“The Other Baby”

I clutched the letter, my fingers trembling as my world unraveled in an instant. Thirteen years. Two kids. A life built on what I thought was trust. And now… this?

My husband, Daniel, stood frozen in the doorway, his face draining of color. *”Let me explain,”* he whispered.

I turned, rage and heartbreak colliding inside me. *”Explain? Explain what, Daniel? That you have another woman? That you have a baby on the way?”*

He took a slow step forward, hands raised in surrender. But then, instead of denial, instead of excuses, he said something that made my blood run cold.

*”I knew this day would come.”*

I blinked. *”What?”*

Daniel exhaled, his hands trembling as he ran them through his hair. *”I should’ve told you years ago. But I was trying to protect you.”*

My head spun. *”Protect me from what?”*

*”The truth.”* His voice cracked. *”The baby isn’t mine… at least, not in the way you think. It’s my brother’s.”*

Confusion slammed into me. *”Your brother? But—Daniel, you don’t have a brother.”*

He closed his eyes, pained. *”I did. Before you knew me. His name was Adam. He was my twin.”*

I staggered back. In all our years together, he had never mentioned a twin.

*”Adam died in an accident twelve years ago. But before he passed… he was in love with a woman. She was pregnant, but she lost the baby in grief after he died. She left town. Disappeared.”* Daniel’s voice wavered. *”She found me last year. She told me she was pregnant again—through IVF, using Adam’s stored DNA. She wanted me to know. She wanted me to be involved. To make sure his child had family.”*

Tears burned my eyes. *”So you kept it a secret? You let me think you were cheating?!”*

*”I didn’t know how to tell you,”* he admitted. *”I was afraid you’d leave. That you’d hate me. But I swear, I never betrayed you. This is Adam’s child, not mine.”*

I looked at the onesie, the letter, my whole world teetering on the edge of something I didn’t know how to process.

*”And now?”* I whispered.

Daniel swallowed hard. *”Now, I leave it up to you. I don’t want to lose our family. But I need to be there for this baby. For my brother’s last piece of him.”*

My heart ached, torn between anger, betrayal… and something else.

I had no idea what to do next.