Deception and betrayal

"Congratulations, you're pregnant!" I beamed with joy as the doctor handed me the test results. I couldn't believe it. I had not been feeling too well for a few days, so I decided to go to the hospital to get checked out. And now, the test results were saying I was pregnant!

After two years of trying, of waiting, of hoping, it was finally happening. I felt a surge of emotions - happiness, excitement, relief - all mixed together.

I thought back to the countless nights my husband, Richard, and I had prayed for this moment. The countless times we had tried, only to be disappointed. But now, finally, our dream was coming true.

I couldn't wait to share the news with Richard. I quickly grabbed my things and rushed home, my heart racing with excitement.

As I walked into the house, I saw Richard sitting on the couch, his eyes fixed on his phone. He was typing away, his brow furrowed in concentration. I smiled, feeling a pang of love for him.

"Hey, Richard," I said, trying to sound casual. "Can we talk for a minute?"

He looked up, his eyes distracted. "Yeah, sure. What's up?" he asked, not putting down his phone.

I hesitated, feeling a little frustrated. I had been waiting for this moment for so long, and I wanted to share it with him properly. But before I could say anything, his phone rang.

"Sorry, honey, I have to take this," he said, getting up from the couch.

I nodded, feeling a little disappointed. I sat down on the couch, waiting for him to finish his call. But as the minutes ticked by, Richard became more and more engrossed in his conversation.

I rested my head on the couch, feeling my eyelids getting heavy. I thought I would just close my eyes for a minute, but before I knew it, I was fast asleep.

I fell asleep on the couch, exhausted from the excitement of the day's news. But when I woke up, Richard was nowhere to be found. I called his number, but it was unreachable. A knot of worry formed in my stomach as I wondered where he could be.

I tried to shake off the feeling of unease and started preparing for work. As I was getting ready, my phone rang. It was my best friend, Rachel.

"Hi Helen, good morning dear," Rachel chimed. "I saw you and your husband at Star Base Hotel yesterday. You looked so good! I was far away, so I didn't want to disturb you. How was your night?"

My heart skipped a beat. What was Rachel talking about? Richard and I hadn't been to Star Base Hotel yesterday. And then it hit me - Richard had gone out, but he hadn't told me where he was going.

"Rachel, what do you mean?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

"I mean, I saw you and your husband Rachel replied, her voice hesitant. "I didn't want to assume anything, but...I don't know, Helen. It looked like he was with someone else."

My world came crashing down. Richard, my husband, was with another woman? I felt like I had been punched in the gut.

"Who was the woman?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm not sure, but she looked familiar," Rachel replied. "Wait, I remember now. She looked like his ex, the one who used to live in Canada."

My heart sank. Richard's ex, the one he had told me was out of his life for good. It seemed like she was back, and Richard was still tied to her I ended the call

After work, I went to Richard's office to confront him about what Rachel had told me. I was determined to get to the bottom of things. As I arrived at his office, I took a deep breath and steeled myself for what was to come.

When I walked in, Richard looked up from his desk, a hint of a smile on his face. But as he saw the look on my face, his expression changed.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, his voice nonchalant.

I felt a surge of anger at his casual tone. Didn't he know how much he had hurt me?

"I know what you did yesterday," I said, my voice shaking. "I know you were with another woman."

Richard's expression didn't change, but he leaned back in his chair, a look of mild interest on his face.

"Oh? And who told you that?" he asked, his voice still casual.

I felt a pang of hurt at his nonchalance. Didn't he care that I was hurting?

"My friend Rachel saw you at Star Base Hotel," I replied, my voice firm. "She saw you with your ex, Monica."

Richard's expression still didn't change, but he leaned forward, his eyes glinting with a hint of amusement.

"Ah, Monica," he said, his voice low. "Yes, I did see her yesterday."

I felt like I had been punched in the gut. He was admitting to it, but he didn't seem to care that he had hurt me.

Just then, the door to the office opened, and a woman walked in. She was tall, with long blonde hair and a confident smile. She looked familiar, and then I realized who she was - Monica, Richard's ex.

"Hello, Helen," Monica said, her voice dripping with sweetness. "It's so nice to see you again."

I felt a surge of anger at her casual tone. Did she know that I knew about her and Richard?

"Monica," I replied, my voice cold. "What are you doing here?"

"Monica, what are you doing here?" I asked, my voice firm.

Monica smiled, seemingly unaffected by my tone. "I was just in the neighborhood and thought I'd drop by to say hello," she replied, her eyes glinting with amusement.

As she was about to sit down, she hit her leg on the edge of the chair and fell to the ground. Richard,