What we choose

Pauli cheated on my fiancée. sophie and i were building our future. in love, happy, peaceful. then she found a lump in her breast, and i made the worst choice: i numbed my fear by sleeping with someone else. my worst mistake and my biggest regret. now i see sophie around town with him. she's radiant and laughing with people who actually show up. i'm trying to learn how to be a man who does. if she lets me, i'll spend the rest of my life proving i can choose her when it's hardest. if she lets me... sophiei thought the promise was in sickness and in health. but he buried his fear in someone else. on the same night, i walked into a bookstore and met the gentle giant owner, who invited me to his book club full of misfits. i'm laughing again, i'm smiling more than i ever have, and i'm healing my heart. my bookstore owner keeps showing up like it's as easy as breathing. i don't know what the future holds; i don't know if i'll win this battle against cancer, but i do know i'm done wasting time on people who love only when it's easy. callumshe came into rivers & rhodes bookstore and asked for books with happy endings only. i gave her a recommendation, an invitation, and an offer of friendship. now, this beautiful, brave woman is completely under my skin. i'm not here to win a competition against him. i'm here because choosing someone, second by second, is the only way i understand love.