Five Years of Lies, The Last Chapter

The first time I found out that Jessica Blake was cheating on me was in our own bedroom.

I was young and hot-headed, and I wanted a divorce on the spot. She cried and said she'd gotten drunk and mistaken the guy for me. She fell to her knees, begging me to forgive her.

"If you divorce me, I'll jump from this window right now."

That one line softened my heart for the next five years.

During those years, she was gentle and caring, as if that night had never happened. Everyone could see it—Jessica loved me so much she was willing to die for me.

But then came her mother's 60th birthday party.

Out of nowhere, my mother-in-law, Linda, asked her, "Jess, where's my grandson? Why didn't he come?"

I was confused. I thought she was just having a moment, so I smiled and said, "Mom, you forgot—Jess's due date is still two months away."

Linda glanced at me calmly and murmured, "Oh… so you still don't know."

My heart sank. I looked over at Jessica instinctively.

She quietly put down her fork, as if she were talking about something as ordinary as the weather. "Actually, I have a son. He's five years old."

My hand froze mid-cut as I was slicing her steak.

My brain went numb. My vision blurred.

"What?"

My lips trembled as I forced the word out.

"That night with Ryan five years ago. I got pregnant."

Jessica didn't hold anything back. She even let out a small sigh of relief as she said it. "It's better that you know. I've been tired of hiding it for five years."

I didn't know what to do with myself. I turned to my mother-in-law.

"Mom… come on, don't joke around with Jess like this. It's your birthday. You're messing with me, right?"

But Linda just took a calm sip of her tea. She didn't say a word in response to my question.

My heart sank lower.

Jessica kept talking. "I'm not joking. When I found out, the doctor said terminating the pregnancy would be bad for my health. There was a good chance I'd never get pregnant again."

She rested her hand on her swollen belly. My child was in there—eight months along, almost due.

"Be grateful, Michael. I didn't get rid of it. Otherwise, we'd never have a child of our own."

Even though I didn't want to believe any of it, the way Jessica and her mother were acting made it clear. They weren't lying.

No wonder she had gone on that six‑month business trip back then. She video‑called me every day, but really, she was off having someone else's baby. And for the next five years, she took a weeklong business trip every single month—to go be with Ryan and their son. And I actually bought it.

I forced a smile, but my eyes burned.

"You hid it pretty well. So why tell me today?"

Before Jessica could answer, Linda slammed her spoon down