CHAPTER 8: HER BITTER SCHEMES

“Divorce her. This doesn’t have to mean anything. We can fix this. You and I,” Clara pressed. Her voice was a mix of command and desperation.

Rivera's heart beat loudly. Just hours ago, she prayed for him to divorce her but now that someone else suggested it, she wasn't sure if she ever wanted that.

Reagan didn’t answer immediately. When he did, his voice was calm and measured. “We’ll see.”

Two words, that was all. Rivera felt something cold settle in her chest.

It wasn't fear or anger, it was something sharper. It was jealousy.

And just like that, a dangerous realization struck her. She cared.

This man who seemed untouchable, drove her crazy, made her feel small and wild at the same time, she really cared about him.

Right from the first time they met, he had always had such an impact on her that no man else did.

And now, she was terrified that he'd go back to Clara. She was perfect for him and Rivera felt inferior to her.

Clara was beautiful, sophisticated and wealthy. Rivera's charm was different, it was more chaotic and simpler.

“You'll see?" Clara repeated. "That’s all you’ll give me?”

“It’s all I can give,” he said.

Rivera suddenly heard her sobbing and she wondered if Reagan was the kind of man to be moved by tears.

He was indeed. He patted her shoulders to calm her down and gave her his access key to his penthouse suite.

"Wait for me there. I'll come see you tomorrow."

When Clara finally left, her heels clicking against the marble, Rivera felt a moment of relief.

Rivera stayed where she was long after her husband's lover left.

"You can come out now," Reagan called.

Rivera gasped in embarrassment.

“How did you know I was still there?”

He smirked, his eyes locked onto hers, unreadable and intense.

Rivera wondered if he acted tough to Clara at first because he knew she was listening.

“Was she... your girlfriend?”

“Yes,” he admitted.

Rivera blinked. The honesty caught her off guard. “And you told her you might divorce me?” she asked the dreaded question.

“I told her nothing definite,” he said, his eyes narrowing slightly.

“You said, ‘We’ll see,’” Rivera muttered.

He studied her briefly, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. “Does that bother you?”

“No,” she said quickly, too quickly.

“Good. It shouldn’t.”

Rivera didn’t understand what he meant, and she didn’t plan to ask.

Her chest was still tight with the feeling of jealousy, fear and longing but she couldn't tell him, especially not after asking him repeatedly to divorce her.

Reagan’s phone vibrated. He took it out, glanced at the screen and frowned.

“What is it?” she asked curiously.

“It’s my father,” he said. His fingers tightened around the phone. “He’s here.”

“Oh. Great. I should say hi. I’ve never met him,” Rivera said lightly.

No," he immediately held out his hand to stop her. "Stay here."

Rivera shrugged and sank into the seat close to her.

As soon as he shut the door, she pulled out her phone and texted Luke.

"You know you owe me some explanations. I'd be in town tomorrow with Isabel to shop for some new clothes. Let's meet then."

Meanwhile, Clara had returned to her sleek black sedan outside the mansion.

Isabel sat beside her. She was Clara's secret informant in the mansion. She gave her Rivera's ID which she took from her belongings.

Clara took a picture of it and gave it back to her and she sneaked back into the mansion to replace it before Rivera noticed.

Clara dialed a number she knew by heart.

“I sent you a picture of an ID in your inbox. Find out everything about her,” she instructed the man on the other end.

“Immediately. I want to know who she is, what she does, her background. Report back before nightfall.”

She glanced at the mansion one last time. Something didn't seem right. Reagan was a playboy. He thrived on attention, women and chaos.

But his affairs always end at the club or the penthouse. Girls were never allowed at his house.

Two years ago when Reagan disappeared and Clara talked to Reagan's father, he told her that Reagan had to marry to complete a business deal in Italy but that marriage would end in Italy.

And yet, he brought her to America, to his home and gave her his family's ring. It was very suspicious.

Clara knew one thing. If Reagan was serious about keeping his new found fancy, she would find a way to make her disappear if that was what it'd take to reclaim him.

She couldn’t wait all these years for him to push her aside for someone else.