I Carry the Child of My Husband and His Mistress

opped up in bed, a mountain of pillows supporting my back, my hand resting on the slight curve of m

the confident, charismatic cadence of his voice, the sound that had charmed inve

ips. He was going to

om my assistant or a notification from a news

sage wa

know me, but I know

wrong number. I was about to delete it when a second messag

g, dark hair, her face turned away from the camera. But I knew that arm. I knew

ft my lung

message

doesn't he? He always s

embled as I t

is

se was ins

. The woman in the photo? Her name is Chloe. She's an

ned her. "Bright kid," he'd said. "Ambitious.

ose in my throat had nothing to do with my pregnancy. This couldn't be real. Mark loved me. He had hel

one from two years ago. We were standing in the empty shell o

o, it's for us. For our future. For our family." He swore he would always b

tent, it felt like a physical

at made me feel bloated and crazy. The painful egg retrieval procedure

y wanted. I remembered complaining about my swollen ankles and the way my body felt alien, a

dr

the phone and shove it under the pillow. My heart wa

ure. I had to see i

office building and parked across the street, my car hidden in the shadows of a large o

few minutes later, he and Chloe emerged from the lobby. They were

her. It wasn't a quick, friendly peck. It was a deep, lingering kiss, t

ds, his expression one of pure adoration

hot, wet sensation between my legs and looked down to see a dark stain spreading on the dri

elf up, my movements robotic. I changed the sheets

humming softly. He flicked on the

ed me. I thought

n. "What's wrong? You look pale. Are yo

had loved for a decade, the man

fingers cool against my skin. "Is it

sheer magnitude of his betrayal. I just sat there, in silence, letting him pret