Chapter 5 A Past He Can't Bury

Sophie's POV

My chest felt tight, like all the air had been sucked out of the café.

Daniel stood a few feet away, his breathing uneven, his gaze locked onto mine.

For the first time, I wasn't relieved to see him.

I was terrified.

Not because I feared what Lena had said.

But because I feared that she might be right.

My hands clenched under the table, my mind racing. Daniel had been my husband for years. The man I had trusted, loved, given my life to.

Yet, standing here now, with Lena's words echoing in my head, I realized...

I didn't truly know him at all.

"Daniel." My voice came out hoarse, barely above a whisper.

His jaw tightened, his eyes flickering between me and Lena. "Sophie, let's go."

Lena chuckled, stirring her drink lazily. "Oh, come on, Daniel. Let the girl stay. She deserves to hear the rest."

I swallowed, my throat dry.

The rest?

There was more?

Daniel's fists clenched at his sides, his body rigid. "That's enough, Lena."

She raised an eyebrow. "Why? Afraid she'll finally see who you really are?"

I felt my pulse hammer against my ribs. I needed to breathe, to think, but the weight of their words pressed down on me like a storm cloud ready to burst.

"I want to hear it." My voice was firmer now, cutting through the tension.

Daniel's eyes snapped to mine, panic flickering in them. "Sophie, please. Don't listen to her."

But I wasn't his Sophie right now.

I was the woman desperate for the truth.

And he knew it.

Daniel's POV

I saw it in her eyes.

The doubt. The pain.

I had seen Sophie upset before, but this? This was different.

Lena had planted the seed, and if I didn't stop this now, it would grow into something I could never undo.

But what could I say?

That she was wrong?

That Sophie wasn't a stand-in?

That I didn't spend years trying to use her to erase someone else?

Lena smirked, leaning back in her chair like she had all the time in the world. "Tell me, Daniel," she drawled. "Do you remember the night you asked Sophie to marry you?"

Sophie stiffened. I felt my stomach drop.

Because I did remember.

Too well.

It wasn't some grand romantic gesture.

It wasn't even something I had planned.

I had been drowning-lost-after the woman I loved walked away. And Sophie... she had been there.

She had been everything I needed at the time.

A distraction.

A way to forget.

And I had married her for all the wrong reasons.

Lena's lips curled in satisfaction as she turned to Sophie. "Tell me, sweetheart, did your darling husband ever tell you about the love of his life?"

I saw Sophie's throat bob as she swallowed. "You mean... you?"

Lena laughed. "Oh no, dear. Not me."

Sophie blinked. Confusion flickered across her face. "Then who?"

Silence.

Lena looked at me, waiting.

Sophie followed her gaze, her eyes landing on mine.

She wasn't just asking Lena now.

She was asking me.

And for the first time, I had no idea what to say.

Sophie's POV

My body felt cold, like someone had pulled the ground from under me.

I thought Lena was Daniel's first love.

But she wasn't.

Which meant there was someone else.

Someone I never knew about.

My voice trembled. "Daniel...?"

His lips parted slightly, but no words came out.

And in that moment, I knew.

I wasn't his first love.

I wasn't his first choice.

Lena's voice was sickeningly sweet. "Looks like someone forgot to mention a very important part of his past."

I forced myself to breathe. "Who is she, Daniel?"

His hands curled into fists. "Sophie, let's talk about this in private."

"No." My voice was firm. "Tell me now."

He exhaled sharply, raking a hand through his hair. "It doesn't matter."

I laughed bitterly. "It doesn't matter? The fact that I married a man who was in love with someone else doesn't matter?"

"Sophie, it's not what you think."

"Then tell me what it is," I snapped, my voice rising. "Because right now, it feels like I was just a replacement. Someone you settled for when you couldn't have her."

The way his jaw clenched told me everything.

I had hit the truth.

Lena's smug smile widened as she stood, grabbing her purse. "Well, this has been fun, but I think I'll leave you two to sort this out."

She walked past Daniel, leaning in just enough to whisper something in his ear before strutting away.

I didn't know what she said.

I didn't care.

Because right now, all I could see was the man I loved standing in front of me, completely silent.

And silence was the worst confession of all.

I stood frozen in the middle of the café, my heart pounding in my ears.

Lena was gone, but she had destroyed something before leaving.

The trust I had in my husband.

I could still feel the weight of her words pressing against my chest like a suffocating grip.

Daniel's first love wasn't Lena.

So who was she?

I took a shaky breath, my hands trembling as I forced myself to look at Daniel. He hadn't moved, standing stiffly like a man caught in a storm with no shelter.

I wanted-needed-him to say something.

Anything.

But all he did was stare back at me, his lips pressed together in a firm, silent line.

I felt something inside me crack.

"You're really not going to say anything?" My voice was quiet, but it carried every ounce of the pain swirling in my chest.

Daniel exhaled sharply and raked a hand through his hair. "Sophie, not here."

I let out a bitter laugh. "Not here? Are you serious?"

He glanced around, his jaw clenching. "This isn't a conversation we should have in the middle of a café."

"Oh, but it was fine when Lena was spilling your secrets?" My voice wavered as I took a step back. "Or maybe you just don't want me to know the truth."

His blue eyes darkened. "That's not fair."

I shook my head. "No, Daniel, what's not fair is being married to someone for years and finding out from someone else that I don't even know the man I sleep beside every night."

He flinched. It was slight-barely there-but I saw it.

And it only made me angrier.

"I'm going home," I whispered, my throat burning. "When you're ready to stop lying, you know where to find me."

I turned and walked away before I could second-guess myself.

And Daniel?

He didn't stop me.

Daniel's POV

I let her go.

Not because I wanted to.

But because I knew that right now, there was nothing I could say that wouldn't make things worse.

Sophie deserved the truth.

But telling her the truth meant losing her.

I wasn't ready for that.

Not yet.

I clenched my fists and exhaled slowly, trying to calm the raging storm inside me. My mind was already replaying every possible way this could go wrong.

Lena had thrown the first grenade.

Now, it was only a matter of time before everything I had tried to bury came crashing down.

My phone buzzed in my pocket, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I pulled it out and frowned.

Unknown Number.

I hesitated for a second before answering. "Who is this?"

A soft, familiar voice came through the speaker.

"Hello, Daniel."

My stomach dropped.

It couldn't be.

I gripped the phone tighter. "What the hell do you want?"

A pause. Then, the voice spoke again, gentle and knowing.

"You know exactly what I want."

I shut my eyes, a curse slipping through my clenched teeth.

First Lena.

Now her.

The past I had spent years trying to erase was coming back.

And I wasn't sure if I could stop it this time.

Sophie's POV

I barely remembered the drive home.

By the time I reached our penthouse, my hands were still shaking as I pushed open the door.

I told myself I wouldn't cry.

That I'd stay strong until I got answers.

But the moment I stepped inside, everything felt too much.

The perfect, beautiful home we had built together suddenly felt like a lie.

Like I was living in a stranger's house.

I dropped my purse on the counter and walked into the living room, my eyes scanning the space.

The framed wedding photos on the wall.

The elegant piano in the corner.

The scent of Daniel's cologne still lingering in the air.

I felt like a fool.

How many times had I looked at this man and believed him when he told me I was his world?

How many times had I kissed him, touched him, let myself think that what we had was real?

A bitter laugh slipped from my lips.

God, Sophie. You really are just a stand-in, aren't you?

The thought made my stomach turn.

I needed answers.

I needed the truth.

And if Daniel wouldn't give it to me...

Then I'd find it myself.

I walked to his home office, my hands tightening into fists.

Daniel had secrets.

And it was time for me to uncover them.

Daniel's POV

I barely had time to process the call before my phone buzzed again.

A text this time.

We need to talk.

I cursed under my breath.

There were only a handful of people who could send a message like that and make my blood run cold.

I typed a response.

Not now.

Three dots appeared instantly.

Then-

You don't get to decide that, Daniel. Meet me at our usual place. Midnight.

I clenched my jaw. Our usual place.

I hadn't been there in years.

Hadn't needed to.

But tonight?

Tonight, I didn't have a choice.

Sophie's POV

I opened the first drawer of Daniel's desk, my heart pounding.

Empty.

I tried the second.

Bills. Some paperwork. Nothing unusual.

I reached for the third-

Locked.

I swallowed hard, my pulse racing.

Daniel never locked anything.

But this?

This was different.

I bit my lip and hesitated.

If I opened it, there was no going back.

But then I thought of Lena's words.

The secrets.

The lies.

I took a deep breath and grabbed a hairpin from my pocket.

And then, with a steady hand-

I picked the lock.

The drawer clicked open, revealing a stack of old letters.

My stomach flipped.

I reached for the first one, my fingers trembling as I unfolded the paper.

My eyes scanned the words-

And froze.

Because at the bottom of the letter, in delicate, familiar handwriting-

Was my own name.