Claire was sitting on the sofa, but she was not alone. Beside her stood a tall blonde woman Andrew had never seen before. They were laughing, and the stranger’s hand rested casually on Claire’s shoulder.
“What… what is going on here?” Andrew asked hoarsely as he stepped into the room.
Claire startled and turned toward him.
“Andrew? You’re back already?” She glanced at the clock in surprise. “We weren’t expecting you for another two hours.”
“Who is she?” Andrew looked from the blonde woman to his wife.
The stranger rose and extended her hand with a polite smile.
“Daniel. It’s nice to meet you.”
Andrew ignored the offered hand.
“Claire, what is this? Why are you celebrating?”
“Have you forgotten?” Claire asked quietly. “Today is our tenth wedding anniversary.”
The floor seemed to tilt beneath Andrew’s feet.
Their anniversary.
He had completely forgotten it. Worse, he had spent the entire week with another woman while Claire had been preparing a divorce—or so he had assumed.
“And you decided to celebrate it with… her?” He pointed toward Daniel, who remained perfectly calm.
“Oh, don’t worry,” Daniel said, returning to the sofa. “I’m only here for work.”
“For work?” Andrew’s hands tightened into fists. “In my apartment? At night? With champagne?”
“She’s an interior designer,” Claire explained evenly. “I wanted to renovate the apartment while you were away. It was supposed to be an anniversary surprise.”
“An entire renovation in one week?” Andrew asked in disbelief.
“Not just the living room.” Claire stood and gestured for him to follow. “Come on. I’ll show you the rest.”
Andrew followed her as if moving through a dream.
The bedroom had changed just as dramatically. New wallpaper covered the walls. There was a different bed, new lamps, and fresh artwork arranged above the headboard.
“This is…” He could not find the words.
“Do you like it?” Claire asked, watching him anxiously. “I’ve wanted to change things for a long time. I thought the week of your conference was the perfect opportunity.”
Andrew noticed the emphasis she placed on the word conference and felt an uneasy shiver pass through him.
“It’s very… unexpected,” he managed.
“That isn’t all.” Claire opened the door to the room that had served as his home office.
Andrew stopped on the threshold.
The office had been transformed into a nursery. The walls were painted blue. A small crib stood near the window, surrounded by toys. A stuffed bear sat on a shelf.
“What is this?” he whispered.
Claire folded her arms around herself, suddenly looking fragile.
“I wanted to tell you on our anniversary. I’m pregnant, Andrew. Fourteen weeks.”
For a moment, the world seemed to stop.
Andrew stared at his wife, at the slight curve of her stomach he had somehow failed to notice, at the crib and the little bear waiting beside it.
“Pregnant?” The word sounded foreign in his mouth. “But we…”
“Do you remember the night before your business trip to Denver?” Claire gave him a sad, uncertain smile. “We had both been drinking a little.”
Andrew remembered.
Three months earlier, they had shared one rare moment of intimacy in a marriage that had already begun to fade.
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“I wanted to be certain. I was waiting for the right moment.” Claire shrugged faintly. “Then you announced your ‘conference’ with Sophie.”
Andrew’s face went pale.
“You knew?”
“Of course I knew.” Claire held his gaze steadily. “I’m not stupid, Andrew. But I wanted to give us a chance. A chance for all of us.”
She placed one hand over her stomach, and that simple gesture made everything suddenly real.
They were going to have a child.
Their child.
“Claire, I…” Andrew began, but the words would not come.
“Don’t say anything yet,” she interrupted gently. “Go back to the living room. Daniel was just about to leave. We’ll have some champagne, and then we’ll talk.”
Andrew nodded and walked out of the nursery.
Daniel was already gathering her things in the living room.
“Happy anniversary,” she said, shaking Andrew’s hand while he remained visibly stunned. “And congratulations on the baby. Your wife is an extraordinary woman.”
“Yes,” Andrew replied in a rough voice. “Thank you.”
After the designer left, Claire returned with two glasses. One contained champagne. The other held what appeared to be juice.
“To us?” she asked, offering him the glass.
Andrew accepted it but could not lift it for the toast.
“Claire, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“I know,” she said calmly. “About Sophie. About your relationship. About wanting to leave.”
He stared at her.
“How…?”
“Your phone died before you left, remember? You borrowed my old one to call a taxi. Then you signed into your account and forgot to log out. Every message came through to me. Every single one.”
Andrew felt the blood drain from his face.
His entire correspondence with Sophie. Their plans for the future. His promises that he would get divorced.
“Claire, I don’t know what to say.”
“Then don’t say anything.” She stepped closer. “Answer one question instead. Do you love her?”
Andrew opened his mouth, then closed it again.
He had thought he did. For the whole week, he had been certain.
But now he stood in the home Claire had transformed, looking at his pregnant wife and the nursery prepared for their child, and certainty slipped away.
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “I’m confused.”
Claire nodded as though she had expected that answer.
“All right.” She took the untouched glass from his hand and placed it beside her own. “I’m giving you one week. Pack your things and stay with friends, your parents, or at a hotel—wherever you choose. Think about everything: us, the baby, and what you truly feel. Come back in a week and tell me what you’ve decided.”
“And if I decide to leave?” Andrew asked quietly.
Claire closed her eyes for a moment. The pain on her face was impossible to hide.
“Then I’ll let you go,” she said. “And I’ll thank you for being honest.”
Andrew stood silently in the room, surrounded by the anniversary celebration he had forgotten, the home she had rebuilt, and the future neither of them could ignore.