Chapter 6: “The Shoulder She Shouldn’t Trust”

Tayla’s POV

The house felt different without Damian.

Too quiet.

Too empty.

Too cold.

Every room carried traces of him.

His coffee mug still sat beside the espresso machine.

His jacket still hung near the front door.

His cologne still lingered faintly in our bedroom.

Everywhere I looked, I saw reminders of the man who was supposed to be here.

The man who wasn’t.

I stood in the kitchen staring at my untouched coffee when Noah’s small voice broke the silence.

“Mommy?”

I looked down.

My six-year-old son stood in the doorway holding his favorite dinosaur.

His eyes looked tired.

Confused.

Lost.

My heart cracked.

“Hey, baby.”

He shuffled closer.

“Did Daddy call?”

The question hit harder than expected.

I forced a smile.

“Not today.”

His shoulders dropped.

The disappointment on his face nearly destroyed me.

“Oh.”

I crouched down.

“He loves you, Noah.”

“Then why doesn’t he come home?”

My throat tightened.

Because I didn’t know anymore.

Because every answer I had sounded like a lie.

Because lately even I wasn’t sure who Damian really was.

A knock interrupted us.

Three slow knocks.

My stomach twisted.

Nobody visited anymore.

Not since Damian’s arrest.

Nobody except—

I opened the door.

Luca stood outside.

Perfect suit.

Perfect smile.

Perfect timing.

“Good morning.”

Noah’s face lit up immediately.

“Uncle Luca!”

Luca laughed warmly and lifted him effortlessly.

“There’s my favorite guy.”

Watching them together should have made me feel comforted.

Instead…

Something felt strange.

A small feeling I couldn’t explain.

Maybe because Damian had warned me.

Stay away from Luca.

The memory flashed through my mind.

But why?

Luca had done nothing except help us.

He’d handled lawyers.

Paid bills.

Checked on Noah.

Answered calls I couldn’t bear to answer myself.

If anything—

He’d been the only person standing beside me.

“You look exhausted,” Luca said softly.

I laughed bitterly.

“That’s because I am.”

His eyes softened.

For a moment he simply looked at me.

Really looked at me.

And suddenly I became aware of myself.

The oversized sweater.

The messy hair.

The dark circles under my eyes.

The vulnerability.

“You haven’t been eating.”

I frowned.

“What?”

“You’ve lost weight.”

The observation felt strangely intimate.

I looked away.

“I’m fine.”

“No.”

His voice lowered.

“You’re falling apart.”

Something about hearing those words out loud nearly broke me.

Because I was.

God, I was.

Every day felt impossible.

Every night felt worse.

And nobody seemed to understand.

Except him.

Luca stepped closer.

Not enough to cross a line.

Just enough to feel protective.

“Tayla.”

My eyes met his.

“You don’t have to carry everything alone.”

The kindness in his voice nearly made me cry.

Because Damian wasn’t here.

And Luca was.

That simple truth terrified me.

Later that evening, Noah fell asleep on the couch while watching cartoons.

For the first time all day, the house was quiet.

Luca remained in the living room.

Neither of us seemed eager to end the conversation.

Which was dangerous.

Very dangerous.

Because comfort was addictive.

And right now, Luca was becoming exactly that.

Comfort.

“You should rest.”

I laughed softly.

“I don’t remember how.”

He smiled.

Then his expression darkened slightly.

“Have you heard from Damian?”

My stomach tightened.

“Only through the lawyers.”

Luca nodded.

Carefully.

Almost thoughtfully.

Then he asked:

“Did he ever tell you where all the missing money went?”

I blinked.

“What money?”

His brows furrowed.

“He never told you?”

A cold feeling settled in my stomach.

“No.”

Luca looked genuinely surprised.

Or maybe he wanted me to think he was.

The difference was impossible to tell.

“There were rumors before the arrest.”

My pulse quickened.

“What rumors?”

He hesitated.

Just long enough.

The perfect amount of hesitation.

The kind that makes someone desperate to hear more.

“Forget it.”

“Luca.”

His jaw tightened.

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

Fear crawled into my chest.

“What rumors?”

Finally he sighed.

“As long as you understand I never wanted to be the one telling you this.”

My heartbeat thundered.

“Tell me.”

Luca looked away.

Then back at me.

And quietly said:

“People believed Damian had another life.”

The room spun.

“What?”

“I’m not saying it’s true.”

“But…”

His silence said everything.

“No.”

The word escaped immediately.

“That’s ridiculous.”

“I hope it is.”

My chest tightened painfully.

Because suddenly memories started resurfacing.

Late nights.

Secret calls.

Business trips.

Distance.

Silence.

All the things I’d ignored because I trusted him.

“No.”

I shook my head harder.

“Damian would never do that.”

Luca didn’t argue.

Didn’t push.

Didn’t insist.

And somehow that made it worse.

Because manipulation works best when it doesn’t feel like manipulation.

“I hope you’re right.”

Those four words stayed with me long after he left.

That night I couldn’t sleep.

Again.

I lay alone in the bed Damian and I once shared.

Staring at the ceiling.

Thinking.

Questioning.

Remembering.

For the first time since his arrest…

A terrible thought entered my mind.

What if Damian wasn’t protecting me?

What if he was hiding from me?

The idea felt poisonous.

Yet once it appeared…

I couldn’t make it disappear.

Outside, rain tapped softly against the windows.

Inside, doubt slowly settled into my heart.

And miles away, sitting alone inside a prison cell…

Damian had no idea that the first crack in our marriage had finally appeared.

And the man creating it was his own brother.