105

105
ALEXANDER 

The soft sound of the engine slowly faded away as I parked the car after pulling into the driveway but the tension I had been feeling since the chaos at the office only became worse.

Nathan had been arrested. 

Less than five hours ago, the unexpected had happened right in front of me at the office. Officers had barged into the building and had gone through every paperwork, drive, file and even confidential reports that had been in Nathan’s office before he had been arrested and taken away they had found evidence against him. It had not taken me long to realize that someone had tipped them off and knowing that only four people knew about the particular thing he was arrested for, alarm bells rang in my head. 

It was just me, Dominic, Faith and… Raina. 

I couldn’t suspect Faith because she had been home all day, she had said she would be and she doesn’t lie. Dominic had been at work with me and that only left Raina. 

And to top it all off, she had been acting weird all day long. 

Memories of how we had spent last night cuddled up together as she laughed softly in the dark and the way her fingers had lazily traced circles over my chests after we had made love. It had been days, hell months since we had been that close or truthful to each other and to be honest, it had felt strange at first but I had eased into it. 

Then this morning before I left for work, she had barely looked me in the eyes. She was jumpy and she looked nervous. Too nervous. 

I had thought she was just shy after all. It was a new start and maybe she was feeling weird because she had let her guard down with me again since we remarried. But now that I was thinking about it…

Letting out a defeated sigh, I got out of the car and took my time to walk into the house, making sure to shut the door quietly behind me. 

Laughter echoed through the air and I immediately knew who it belonged to. I filled the sound and I was led to the living room but I paused just before I could step in any further. 

Raina was on a video call with the kids and she was curled up on the couch, laughing as not only her smile but her face glowed. 

“It’s been so long since I’ve spoken to you guys,” she cooed into the phone. “Gosh, I miss you so much.”

She smiled as tears welled up in her eyes, she was overly emotional and I figured that it was the nerves since she was pregnant.  

“We miss you too, mom,” Ava replied and the sound of her voice was enough to let me know that she was smiling. 

“Guess what guys,” Raina said as she brushed the tears away as her face radiating with mischievousness 

“What now, mom?” Max asked.

“I’m pregnant and the baby is now the size of a mango,” she said excitedly as she held her phone enough for the kids to see. “Can you believe that?”

“You’re pregnant?” Ava asked in shock and Raina nodded. “And ew mom, why use a mango to describe the baby?” She asked, scrunching up her nose from the other side of the screen and I smiled despite myself. “Mangoes are so sticky and gross.”

“Well, this one is going to be squishy and cute, opposite of whatever idea you have in your head,” Raina replied teasingly, her smile getting even wider. 

“So is it going to be a boy?” Liam asked as he moved closer to the screen, finally speaking up since the announcement. 

I didn’t know how I had expected them to take it but I didn’t realize that they would be so welcoming and chill about it. 

“We don’t know yet,” she said as she slowly shook her head, her smile not leaving her face. “But guess what, again?”

“What?” The twins asked in unison, tired of the suspense their mom was putting them on.  

“You dad and I got married again.”

There was no response and the room fell silent as the three of them stared at each other. Then, Ava let out an excited scream. “Are you for real!? Are you both going to stay married now? Like it’s real? Like… forever kind of thing!?”

“Stop shouting,” Raina said, trying to act angry but she couldn’t help it as a smile broke out on her face. “Yes,” she squealed excitedly as she giggled softly, “like forever.”

“Does that mean that the baby would be having the same last name as we both do?” Liam asked. 

“Yes, sweetheart.”

I leaned against the wall as I silently watched her. There was a softness and warmth in her voice that I haven't heard in so long. And the excitement radiating off the kids through the phone was making her happy and smile so much, her eyes were twinkling and her body was glowing and everything looked truly perfect in that moment. 

But why the hell did it feel like she was hiding something from me?

The way she had jumped when I had touched her in the morning. The way she looked everywhere but into my eyes when I had placed a gentle kiss on her lips and now the way she was laughing with the kids, I knew something was up. 

She was the one behind it. 

She was the one who had given out the evidence. She could easily access all the evidence we had and could also tip them off to where they could search to find extra evidence.

But how was I supposed to confront her? What if I was wrong?

I ran a hand through my hair before I turned around and headed upstairs. Dominic had a glass of water in his hand and he was chugging it down when I stepped beside him on the balcony. 

“She’s the one who did it,” I said as I leaned against the wall. 

Dominic didn't turn to look at me. “You’re not sure of that.”

“She knows where all the evidence is. You, me, Faith and Raina—that’s it. Faith has been home all day long and you have been with me.”

He finally turned to look at me, his eyes narrowing. “You’re jumping into conclusion,” he said with a defeated sigh. “What about Eliza? Maybe she’s the one who leaked it? ”

“Eliza doesn’t have the video and there’s no way she would ever get it. And I’m not jumping into anything,” I snapped. “Aside from us, only Raina does. I’m being logical here and I know I’m right.”

“She’s your wife, Alex.”

“She also looked me in the eyes this morning and lied,” I bit back. “I wonder what more she’s hiding.”

Dominic stood straight though his shoulders were tense. “Let’s get this straight, Alex. If for some reason you’re wrong and you mess this up by accusing her, I swear to God that I’ll personally drag your ass out of your life and make sure you stay far away from her. For good this time.”

His words hit me hard like a punch to the gut and I swallowed nervously. 

I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t. I just nodded and turned around before walking back down the stairs, my determination to investigate what happened only getting stronger. 

I had gone to freshen up when Faith had announced that we should come eat dinner. 

And boy was dinner quiet. Too quiet. 

We all sat at the table, Faith was sitting at the right hand side of Raina while Dominic sat at the head. The house was silent as we quietly ate but I didn’t have an appetite and I couldn’t help but watch every move that Raina was taking. 

She smiled at the right times, she asked how everyone was and how the day had gone as she passed dishes and asked for water. 

But I couldn’t brush off the feeling that something was wrong. 

When she asked Dominic if anything new had happened at the office today and as demonic explained the drama that had occurred—that Nathan’s office was raided by the police filled by his subsequent arrest, her grip on her fork tightened and her eyes widened.

But she quickly regained herself and masked her, she dropped her fork gently before she reached for a glass of water and took a sip. It had been small and would have gone unnoticed if I hadn’t been watching her. 

There was a flicker of discomfort and I could see the way her hands were shaking. 

“So,” Faith spoke up, her voice cautious but filled with curiosity, “what is the next thing that’s going to happen?”

“Well Cale is trying to get to the bottom of it all,” Dominic replied in a low voice. “But until we hear from them, we don’t know what will happen. So we’re being hopeful and just… waiting. There’s nothing else to do.”

“Oh…” Raina said as she forced a small smile. “Hopefully, they get to the root of the matter soon.”

“Same,” Dominic replied dismissively and I knew that was the end of the conversation.

A few minutes passed, then Raina stood up. 

“Excuse me. I need to use the restroom.”

She didn’t wait for a response before she turned and quickly walked away, her napkin falling to the floor. 

I quietly stood up and waited for a few seconds before I followed her. 

Her voice was barely audible and I had to press my ear to the cracked bathroom door. 

“This wasn’t why we planned!” She whispered . 

Silence. 

“You weren’t supposed to go raid in broad daylight just like that. Now everything has gone the opposite way and they’re going to suspect that I—“

She fell silent again. 

“I don’t care whatever plan it was that you had! You acted recklessly, Carter. I trusted you and you just went and ruined everything.”

Carter? Detective Carter?

Her back was facing me and my heart was pounding as I leaned against the wall. 

“I shouldn’t have asked for your help. I should’ve done it myself but now you’ve made things hard. Do you think this is some kind of movie? This is my family we’re talking about here.”

My heart clenched. So I was right, it was really her. 

But I didn’t know how to feel. 

I was still lost in thoughts when the door opened. Raina walked out and her phone nearly fell out of her hand when her eyes landed on me.

“Alex—“ she said breathlessly. 

“You were taking so long so I decided to come check on you,” I lied through my teeth as I caught her phone before it hit the ground. “Are you okay? Is it the baby?” My life was filled with nothing but concern. 

She blinked and let out a relieved sigh. “Erm… what? No. No, I’m fine. I just needed a moment alone, being pregnant is stressful.”

“How about you lie down for a while?”

“Yes,” she said, nodding rapidly. “I’ll do that.”

“Come on,” I said as I wrapped my hand around her waist. “Let’s go finish dinner so you can get some rest.”

My jaw tightened and my grip on her was firm but she didn’t notice. I led her back to the dining area, my face void of any emotion even though my mind was racing. 

She had no idea that I had caught her and heard everything she said. 

Later that night when we had all retreated to our respective rooms, Raina walked into the bathroom, mumbling something about wanting to take a bath as she pulled her hair up into a bun. 

I waited until I heard the sound of water running before I got up and grabbed her phone. 

It was unlocked and I almost laughed at how easy it was going. 

My hands were steady even though my heart was pounding loudly as I scrolled through her call logs and then messages but there was nothing out of the ordinary there. 

But I didn’t give up until I finally found it. 

I saw the messages and video evidence she had been exchanging with the detective and each one I read cut deeper than the last one. 

She had gone behind me—behind everyone else and had done it all on her own. 

I was still scrolling through her phone when she walked out of the bathroom. 

“What are you looking for on my phone?” She asked, her voice cracking. 

I raised my head to look into her eyes but she avoided my gaze. She knew she had been caught. 

“What the fuck is this, Raina?” I asked, my voice louder than I intended. “What have you done?”