Reclaimed By My Ex-husband
Chapter 23: The suspicion

Chapter 23: The suspicion

Isaac stumbled back, barely catching himself from falling. Lina rushed over, grabbing his arm to steady him. Her face twisted in fury as she watched them disappear outside.

"She brought a man with her. Unbelievable! And look at them. They look so close, like they have known each other forever. Could she be cheating on Nathaniel?"

Isaac froze, his eyes narrowing. "What did you say?"

"Think about it," Lina said suspiciously. "She told us she was divorcing Nathaniel. We didn’t take it seriously at the time, and Nathaniel brushed it off. But now...Seeing her with that man, I have a feeling that she is not faithful to her husband. Her closeness with that man must have triggered Nathaniel’s anger. Maybe that’s why he is demanding such a huge stake in the company."

Isaac nodded slowly, her words sinking in. "So that’s it..." he muttered darkly. "Nathaniel thinks she is unfaithful and wants revenge. He is not helping us. He is trying to ruin us."

His eyes blazed with cold fury. "This is all Zara’s fault. She is the one tearing everything apart. But she won’t get away with it. I’ll teach her a good lesson."

~~~~~~~~~~

At the hospital...

Jasper paced restlessly outside the emergency ward, his steps uneven, fingers raking through his hair, his face pale with fear. The second Bree rushed in, her eyes wide with alarm, he froze.

"Jasper!" she called out, breathless as she reached him.

"Bree—thank God," he choked out, pulling her into a tight embrace. "I’m so scared. Zara was bleeding."

Bree’s heart stopped. "Oh no." Her hand flew to her mouth. "She is pregnant. Did the doctors say anything? Is the baby okay?"

"I don’t know," Jasper muttered helplessly, his hands flailing in panic. "She is still inside... They haven’t told me anything yet."

"Okay, okay, calm down." Bree gently gripped his shoulders. "Breathe, Jasper. In through your nose, out through your mouth."

He did as told, shakily drawing a deep breath. The trembling in his hands lessened, and his chest rose and fell with more rhythm now.

"Here," Bree said, unscrewing a bottle of water and pressing it into his hand.

Jasper took a long gulp, grounding himself. Then, he sank into one of the hard plastic chairs, looking toward the emergency room door.

Bree sat down next to him. "Now tell me, how did this happen?"

"She got a call from her father," he began. "He invited her to dinner. I didn’t want her to go alone, so I drove her there. But she insisted she would face them on her own...I waited outside. I told her—fifteen minutes, that’s all."

Guilt flashed in his eyes.

"She didn’t come out. So I went in. And I heard them arguing. Isaac was yelling at her... I saw him push her. She nearly fell. She was in pain. She asked me to take her out of there."

He swallowed hard, the memory still vivid. "I did... I got her out. But she started bleeding. And I drove like a madman to get her here..."

His voice cracked on the last word, and his eyes burned with helplessness as he stared at the closed doors.

Bree’s lips curled in disgust. "Her father is heartless. He only saw her as a tool to squeeze money from."

Jasper buried his face in his hands, anguish weighing down on him. "I shouldn’t have let her go in alone. I should’ve stayed by her side."

"It’s not your fault," Bree said gently, reaching out and giving his shoulder a comforting pat. "You were there for her. You got her out when she needed you. That matters. Now, she just needs us to be strong."

Jasper gave a small, weary nod. His thoughts churned in turmoil. After a hesitant pause, he looked at her. "Should we call Nathaniel? He deserves to know. She is carrying his child..."

"Don’t even think about it," Bree snapped, her eyes full of warning. "Zara doesn’t want him to know. They are getting a divorce. What good will it do now? It’ll only complicate things. The last thing she needs is more stress."

Jasper opened his mouth to respond, but the sudden creak of the door made them both jump to their feet. A doctor emerged, his expression serious.

"Doctor..." Bree rushed forward. "How is she? And the baby?"

The doctor gave a curt nod. "We managed to save the baby. But it was a close call. Her pregnancy is fragile. Any further physical or emotional trauma could lead to a miscarriage. She needs absolute rest."

He looked between them, his eyes finally settling on Jasper.

"Are you her husband?" he asked, his tone hardening.

Jasper blinked. "I—no, I’m—"

The doctor cut him off with a disappointed shake of the head. "She is already walking with a sprained leg. And now this? How could you allow her to go through more stress in such a condition? This isn’t how you care for a pregnant woman."

Jasper flinched under the doctor’s words, his face ashen and guilt-ridden. His lips parted as if to speak, but no sound came out.

"He is not her husband," Bree said. "We are her friends."

Jasper nodded quickly, almost desperately.

"Zara has no husband," Bree added. "She is a single mother."

The doctor’s brows rose slightly. "Oh... I see." He paused, then said with measured calm, "You need to take care of her. Tell her—if she wants to carry this pregnancy safely, there can be no more stress. No more recklessness."

"We will," Bree said, forcing a grateful smile. "Thank you, doctor."

The doctor gave them a small nod before he walked away.

Jasper dropped into the nearest chair again, his head bowed. Bree remained standing, her arms crossed over her chest, her eyes fixed on the door behind which Zara lay.

At Nathaniel’s penthouse...

Nathaniel paced the length of his sleek living room, brows drawn in a furious knot. Every second that ticked by gnawed at his patience, each minute stretching into unbearable silence.

The image of Zara on the back of a bike with that unknown man kept flashing in his mind, stoking a fire of jealousy and suspicion.

He had been so absorbed in his work that he hadn’t paid much attention to who her friends were or whom she spent time with. But now, after seeing her with another man, he couldn’t stop thinking if she had already given her heart to someone else. Had she been planning to leave him all along?

He checked his phone again for the tenth time in five minutes.

"What’s taking him so long?" he grumbled, glancing at his phone, hoping to see a message or call from Roberto. But the screen remained blank, fueling his irritation.

With a swift motion, he tossed the phone aside and turned away, dragging a hand down his face in exasperation.

Ring... Ring... Ring...

His heart leapt as the ringtone pierced the silence. He lunged for the phone.

Roberto.

Nathaniel answered without a second’s delay. "Hello?"

"I checked, sir," came Roberto’s cold, methodical voice. "Madam is currently living with her friends, Bree and Jasper."

Nathaniel’s face twisted as that name hit his ears. "Jasper?" he repeated. ’So that’s the guy,’ he muttered inwardly.

"He is a chef at Heritage Hotel. Bree’s roommate."

Nathaniel couldn’t care less about who the man lived with. The only thing that mattered to him was understanding the nature of his connection with Zara.

"What’s his relationship with Zara? Are they close?"

There was a pause.

"They became friends through Bree," Roberto finally said. "But that’s all. There is nothing more between them. This man is gay."

"Gay?" Nathaniel repeated with disbelief.

"Yes," Roberto affirmed.

A short, surprised laugh escaped Nathaniel’s lips. The storm of tension that had been brooding in his chest suddenly dissipated. The rigid lines in his face softened as his shoulders relaxed. For the first time in hours, he felt like he could breathe again.

"So... he is gay," he mused, the corners of his mouth curving upward in relief. The bitter suspicion that had been eating him alive quietly dissolved.

Zara hadn’t betrayed him.

On the other end of the line, Roberto’s voice remained crisp and professional. "Do you want me to keep digging into him?"

"No need," Nathaniel said. "Prepare a gift for Zara and Zane. We are going to the amusement park tomorrow."

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