Chapter 2

The fertility clinic was sterile, impersonal.

But Dr. Ramirez smiled.

"Sarah, the results are positive. You' re pregnant."

Air rushed back into my lungs.

Hope, bright and sudden, bloomed in my chest.

Maybe this time.

Maybe we could fix what was broken.

I drove home, a small, secret smile on my face.

I saw the packages by the front door before I even got out of the car.

Baby supplies.

A crib box, a stroller, diapers.

Ethan must have ordered them.

My heart swelled. He knew. He must have known somehow, or maybe he was just being optimistic.

He was preparing. For our baby.

The coldness of the past months seemed to melt away.

He did care. He did want this, with me.

I walked into the house, my steps light.

He was in the kitchen, on the phone, back to me.

"Yeah, make sure it' s the top-of-the-line model. Only the best."

He hung up, turned.

He didn' t look surprised to see the boxes.

"Ethan," I started, my voice trembling with joy. "The baby supplies... I saw them."

I couldn' t wait to tell him my news, to share this moment.

His face was unreadable, then it hardened.

"Oh, those."

He walked past me, picked up a smaller box.

"They' re not for us, Sarah."

My smile froze.

"What?"

"I' ve been seeing someone. Brittany Jensen. Bree. She manages the North Ridge store."

The words hit me, one by one, cold and sharp.

"She' s pregnant, Sarah. Those are for her baby."

My breath caught. The room tilted.

"You... you' re having an affair?"

He sighed, impatient. "It' s not like that. Well, yes, it is. But it' s... practical."

Practical.

He said it like he was discussing inventory.

"If you can' t give me a son, I' ll find someone who can."

His voice was flat, devoid of emotion.

"It' s business, Sarah. I need an heir for Caldwell' s. Dad' s dying wish, remember?"

He actually tried to look sympathetic.

"I still love you, Sarah. In my way. But this is about the future. The legacy."

The packages on the porch suddenly looked obscene.

Monuments to his betrayal.

My hope, so new and fragile, shattered into a million pieces.

The baby inside me, our baby, felt like a lead weight.