“I cheated because somebody made me feel wanted, and instead of dealing with my marriage like an adult, I chose the easier thing.”
Caleb said nothing.
“I liked the attention.”
Nia’s eyes filled.
“I liked having someone ask how my day went and actually wait for the answer.”
Caleb looked hurt.
“I asked.”
“Sometimes.”
“Apparently not enough.”
“That still doesn’t excuse what I did.”
“No.”
“It doesn’t.”
Caleb waited.
Nia continued.
“At first, I told myself it was just talking.”
“Were you attracted to him?”
“Yes.”
The honesty clearly hurt both of them.
“When did you know?”
“Before the first kiss.”
“Did you hide the conversations from me?”
“Yes.”
“So before anything physical happened, you knew there was something wrong.”
“Yes.”
Caleb nodded.
That answer mattered.
“When was the first kiss?”
Nia told him.
The garage.
The rain weeks before.
The Dallas trip.
She gave him the timeline.
Caleb listened.
Every detail hurt.
But uncertainty had hurt more.
Finally, he asked, “Did you ever plan to leave me?”
“No.”
“Did you plan to stop seeing him?”
Nia hesitated.
Caleb stood.
She immediately said, “Yes.”
“You hesitated.”
“Because I don’t want to lie.”
Caleb remained standing.
Nia looked up at him.
“I wanted to stop. I just kept failing to stop.”
“That means no.”
“I guess it does.”
Caleb sat again.
He looked exhausted.
“Nia, do you understand what you did to my ability to trust my own memories?”
She frowned.
“What do you mean?”
“I think about a good day we had two months ago, and now I wonder whether you texted him afterward.”
Nia began crying.
“I remember an argument, and I wonder if you told him about it.”
Caleb’s voice became rough.
“I remember making love to my wife, and now I’m wondering whether you were thinking about somebody else.”
Nia covered her face.
“That is what you gave me.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You keep saying that.”
“Because I am.”
“I believe you’re sorry.”
Nia looked at him.
Caleb continued.
“But I don’t know if being sorry is enough.”
“What can I do?”
“I don’t know.”
“I’ll quit my job if working from home is part of this.”
“That has nothing to do with it.”
“I’ll change my number.”
“Do that because you want boundaries, not because you think there’s a checklist that makes this disappear.”
“Counseling.”
Caleb looked away.
“I already called someone.”
He turned back.
“You did?”
“For myself.”
Nia nodded.
“That’s good.”
Caleb almost smiled at the absurdity.
“I didn’t do it for your approval.”
“I know.”
They fell silent.
Then Nia asked the question she had been terrified to ask.
“Are you filing for divorce?”
Caleb stared at the lake.