Chapter Twenty-Seven
Sophie
As I merge onto the motorway, a heavy sense of guilt settles in my chest, making me question whether I’m doing the right thing. I feel awful for leaving Spencer—especially after everything I’d promised him about always being there—but I had to get away.
So much had already happened in the past few weeks, and it seemed like the final straw when Kalie hinted that she might be pregnant.
Would he want her if she were carrying his child? We’d never be free of her. Even if Spencer stayed with me, he’d still share a child with her. There’d always be a connection I couldn’t compete with.
In the taxi on the way home, I called Nicky, asking if Lily and I could visit her this afternoon. I knew the answer before dialing. Nicky’s a great friend; she’s always there for me. At the moment, she’s between jobs, so I was fairly confident she’d be home.
As soon as I canceled my call with Nicky, my phone rang with a call from Spencer.
I wasn’t ready to speak to him. It seemed wrong leaving his call to go to voicemail, but I needed a few hours to myself. Knowing Spencer would be frantic, I left Tony with him. Spencer’s known his driver for years. His presence would undoubtedly help to keep my husband calm.
The call rang off, so I texted him to explain.
Right now, I’ve gone into self-preservation mode.
I flicked my phone off. Needing a few hours to myself.
One half of me is screaming that I should be standing beside my husband, but the other half is still battered after months of betrayal, a little space will help me to reset.
When we arrived at my friend’s flat, Nicky immediately came out to greet us. She must have been watching for us and saw my car.
I glance around me. It’s been a while since I’ve been here. Nicky has lived in the same place for years. As I glance around the drab community, it annoys me that my friend doesn’t have more motivation to better herself. If she’d stop changing her job and traveling, she’d be able to afford better.
Though I must admit, being back here feels a little nostalgic.
“Hey, beautiful.” She hugs me warmly as soon as I step out of the car. I close the door carefully, hoping not to disturb Lily’s nap.
“Can we chat here for fifteen minutes? Lily will be a devil child if we wake her too early,” I ask, pulling a cringing face.
She doesn’t respond but turns to lean on my car with her arms crossed.
“What’s he done?”
I sigh. “Don’t ask.”
She frowns. “I assumed you’d come to listen to my honest pearls of wisdom,” she teases, with a cheeky grin on her face.
I laugh, “No. I already know what you’ll say, and I’ll ignore your advice anyway.”
She peers at me, a quizzical expression dancing on her pretty face.
“We needed a change of scenery for a bit.”
Nicky turns to glance at me, a winning smile splitting her face.
“I’m looking forward to my all expenses paid trip with you guys. Your idea of a holiday and mine are very different.”
I shake my head. “Have you had any luck finding a job?” I ask, frustrated with her.
Her whole head rolls, her face ends up looking at the sky. We’ve been having this argument for years.
“What’s going on with Spencer? I thought you’d resolved all this stuff with him,” she demands, purposefully changing the subject.
“I think Kalie’s pregnant,” I moan.
Her eyes grow wide but only for a nanosecond.
“So?” she snaps.
“What do you mean, so?” I demand, hardly believing my ears.
“Well, obviously it’s not ideal but so what? You accepted he was fucking her for months and did nothing about it.” She lifts her hands away from her thighs dramatically. “You’ve already told me you won’t leave him. What did you expect could happen?”
I slam my eyes closed. This is another of our ongoing disagreements. She thinks my allowing Spencer to have ‘extracurricular relationships’ is because of my self-esteem issues.
I open my mouth just about to rip into her, when she adds, “Anyway, by the sounds of things, you aren’t certain. Before you freak out, why don’t you wait for confirmation that she is pregnant?”
Lily’s cries from inside the car steal my attention, and I’ve never been more grateful to hear my daughter’s distress.
Ignoring Nicky’s stern scrutiny, I open the rear car door.
“Hey, Lily-pad, it’s okay. Mummy’s here.”
She lifts her arms to me seeking comfort. I wonder if she’s picked up on my tension because it’s unusual for her to cry when she wakes up.
“Did you wonder where I was?” I ask her, speaking gently as I unclip her seat.
I brush her hair back off her forehead. She nods but I notice she’s hotter to the touch than usual, and I suspect she’s had a nightmare. I opt for distraction.
“We’re at Auntie Nicky’s,” I say, trying to inject some excitement into my tone when I’m actually still seething.
Immediately she wiggles her legs, trying to escape her confines. We don’t see Nicky a lot, so when we do, she always spoils Lily rotten.
As soon as my daughter’s released from the car, Lily runs into Nicky’s outstretched arms. As if we hadn’t seen her for months, when in fact it was only a few days ago.
I watch them, enjoying seeing the love they share, which helps to soothe a little of my previous fury. But I’m still stinging at my friend’s words.
Nicky ignores the animosity between us, leading my daughter upstairs. Lily and I rarely come here because Nicky’s in the habit of coming to us. So, it’s all exciting for a curious three-year-old.
They disappear into the sitting room, where there’s a small toy box used primarily by Nicky’s sister’s kids. I hear the television flick on and then listen as my friend explains to Lily that she’s going to make me a cup of tea.
The moment Nicky had filled the kettle, her phone rang. She glances at the screen.
“Spencer,” she tells me, her voice flat. I don’t have time to tell her not to answer before she’s connected the call.
I roll my eyes.
“Hi Spence,” she greets him in her usual chipper tone.
She listens, eyeing me carefully as she does.
“Yes, they’re here.”
There’s a momentary pause.
“He’s been frantic; he wants to speak to you,” she says, holding her handset out toward me.
Where’s her freaking loyalty?
I shake my head, snatching the phone in frustration and muting it for a second.
“If I’d wanted to speak to him, I’d have turned my phone back on,” I hiss at her.
“Hello,” I say, my frustration oozing out in both syllables.
“Sophie, Kalie isn’t pregnant.” Spencer blurts out. “Baby, she’s toxic. I warned you. She’s just trying to cause trouble.”
I can hear the desperation in his voice; my stomach drops, and the sense of guilt that’s been troubling me earlier returns.
Shit!
During my drive over here, my gut told me I was doing the wrong thing. For the last few weeks, I’ve worked tirelessly to show Spencer I wouldn’t give up on him, but one run-in with Kalie had me doing exactly that.
“You’ve told me repeatedly that you barely touched her. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have run off,” I whisper.
“Sophie, I get it. I’m sure she was very convincing. I also told you the night Carlo met her, his presence seemed to drive me to have intercourse with her. But sweetheart, I’ve told you everything.” His voice dips. “You need to speak to me first in the future.”
“In the future?” I squeak.
“I think after our conversation today I’ve gotten rid of her,” he sighs.
“But I can’t be a hundred percent sure with Kalie.
A few months ago, she allowed Travis to record video footage of her in some very compromising situations.
Her father is an extremely wealthy, traditional, and religious man.
Learning about his daughter’s lifestyle would horrify him.
So we have some ammunition to stop her, but she’s a spiteful bitch.
She’s threatening to ruin me yet I honestly can’t see how she could.
I’ve told you everything. As long as I have you, Lily, and Carlo, I don’t give a fuck about anything else.
” My head flops back with a groan. “I know this is shit. I’m sorry. ”
As he ends his speech, I can hear his voice quivering with emotion. Nicky steps forward and takes my free hand, squeezing it in a silent gesture of support.
“When are you coming home?” He presses me.
I sigh. “We’ll be back later. I just needed some space for a bit. It was a shock. She made me question everything.”
“What do you mean, question everything?” he demands, his words tripping over themselves in their urgency to be asked.
I pause, trying to find the gentlest way to say it—but there isn’t one. Once I say this, there’ll be no pulling it back.
“If Kalie had been pregnant . . . I wasn’t sure if you might’ve chosen to be with her instead.”
Silence. Then his voice cracked through the line.
“What?”
It hit so hard I flinched, pulling the phone from my ear.
When he spoke again, it was lower. Steadier. Every word wrapped in fire.
“Sophie, I’m not with you because of Lily. I’m with you because I love you. Because no one else even comes close. I want more children with you. I want years of waking up beside you, building a life that’s ours. I want forever with you.”
The tears pour down my cheeks.
“Sophie, this isn’t a conversation for the phone. Will you be home for dinner?”
I glance up at the clock and inhale a deep breath. I need to distract us from all this drama.
“Are you cooking?” I ask cheekily.
“If you come home, I’ll do whatever you want.” There’s a pause and I imagine him walking around the house. “I hate it here without you.”
I snort out a sarcastic laugh. “Ironic.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” he replies in a deep voice. “Carlo came over to keep me calm.”
“So. You won’t cook. You’ll have Carlo do it,” I tease.
“You do what you’re good at. I’m good at delegation. Carlo’s good at cooking. It’ll be edible if he cooks. As long as you don’t have to do it, does it matter?” he tosses back, smug and unbothered.
Then softer, almost like he’s forgotten to guard it— “I miss you.”
His words make me smile but I refuse to let him win that easily.
“When did you turn into such a sap?”
“The day I met you,” he counters.
I roll my eyes, and my chest tightens.
“Charmer. We’ll see you soon.”
“I love you.” His voice dips—urgent, almost pleading.
I close my eyes for a beat.
“I know. I love you, too.”