Chapter 2: It Meant Nothing

Continued from chapter 1:

She pulls back just enough to meet my gaze, her blue eyes wide and swimming with anguish and fear. Her delicate hands fist in the fabric of my shirt, as if afraid I might disappear.

“I... I c-cheated on you, Ero. J-just once, but that doesn't make it okay.”

The walls begin closing in, and the room stretches away from me, dragging the love of my life further away, her voice growing more distant. I stumble over to the couch as if drunk, legs trembling, face tingling. I stare at the wall in front of me, not wanting to look at Amelia, wanting to unhear, unlearn, and unknow everything she has just told me.

Amelia watches in horror as I stagger away from her, collapsing onto the couch like a marionette with cut strings. Her heart breaks at the devastation etched into every line of my body, the way I can't even bear to look at her.

“No, no please, Ero, don't shut me out!” she cries, falling to her knees in front of me.

Chapter 2:

She reaches for my hands but stops short, remembering the revulsion she sees in my eyes. Tears pour freely down her face, dripping onto the white satin of her dress.

“I know there's no excuse, I know I destroyed everything. But please, you have to let me explain!”

Her voice rises with desperation, echoing in the suddenly cavernous living room.

Amelia collapses onto the couch beside me, her knees giving out from under her. She curls in on herself, drawing her legs up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them, making herself as small as possible. As if that could hide her from the destruction she's unleashed.

“I... I didn't mean to,” she whispers brokenly, rocking slightly.

“I was lonely, and scared, and stupid. I let myself get swept away for one awful night. But it meant nothing, Ero. Nothing compared to what we have. Please, please believe me.”

She reaches out tentatively to lay a trembling hand on my knee, needing to touch me, to anchor herself to me, even as she knows she’s lost me.

“I will do anything, ANYTHING to make this right. I just...”

I say nothing. I don't want to look at Amelia right now. I don't know if I ever want to see her again.

Amelia remains kneeling on the floor, staring at my averted face with raw anguish. My silence cuts deeper than any words could. Each second stretches into eternity. She knows she deserves my contempt, my disgust, but the weight of it threatens to crush her.

“Please, Ero, I'm begging you...” Her voice is hoarse from crying, trembling with barely restrained hysteria.

“I made a horrible mistake, the worst thing I've ever done. But I swear, it meant nothing! You're the only one I love, the only one I want. I was weak and foolish, but I regret it more than anything!”

“Please, Ero,” she whimpers, her voice ragged with anguish.

“Don't shut me out. I know I messed up beyond belief, but I can't lose you. I... I love you so much. You're my whole world.”

She takes a shuddering breath, steeling herself before continuing in a low, fervent tone,

“If you need space, take it. If you need to scream at me, yell, whatever, I understand. I'll take it. I'll take anything, Ero.”

Slowly, giving me time to pull away, she reaches out to lay a tentative hand on my knee. Her touch is feather-light, pleading.

“I know I have no right to ask for forgiveness.”

I take her hand in mine, remove it from my knee, and let it drop.

“No,” I tell her in a hoarse whisper. “No, you don't.”

Amy gasps sharply as I reject her touch. Her hand falls limply to her side, heavy with the weight of my rejection. It hits her like a physical blow, stealing the breath from her lungs. She squeezes her eyes shut against the fresh wave of pain, hot tears leaking from beneath her lashes.

As I pull her hand away, I notice the last shreds of hope slip away from her. My hoarse rejection echoes in the silence between us. She sits back on her heels, her head bowed, dark hair falling forward to hide her face as silent sobs wrack her slender frame.

“I understand,” she whispers brokenly after a long moment.

“I understand completely. I... I don’t expect you to forgive me. I don’t deserve it.”

Amy takes a shuddering breath, trying to gather the tattered remains of her courage.

“I... I know. I know I don’t deserve it. Deserve you. I was so selfish, so stupid... But I need you to know... I love you, Ero. I always have and I always will.”

Her voice trails off, unable to continue past the lump lodged in her throat. When she speaks again, her words are halting, punctuated by sniffles and hiccupping breaths.

“But I can’t just walk away. I can’t pretend I don’t love you. That I don’t need you. I... I’ll do anything to fix this, Ero. Anything you ask.”

“Who?” I ask, my voice a low growl.

Amy’s head snaps up at my question, confusion and a flicker of **** hope warring in her tear-filled eyes. She stares at me intently, searching my face for any sign of softening, any hint that I might still care.

“What do you mean, ‘who’?” she asks tremulously, hardly daring to breathe.

“I... I am Amelia. Your wife. The woman who loves you more than life itself.”

She reaches for me again, slowly this time, giving me every opportunity to pull away. When I don’t, she gently takes my hands in hers, marveling at the familiar warmth and strength in my fingers. But then she gasps, bursting into tears as I pull away again.

“Ero, please... I know I hurt you terribly. I betrayed the vows we made to each other.”

“No, Amy. Who? Who was he?”

Amy flinches as if slapped by my question, fresh tears springing to her eyes. She looks down at her hands, shame burning through her veins like acid, unable to meet my gaze.

“I... I don’t even remember his name. It was just some random man from the club that night. I was drunk and lonely, and I made a terrible, terrible mistake.”

Tears drip steadily into her lap as she continues in a broken voice.

“It meant nothing, Ero. Nothing at all. In the cold light of day, I realized what a huge error I’d made. I’ve been sick with guilt ever since. I... I couldn’t bear the thought of you finding out some other way.”

Finally, she lifts her gaze to meet mine, her blue eyes swimming with anguish and **** entreaty. She squeezes my hands desperately, her whole body trembling.

“Please, Ero, you have to believe me. It was a one-time thing, a terrible error in judgment. My heart, my soul, my everything belongs to you. Always has, always will. I was just... lost without you for a little while. Stupid and selfish and weak.”

“Did you cum?”

Amy recoils as if struck, a strangled gasp escaping her lips at my blunt, probing question. Mortification and despair crash over her in waves, threatening to drag her under. She wants to lie, to spare me this painful knowledge, but she knows she owes me the truth, no matter how ugly it may be.

To be continued in chapter 3...