Page 194 of Checkmate
A twinge twisted in the pit of Sophie’s stomach as she thought of the life growing inside of her. The doctors had warned her she’d be more fertile in the first year of Odette’s life. But when the opportunity for a quickie arose, she forgot about protection.
She hadn’t told Alex yet. She hadn’t even booked an appointment. Odette was barely nine months old. The idea of having another child was too scary to think about.
Sophie loved her daughter. There was no one else more precious to her in the world. Especially in quiet moments like this. Her pretty eyes fluttered with fatigue. Her little fingers played with Sophie’s hair as they cuddled.
She lived for moments like this.
But damn, she didn’t want to do it again. And she was almost positive Alex felt the same way.
She could see how drained he was. He worked two jobs and spent most of his spare time with Odette, leaving him with almost no time to relax. Sophie tried to do her part, but she knew it wasn’t enough.
And even with those two jobs, they couldn’t afford a second child. They were barely keeping their heads above water. Neither of them could handle another mouth to feed. She knew it.
So why hadn’t she done anything about it?
With a sigh, she glanced down at Odette, who slept peacefully on her chest, unaware of her mother’s inner turmoil. Careful not to wake her, Sophie stood and carried her to the crib, laying her down gently. Her little fist curled as she stretched and settled back into slumber.
Sophie sighed with relief and crept into the living room. Double-checking the view on the monitor, she was confident she had at least half an hour to herself. She grabbed her phone and loaded her favourite forum. She searched it obsessively for mentions of Erica and Marcus.
This was her life now, as pitiful as it was.
She just had to know what was going on with them. She needed to find something, anything, that she could use against them.
Erica is so beautiful and yet so down-to-earth. She seems so approachable! Gag.
Marcus is soooo handsome! Love him in that shirt. Erica is a lucky girl! Barf.
They make such a sweet couple. He’s always touching her, and you can tell he’s really listening when she speaks.
Bleugh.
She tossed her phone aside and cursed under her breath. Sophie pressed her face into the back of the sofa, taking a moment to compose herself. A familiar sickening feeling settled in her stomach.
She tried counting to ten.
And then twenty.
The unsettled feeling lingered, prompting her to read the letter again. Pushing her hair away from her face, she forced herself to focus on each movement her body was making.
Slide to the edge of the sofa. Push to stand up. One foot in front of the other. She made sure to only think about what she was doing. One errant thought and her mind would throw back to the hamper left on her doorstep nine long months ago.
She pulled the letter from its hiding place, the envelope barely holding on. She had read the words so many times she could say them by heart. Yet, she read the letter night after night. She read it when the flat was quiet and she had only her thoughts.
Smoothing out the pages, she settled back and read Erica’s neat handwriting.
Sophie,
First, let me offer my congratulations on the birth of your daughter. I’m sure she’s just as beautiful as you are.
You probably didn’t expect this letter, nor the gifts I’ve left for you and the little one, but that’s the difference between you and me, Sophie. I have a good heart and I think of others.
With that said, did you enjoy my billboards?
Did you really think you could continually steal from me, and I wouldn’t do anything? I warned you that night you stayed at my house. Do not mistake my kindness for weakness.
That was your first mistake.
I don’t care about the rings, Sophie, nor do I care about my clothes that you flogged. (Yes, I know about them - if you don’t treat your maids right; they gossip. You’d be surprised what I know.)
