Chapter 2
The shadow moved before anyone spoke.
I heard the soft scrape of a shoe against the hardwood floor.
Then a man's voice came from the hallway.
"Vanessa, don't say anything."
My stomach tightened.
I knew that voice.
I'd heard it at birthday parties.
Family cookouts.
Christmas dinners.
I'd heard it laughing in my kitchen and offering to help Marcus carry groceries.
I turned toward the doorway.
"Come out."
Silence.
Marcus looked between me and Vanessa.
"Who is that?"
Nobody answered.
I took a step forward.
"Come into the living room."
A tall man appeared in the doorway.
He wore gray trousers and a navy shirt with the sleeves rolled above his elbows.
His face was tense.
His eyes immediately went to Vanessa.
My heart began pounding.
"Andre?"
My husband's younger brother stood completely still.
Andre Bennett.
Thirty years old.
A real estate agent.
The man who had been my brother-in-law for nine years.
The man who called me his favorite sister.
Marcus stared at him.
"What are you doing here?"
Andre opened his mouth.
Then closed it.
Vanessa began crying.
And I knew.
Before anyone admitted anything, I knew.
I looked from Andre to Vanessa's stomach.
Then back at Andre.
"Oh, my God."
Marcus shook his head.
"No."
His voice sounded strange.
Almost childish.
"No. That's not possible."
Andre swallowed.
"Marcus, listen."
My husband lunged toward him.
I stepped between them immediately.
"Stop!"
Marcus froze inches from me.
His chest rose and fell.
"Move, Nia."
"No."
Andre took a step backward.
Marcus pointed at him.
"Tell me I'm wrong."
Andre stared at the floor.
"Marcus—"
"TELL ME!"
Vanessa started sobbing.
I turned toward her.
"How long?"
She shook her head.
I repeated the question.
"How long have you and Andre been involved?"
Andre looked up.
"Eight months."
The words hit me like a physical blow.
Eight months.
I remembered Andre coming over to watch football.
Andre helping Vanessa carry boxes during a charity fundraiser.
Andre teasing Marcus about becoming a father someday.
Eight months of lies.
Marcus stumbled backward.
He sat on the sofa as though his legs had stopped working.
I watched his expression change from fury to disbelief.
"My brother?"
Andre rubbed his face.
"I'm sorry."
Marcus laughed.
It was an ugly sound.
"You're sorry?"
Andre said nothing.
Marcus looked toward Vanessa.
"You told me you loved me."
She wiped her cheeks.
"I do."
I almost couldn't believe her.
She had been sleeping with two brothers.
She had allowed one to believe he was the father.
And she'd walked into my home expecting him to destroy his marriage for her.
Yet somehow, she was still talking about love.
I folded my arms.
"Does Andre know about the pregnancy?"
Vanessa looked down.
Andre answered.
"Yes."
I turned toward him.
"And does he believe the baby is his?"
He hesitated.
Then nodded.
Marcus covered his face.
I stared at Andre.
"Then why are you here?"
He swallowed.
"Vanessa called me."
"When?"
"This morning."
I felt a chill.
"Why?"
He looked at his brother.
"She said Marcus was bringing her here."
I waited.
"And you came to stop her?"
Andre nodded.
"Yes."
Vanessa shook her head.
"That's not what you said!"
Andre turned toward her.
"Vanessa, enough."
Her face twisted.
"You promised you'd handle this!"
I stared at them.
Something wasn't making sense.
If Andre was the father, why had Vanessa told Marcus otherwise?
And why was Andre so frightened of me discovering the truth?
Marcus slowly lowered his hands.
"How long have you known the baby might be yours?"
Andre looked away.
"Since she found out she was pregnant."
Marcus stood.
"You knew?"
Andre nodded.
"You let me buy a nursery!"
My chest tightened.
I turned sharply toward Marcus.
"A nursery?"
He froze.
I stared at him.
"You bought things for her baby?"
He looked away.
Vanessa covered her mouth.
And suddenly, I remembered several unexplained withdrawals from our joint account.
Almost forty thousand dollars over four months.
Marcus had claimed he was investing in a new business opportunity.
I'd questioned him.
He told me to trust him.
I felt sick.
"You used our money?"
Marcus wouldn't look at me.
I stepped closer.
"Marcus, answer me."
He whispered, "I was going to pay it back."
Something inside me went cold.
He had betrayed our marriage.
He had humiliated me.
He had brought his mistress into our home.
And he'd used money we earned together to prepare for a child who might belong to his brother.
I took a slow breath.
"Where is the nursery?"
Vanessa suddenly looked frightened.
Marcus stared at me.
"Nia, that's not important."
"Where?"
He swallowed.
"At the townhouse."
My heart stopped.
"What townhouse?"
Andre closed his eyes.
Vanessa began crying harder.
Marcus stared at the carpet.
I looked toward our front windows.
The luxury property across the street had sold three months earlier.
I'd been told the buyer was an investment company.
Marcus had joked that we might finally have quiet neighbors.
I remembered watching moving trucks arrive late one afternoon.
A woman had stepped out.
Long black hair.
Cream-colored coat.
I hadn't recognized her from that distance.
Now I understood.
I looked at Marcus.
"You bought her a house across the street from me?"
He shook his head.
"I rented it."
I laughed bitterly.
As though that made it better.
Andre stepped forward.
"Nia, there's something you need to know."
I turned toward him.
He glanced at Vanessa.
She shook her head violently.
"Don't."
Andre ignored her.
"The townhouse isn't rented in Marcus's name."
My stomach tightened.
"Whose name?"
He swallowed.
"Mine."
I stared at him.
Then he added something that made the entire room go silent.
"But Marcus has been paying the rent through your company."
I stopped breathing.
"My company?"
Andre nodded.
I owned a medical consulting business.
Marcus sometimes helped with administrative work.
He had limited access to vendor payments.
But he wasn't supposed to use that access for personal expenses.
I looked at my husband.
"Marcus."
He stood completely still.
"Please tell me Andre is lying."
He didn't answer.
I felt the room tilt.
I'd thought I was confronting adultery.
Then I discovered my husband had been funding the affair with our money.
Now I was learning he'd dragged my business into it.
I reached for my phone.
Marcus immediately stepped forward.
"Nia, what are you doing?"
I looked at him.
"Calling my accountant."
His face changed.
"Let's talk first."
I moved away.
"No."
He reached toward my hand.
I stepped back.
"Don't touch me."
For the first time, I saw genuine fear in his eyes.
Not because I'd discovered the affair.
Not because his brother had betrayed him.
May you like
But because I was about to examine the money.
And I realized the financial betrayal might be much bigger than any of them had admitted.
