It was his mother.
Her knees nearly buckled. Flustered and embarrassed, she muttered an excuse and hung up.
Still breathing hard, she dialed the second contact.
Her sister-in-law answered, laughing about a ruined dinner and asking how her day had been.
Relief crashed over her, followed immediately by shame. Tears welled as she stared at the phone. How could she doubt him? How could she let insecurity poison something so good?
Only one name remained.
“Lady of my dreams.”
Her vision blurred as she pressed call, silently apologizing to the universe for her lack of faith.
Her own phone rang.
The sound felt wrong—distant, hollow.
She answered slowly.
Her husband’s voice came through, soft and amused.
“Hey… where are you calling from?”
The room tilted.
She ended the call without a word and collapsed onto the floor, sobbing until her chest hurt. When he woke and found her like that, she confessed everything—the doubt, the fear, the shame.
