My Husband's Rival Became My Lover

ALEXA POV “Mommy!” “Mommy!” That was Lily's voice. I turned. The sound of tires screeching filled my ears. That's when everything stopped. Lily’s pink bicycle lay in the middle of the road and my baby was lying a few feet away from it. My heart stopped. “Lily!” I immediately dropped to my knees beside her. “Lily! Baby, look at Mommy!” Nothing. “Baby, please. Open your eyes.” My hands shook as I gently touched her shoulders. “Lily, please.” She didn't move. For a second, I couldn't breathe. No. No, no, no. This couldn't be happening. I had looked away for only a few seconds,only a few seconds. Then I heard a car door slam, someone stepped out of the car “Oh God. Oh God, I’m so sorry.” It was a man's voice. I looked up immediately,the man from the car was staring at Lily with a horrified expression. “You hit my daughter!” My voice broke. “Someone call an ambulance!” “Ma’am, I’m really sorry.” He dropped to his knees and reached for Lily. “Don’t touch her!” I slapped his hand away. “Don’t you dare touch her!” He immediately pulled back. “I’m calling an ambulance. Right now.” He pulled out his phone. His hands were shaking so badly that he almost dropped it. I turned back to Lily. “Stay with me, baby.” I brushed her hair away from her face. “Please stay with me.” Her eyelashes fluttered. “Mommy…” I froze. “I'm here, baby.” “My head hurts.” A sob ripped out of me. “Oh, thank God.” I pressed my lips against her forehead. “I'm right here. Mommy's right here.” The sound of sirens grew louder, seconds later, paramedics rushed toward us,they carefully lifted Lily onto the stretcher and placed an oxygen mask over her face. “Ma’am, come with us.” I climbed into the ambulance without thinking, idn't let go of Lily's hand. The man from the car stood by the ambulance doors. “I’m coming too.” “No.” I looked at him. “I don’t need your help.” Before he could say anything else, I shut the ambulance doors. As the ambulance pulled away, I grabbed my phone to call Victor. Once. Twice. Three times. Nothing, every call went straight to voicemail. “Victor, pick up.” My voice trembled. “It’s Lily. Please.” I called again. Still nothing. Then, on the last call, his phone was switched off. I stared at the screen. “Why would he switch off his phone at a time like this?” My throat tightened, tears filled my eyes. I couldn't lose Lily. I couldn't, She was my baby. My whole world. Soon, we arrived at the hospital. The paramedics rushed Lily through the emergency entrance. “Ma’am, does she have any allergies? Any medical history?” “I don't know!” My voice came out louder than I intended. “Just help her, please!” They wheeled her through the double doors. I wasn't allowed in any further amd suddenly, I was alone. I stared at the doors where my daughter had disappeared. My hands were still trembling. The smell of disinfectant filled the hallway, making my stomach twist. I couldn't sit. I couldn't breathe. I just kept staring at those doors. Then I heard footsteps behind me. It was the same man who had hit Lily. He walked toward me slowly. “I paid the deposit,” he said quietly. “I'll cover everything. The bills. All of it.” I stared at him. “I'm Travis.” He reached into his pocket. “Here is my car..” “I don't need your money.” I cut in “I’m not trying to buy your forgiveness,” he said calmly. “I'm only trying to take responsibility.” I swallowed hard. “If anything happens to my daughter…” My voice broke again “If anything happens to her, I swear…..” Before I could finish, the emergency doors suddenly opened. “Where is she?!” Victor. My stomach dropped. He stumbled into the hallway, his eyes were red and unfocused. The smell of alcohol reached me before he did. “Where is my daughter?What happened?” People turned to look, my face burned with embarrassment. “Victor, keep your voice down.” “We're at the hospital.” But he ignored me. “Where's Lily?” “She's with the doctors.” He took a step toward me,then suddenly stopped, his eyes landed on Travis,his entire expression changed immediately Victor stared at him like he had seen a ghost. Travis frowned. “Do I know you?” Victor didn't answer, his lips parted slightly. “Cole…” My eyebrows pulled together. “What?” He blinked. “Nothing.” I stared at him. “You said something.” “I said nothing, Alexa.” “But I heard you.” “Alexa, not now.” “Not now?” My voice echoed through the hallway. “Your daughter is behind those doors, Victor, and you're standing here acting like everything is normal!” He looked at me, then at Travis, then back toward the emergency doors. “She’s going to be fine, right?” But he wasn't looking at me, his eyes had returned back to Travis,more specifically, his hands. Travis shifted slightly. “Look, I'm really sorry,” he said. “I didn't see her. She came out from between the cars and…” “Stop talking.” Victor said coldly Travis went silent. The sudden silence felt worse than the whole chaos, I looked between them. Why was Victor acting like this? Before I could ask, a doctor walked out. “Mrs. Bennett?” I rushed toward him. “Yes?” “Your daughter is awake. She has a concussion, but thankfully there are no major injuries. We'll keep her here for observation.” My knees nearly gave out. “Can I see her?” “Yes. In a few minutes.” I closed my eyes and breathed out slowly. Thank God. Victor grabbed my arm. “We need to talk. Later.” I pulled my arm away. “About what?” He didn't answer,I didn't wait for him, I walked straight toward Lily's room. Lily looked so small in that hospital bed, her face was pale, her hair messy, but her eyes were open. That was all that mattered, I rushed to her side. “Mommy.” She gently squeezed my hand. “I'm here, baby.” Her little lips trembled. “I'm sorry. I didn't look before I crossed.” My heart broke. “It's not your fault.” I kissed her forehead. “None of this is your fault.” Victor stood in the corner of the room.He looked almost sober now, Or maybe he was pretending to be. The monitors beeped softly beside Lily. I stayed beside her bed, watching every rise and fall of her chest. “She’s going to be okay,” I whispered. Victor nodded He didn't say anything, The door suddenly opened and travis stepped inside quietly, holding a paper cup of coffee, he placed it on the small table beside me. “I brought this for you.” I looked at the cup. “You don't have to.” “I know.” He gave me a small smile. “But you've been here for hours.” I looked at him for a moment. There was something strange about the way he spoke,no arrogance. Just genuine concern. “Thank you.” He nodded. Then his eyes moved to Lily. “I'm glad she's okay.” He turned and left, Lily watched him go. “Mommy?” “Yes?” “Is that the man who helped me?” I nodded. “He's the one who called the ambulance.” Lily smiled faintly. “He's nice.” I looked toward the door, I didn't know what to think about him yet..Victor hadn't said a word. His eyes followed Travis until the door closed.Then his gaze dropped to the white business card Travis had left on the table earlier. He walked toward it and picked it up. His fingers tightened around the edges, and it bent slightly. I frowned. “Victor?” He didn't answer,he turned the card over, stared at it for a moment, then placed it back on the table. Without saying anything, he walked out, A few seconds later, I heard his footsteps stop outside the door,before I could open it, Victor stepped back inside, his face completely blank. “Go back to Lily, Alexa.” I stared at him. “What is wrong with you?” “Nothing.” “You've been acting strange since you got here.” He sighed. “It's nothing. You're overthinking.” “Is this about Travis?” His jaw tightened. “No.” “Then why did you just say his name?” He looked at me for a moment. “It's the alcohol.” He walked past me. I turned to watch him. Then my eyes fell on the table,the business card was gone,my gaze dropped to Victor's hand. His fingers were curled tightly around something inside his pocket. I stared at him. I was almost certain that pocket had been empty when he walked in.