Petyr’s heavy boots echo in the long hallway outside.
I suck in a breath. My stomach is knotting so hard, it’s a miracle I don’t fold in half. My mouth is dry, my palms clammy. Every time I take another step across the bedroom, my pulse stutters like it’s forgotten how it goes.
Here we are.I force myself to breathe through it. Decent practice for labor, if nothing else.No more stalling. No more excuses.
No.
More.
Lies.
But old habits are hard to break. Every cell in my body is screaming at me to make a run for it. Test how sturdy those Egyptian cotton sheets can be when tied together in a rope, take another crack at rappelling down the side of the mansion.
But it’s pointless. This isn’t like all the other times I ran. This time, there’s nowhere to go. And honestly? I’m not so sure I want to run.
For the first time in my life, I think I want to stay.
Besides, I’d rather walk backwards into hell than live one more day with this weight crushing my lungs.
The keycard beeps. The front door opens. A couple more steps, and Petyr will be here, in the bedroom.
In those few seconds, my mind starts spinning again.
You need to warn him.That bit has become more pressing even than my secrets. After Anatoli’s ambush, I don’t have a choice. If I don’t talk, Petyr will be in mortal danger. He could be walking into a trap the next time he leaves the house. Just picturing him surrounded, blindsided by someone he trusts, is enough to make bile rise in my throat.
I can’t let him get taken down because I was too afraid to speak. Silence has always been my shield, meant to protect me. But if it hurts the man I love…
Then it’s just not worth it. Not anymore.
I still can’t believe Anatoli had the audacity to look me in the eye and demand I betray him. How could he think I’d side with him, that I’d help him take down the man who’s given me more freedom and safety than any of the men in my family?
He’s delusional.
And he still doesn’t have the first clue who I am.
Because I’ve finally found someone I don’t want to escape from, and I’ll be damned if I let anyone take him from me. Especially my rotten family.
Petyr may not be perfect—God knows he’s not—but he’s mine. And I’m his. That’s the only truth that matters here. I’m not going to turn my back on that, no matter what my psycho brother thinks he has over me.
The footsteps reach the bedroom door. I rub my palms against the sides of my thighs and stop pacing, then go stand dead center in the room like I’m about to face the firing squad.
When the door opens, I turn.
He’s always a sight, my husband. Broad shoulders, perfect suits, sculpted features. But tonight, something is different. His face is a blank mask, his gaze much darker than usual.
He shuts the door with quiet finality. The sound makes me flinch.
“Home early, huh?” I manage a feeble laugh, but my voice comes out thinner than I’d like. My fingers twist together. For someone who’s maintained a secret identity for twelve years, I sure am acting like the shittiest liar in the universe tonight.
Petyr studies me for a beat, gaze steady, unreadable. “You don’t look happy to see me.”
My throat tightens. Normally, I’d be over the moon to see him, but there’s nothing normal about this night.
I try to make myself talk, but my mind is too scattered.
Calm down. You can do this. No—you have to.
There’s no saving him if you don’t.
