The Billionaire’s Secret Daughter

“Hey babe is something wrong?” Charlie Miller asked his girlfriend Clara Henderson with concern as he took in her pale face as she sat on the couch of her small studio apartment, so lost in her own thoughts that she didn’t even hear him come in. She turned to the man she had been dating for the last six months, the man she thought she had a future with and asked the question she never thought she needed to ask. “Are you married?” Clara whispered out, already knowing the answer but needing to hear it from him. Charlie gapped at her, knowing that all of his carefully crafted lies were falling apart in front of him. “How did you know?” He finally asked, knowing from the look on her face that it was too late to deny it. “I went to surprise you at work and the front desk clerk told me you were on the phone with your wife. She was really impressed but what a great husband and father you are,” Clara’s voice began to break, but she held back the tears. This cheating bastard would not get to see her cry. “How could you do this to me?! To your wife?! To your kids!? God Charlie, you have kids!” Clara cried as she jumped off the couch in frustration. “I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt you.” “Does she know?” Clara asked sharply. “She doesn’t know. I love my wife. I never meant to hurt her either. I swear to you I’ve never done anything like this before. Things just got, out of control,” Charlie struggled to finish his sentence, knowing that nothing he said would stop the hurt he caused. “What’s her name?” Charlie hesitated, unsure if he should share such information. “I think I have the right to know the name of the woman whose life I unwittingly helped destroy,” Clara told him coldly. “Sofia. Her name is Sofia,” Charlie finally relented. Smack! Clara came at him so quickly he didn’t even see the slap coming. “That’s for Sofia,” Clara told him firmly, trembling with hurt and rage. “No woman deserves to be treated like that by her husband.” She slapped him a second time. This time he saw it coming, but made no move to stop it. He knew he deserved it. “And that’s for me. How dare you make me a mistress?!” “I’m sorry,” Charlie repeated, at a loss for what else he could say. “I don’t want your apologies,” Clara suddenly sounded tired. “I never want to see you again. Leave the key and get out.” Charlie looked like he wanted to say more, but thought better of it and turned to leave, setting his key on the kitchen counter as he walked past. “Charlie,” Clara called out to stop him as he reached out to open the door. He looked over his shoulder apprehensively. “You should tell Sofia the truth. She has the right to decide for her self whether or not she wants to forgive you.” Charlie nodded in reply, not giving a real answer before walking out the door. Clara waited until she was sure he had walked away before collapsing onto the couch, the tears she had been holding back finally spilling out. “I’m so sorry baby,” Clara whispered to her stomach. “We are going to have to do this on our own. We can’t come between your daddy and his real family.” Clara would never have involved herself with a married man. She detested women who perused married men, who ruined families without a care for the hurt they caused. She was so angry with Charlie for making her a home wrecker, but that’s not why she chose not to tell him that she was pregnant. She didn’t want him have to choose between his family and the baby. So she made the choice for him. Once Clara had let herself cry for everything her and her unborn child had lost, she wiped away her tears and started searching her small apartment for a notepad and pen. She wasn’t sure if Charlie would do the right thing or not, but she knew that Sofia had the right to know. Every person had the right to know the truth about the one they loved. Even if it hurt.