside myself collapsed the moment he stepped forward. I swung with everything I had and drove my fist straight into his face.

"Miles, what the hell are you doing?"

Sophie didn't even look at me. She rushed over and dropped to the ground beside Dylan, pulling him up.

He stared at me in disbelief, looking so wounded and helpless that Sophie only held him tighter.

"Have you completely lost your mind? You know Dylan's never been strong. If something happens to him, that's on you!"