DOMINATED THE IN-LAW

ROWANNE'S POV My marriage. My marriage. "How dare you! How dare you cheat on me?" I slammed the accelerator harder. The hum of the engine rises under the pounding of the rain. My chest ached as though my ribs could no longer contain the storm inside me. How long had she been there? Did she know about me? About us? The wipers beat in time with the hammering of my pulse, smearing water away just to let more fall. I couldn't think. All I knew was the address Rita had circled in red ink. Just a few blocks away. Close enough for Jett to visit her and close enough for him to live two lives without me ever knowing. The turn came too quickly, and my hands jerked the wheel, guiding the car into a different street. The tyres hissed as thfromrain poured harder. I shouldn't have checked, but it was too late. I was already heading toward her. I was just a few blocks away when I saw a familiar umbrella, a purple one. It had my initials on it. Jett didn't know it, but I had that umbrella custom-made. I saw it. S. S. "Sweetheart! Be careful," I heard a female voice, and I watched. The umbrella was raised, and it was the woman in the picture. She was yelling at two boys who played in the rain. They looked like twins. Twins! My chest pounded so hard, tears burning in my eyes. I can't believe this. I didn't want to believe this. Jett. Jett, he wouldn't cheat on me. He told me he loved me. We both loved each other. Everything was perfect, calm and... my mind trailed. No! My throat burned as I forced my gaze back to the road, the image of the purple umbrella seared into my mind. My umbrella. My initials. In her hands. That woman laughed as she pulled the twins closer, shielding them from the downpour. My heart twisted. They looked so much alike. No! I shook my head hard, blinking through the blur of rain and tears. My marriage was unravelling before my eyes, and I couldn't even confront him. The betrayal drummed in my ears, louder than the storm. I pressed my foot against the accelerator again, swallowing the lump in my throat. I couldn't bear to look again. If I looked, I might see the truth written in those boys' faces. I turned down another street, tyres splashing through puddles. By the time I pulled into the underground garage of Carter's tallest building. My hands trembled. I slammed the door shut and moved toward the elevators. My chest rose and fell unevenly as I pressed the button for the top floor. The elevator hummed, carrying me upward. Higher. Higher. By the time the ding announced my arrival, I could barely feel my own legs. My hand hovered over the bell before I pressed it, and my heartbeat was roaring in my ears. And then the door opened. Eli Carter stood there in a black suit, clinging to his broad frame, though his tie was gone, his belt almost undone, and five buttons hung loose down his chest. His styled hair with his dark curls fighting to break free. My eyes locked with his. His piercing blue gaze held mine. "Ro?" His voice was low, startled. My voice shook, torn between rage and despair. "Did you know Jett was cheating on me?" Eli's brows snapped together, his hand still gripping the edge of the door. "What? Jett cheated on you?" The disbelief in his voice only made my chest cave harder. My stomach dropped cold and hollow. He didn't know? No, he had to know. They were brothers. They shared everything. "You know, Eli," I hissed. "Stop lying!" His jaw flexed, a muscle twitching in his cheek. For a moment, he said nothing, just stared at me with those sharp blue eyes, the kind that cut straight through. My tears burned, but I refused to let them fall. "Rowanne." His tone dropped. "If Jett did something to you, I didn't know. I swear it." I let out a bitter laugh. "Of course you didn't. Because no one ever knows, right? Everyone protects him. Perfect Jett Carter." The name cracked off my lips like glass shattering. My knees wavered beneath me, and I pressed my palm against the doorframe to steady myself. Eli's expression softened, the rigid lines of his face easing. He took a step closer, one hand lifting slightly as though to touch me but stopping short. "Ro..." "Don't." My voice fractured. "Don't act like you care. He was your brother. If he cheated, you of all people... you would've known." The silence between us was deafening. "I didn't know," he repeated quietly, almost pained now. "Why don't you come in?" His words hit me like a strike to the ribs, unexpected. My breath caught. I hadn't come here to find comfort, yet his presence pulled me in. My lips trembled as I whispered, "I don't even know what's real anymore." Eli's hand finally moved, brushing a wet strand of hair from my cheek. The heat of his touch seared through the chill of my rain-soaked skin. "Ro, it's gonna be fine," he murmured, eyes holding mine as if he could make me believe him. "Now, breathe... and tell me what happened." Before I knew it, I was inside his apartment. Two glasses of wine later, the words split out of me. I told him everything. The jacket, the ring box, the picture, the woman, the umbrella, the twins. By the time I finished, I felt hollowed out, as if my grief and fury had been poured into the air between us. And yet, lighter. I found myself smiling faintly through swollen eyes. Eli had always been different, more grounded, more real, unlike the cold glances of his mother or the calculating silences of his father. He'd been my comfort since I married into the Carters, the one person I could breathe around. Now, with the wine softening the edges of my pain, it felt good, dangerously good to talk to him. "Do you want me to investigate this Juliet Rogidgro?" Eli asked in a low voice. I shook my head, forcing a smile. "No. I think I'll let it go. I can't believe I only found out after his death. What's the use? I can't even confront him." His gaze hardened. "What if she comes asking for her part... You know because of those twins?" I smiled again with a shy smile as I tucked the damp strands of hair behind my ear. "I don't think she would." The room fell quiet. Too quiet. I lifted my glass to my lips, sipping carefully, but I could feel his gaze burning over me. So I set it down and shrugged lightly with a chuckle. "Was I interrupting something here?" His brows knit. "Like what?" I pushed my hair back and unknowingly tugged softly at my bottom lip. My voice came out in a whisper. "I don't know... You tell me." His eyes burned into me. My throat tightened for a moment. "I'm not seeing anyone," he said finally with a quiet chuckle following as his gaze dropped to the rim of his glass. His fingertips traced the edge absently before he sighed, lifting his eyes back to me. "Not sleeping with anyone. I just got back from work." I hummed, tilting my head. I wasn't sure why I asked the next question, but I guess my curiosity took over. My gaze met his as the next word slipped out. "Why?" Unlike Jett, who had many ladies around him, but had work and a personal life. Eli wasn't, ever since I knew him. No scandal, no women, even his assistant was a man. Once, there was a rumour that he was gay, and that had my mother-in-law panicking. "Maybe because I haven't seen anyone I want." My breath hitched and I shifted on the couch, turning toward him fully and facing him. "So what's your type, then?" Eli's lips curved into a smile I'd never seen on him before. Not his polite smile. Not his business smile. This was softer and almost boyish. And in that moment, he looked like a sixteen-year-old being asked who his first crush was. My heart ached at the sight. I reached out without thinking, taking his chin gently in my hand, turning his face toward me. I just needed to see it again. I needed it imprinted in my mind. He was beautiful. God, dangerously beautiful. Jett was handsome, but Eli. He was different. I remembered the first time I saw him was at my wedding. He was different.