Chapter 2

The next few days were a blur of forced smiles and strained conversations.

Sarah's parents, the Millers, called.

"Ethan, dear," Mrs. Miller began, her voice dripping with false sympathy, "Sarah told us about this little misunderstanding. You know how generous she is. Mark has been like a son to us."

"A misunderstanding? She had children, kept them secret for ten years, and is giving them part of the company."

"Well, they are her children, Ethan. Blood is blood. And you two decided long ago not to have any. Surely you can be happy for her, for Mark?" Mr. Miller added, his tone implying Ethan was being unreasonable.

Even Ethan' s brother, David, urged caution.

"Twenty years is a long time, Ethan. Are you sure you want to throw it all away? Maybe you can work through this."

David didn't understand. No one seemed to grasp the depth of the betrayal.

It wasn't just the children. It was the vasectomy, the public lie he carried for her, the years of shared dreams now revealed as a one-sided charade.

Ethan confronted Sarah again, the pressure from everyone else making him feel more isolated.

"I need you to make a choice, Sarah."

"A choice?"

"Yes. If we are to even try, and I mean try, to salvage this, you cut all contact with Mark. And the children. They can't be part of our lives."

He knew it was a harsh demand, an impossible one perhaps, but the thought of them, of her continued connection to that secret life, was a knife twisting.

Sarah stared at him, her expression unreadable for a moment.

Then, she shook her head, a slow, deliberate motion.

"I can't do that, Ethan."

Her voice was soft, but firm. "They are my children. My blood. And Mark is their father. I won't abandon them."

"So you choose them? Over me? Over our marriage?"

"It's not about choosing, Ethan. It's about who they are. Who I am now. Why can't you just accept it? We can still have our life."

"Our life?" he echoed. "What life, Sarah? The one built on your lies?"

The finality of her refusal settled in his chest, heavy and cold. There was no way forward.

"Then there's nothing left to say."

He walked out of the room, the words "I want a divorce" forming in his mind, clear and resolute.

He called his lawyer the next morning.