Chapter 10: “The Cracks Between Us”

Tayla’s POV

I hated myself for letting Luca comfort me.

The moment he left that night, guilt settled over me like a heavy blanket.

I sat alone in the living room long after Noah had gone to bed, replaying everything in my head.

The photograph.

The apartment.

The mysterious woman.

Luca’s words.

Damian’s silence.

It felt like my marriage was becoming a puzzle with missing pieces.

And no matter how hard I tried, nothing fit together anymore.

The clock on the wall struck midnight.

I should have been sleeping.

Instead, I was staring at my wedding picture.

The frame sat on the shelf beside the fireplace.

A reminder of a happier time.

Back then, Damian had looked at me like I was the only woman in the world.

Back then, I never questioned his love.

Back then, I wasn’t wondering whether my husband had been lying to me for years.

A tear slid down my cheek.

I wiped it away angrily.

No.

I was tired of crying.

Tired of feeling helpless.

Tired of waiting for answers.

My phone suddenly buzzed.

My heart jumped.

For one stupid second, I thought it might be Damian.

Instead, it was an unknown number.

Again.

A chill ran down my spine.

Slowly, I opened the message.

And my entire world tilted.

There was another photograph.

This one was worse.

Much worse.

My hand trembled.

The image showed Damian entering the apartment building.

The same apartment.

The same building.

The same secret life I knew nothing about.

And standing beside him…

Was the woman.

This time she was touching his arm.

Smiling.

Looking comfortable.

Looking familiar.

My stomach twisted violently.

I dropped the phone onto the couch.

“No…”

The whisper barely escaped my lips.

This couldn’t be happening.

It couldn’t.

Because if it was true…

Then everything I believed about my marriage was a lie.

The next morning, I barely touched breakfast.

Noah noticed immediately.

“Mommy?”

I looked up.

His little face was full of concern.

“You look sick.”

My heart broke.

Children noticed everything.

Even when you thought they didn’t.

“I’m okay, sweetheart.”

He frowned.

“No, you’re not.”

I forced a smile.

“I’m just tired.”

His gaze lingered on me.

The exact same stubborn look Damian always had.

The similarity made my chest ache.

Before I could say anything else, the doorbell rang.

My stomach tightened.

I already knew who it was.

Luca.

Again.

Lately, he had become part of our routine.

And that realization should have bothered me more than it did.

When I opened the door, he immediately frowned.

“You look awful.”

I laughed humorlessly.

“Good morning to you too.”

His eyes softened.

“What happened?”

I hesitated.

Then handed him my phone.

The moment he saw the photograph, his jaw tightened.

For a split second.

Then he hid it.

Too late.

I noticed.

“You’ve seen this before.”

The accusation slipped out.

Luca looked away.

That tiny movement felt like confirmation.

And suddenly I felt sick.

“What aren’t you telling me?”

Silence.

The dangerous kind.

The kind that stretches too long.

The kind that makes your imagination run wild.

Finally, Luca sighed.

“I was hoping you’d never find out this way.”

My heartbeat quickened.

Find out what?

The words echoed inside my head.

Find out what?

“What are you talking about?”

Luca rubbed his face.

Looking genuinely conflicted.

Or pretending to.

I no longer knew the difference.

“There were rumors.”

There it was again.

Rumors.

Always rumors.

Never facts.

Never proof.

Just enough to destroy trust.

Not enough to reveal the truth.

“What rumors?”

His gaze met mine.

And for the first time…

I saw hesitation.

Real hesitation.

“That Damian wasn’t who everyone thought he was.”

The words landed like a bomb.

My breathing became uneven.

Because lately…

I was beginning to believe it.

Across the city, Damian sat in the prison visitation room.

His lawyer had just finished speaking.

And every word made his anger grow.

“She’s spending time with Luca almost every day.”

Damian’s hands clenched.

His knuckles turned white.

“He planned this.”

The lawyer remained silent.

Because they both knew the truth.

Luca had planned everything.

Every step.

Every lie.

Every manipulation.

The arrest.

The photographs.

The doubts.

Everything.

And Damian was trapped behind bars while his brother destroyed his life piece by piece.

“What about the witness?”

The lawyer leaned forward.

“We found her.”

Hope flickered inside Damian’s chest.

For the first time in weeks.

“Can she prove it?”

The lawyer nodded slowly.

“Yes.”

Relief crashed through him.

Finally.

A way out.

A way to expose Luca.

A way to get back to Tayla.

Back to Noah.

Back to his family.

Then the lawyer spoke again.

And the relief disappeared.

“There’s a problem.”

Damian’s stomach tightened.

“What problem?”

The lawyer’s expression darkened.

“She’s missing.”

Silence.

Cold.

Terrifying silence.

Damian slowly leaned back in his chair.

Because he already knew exactly who was responsible.

Luca.

Again.

That evening rain poured across Manhattan.

The city lights blurred behind sheets of water.

Inside the penthouse, Tayla stood beside the window.

Watching the storm.

Thinking.

Questioning.

Doubting.

Everything.

Her marriage.

Her husband.

Herself.

The sound of the front door opening broke her thoughts.

Luca entered carrying takeout bags.

“Noah’s favorite.”

She managed a weak smile.

“Thank you.”

Luca set the bags down.

Then looked at her carefully.

The concern in his eyes seemed genuine.

And that was what scared her most.

Because every day she trusted him a little more.

Every day she depended on him a little more.

Every day Damian felt further away.

Luca stepped closer.

Not enough to touch.

Just enough to be there.

“You don’t have to go through this alone.”

The words wrapped around her heart like a warm blanket.

And she hated that they did.

Because those words should have come from Damian.

Not Luca.

Never Luca.

Yet Damian wasn’t here.

Luca was.

And sometimes loneliness can make the wrong person feel like home.

Outside, thunder shook the city.

Inside, Tayla stared at the man standing beside her.

The man helping her survive.

The man quietly destroying her marriage.

And for the first time…

She didn’t step away.