Something in me snaps. I grab his collar and yank him close, our faces inches apart.
“You even think about touching my wife, and I’ll carve you open. Ponatna?”Understand?
Anton nods slowly, absorbing it. “You are right. It is weakness.”
My hand drops. He doesn’t understand what she does to me. No one does.
And maybe it is weakness, but it’s also the only thing that feels real. The only thing that makes me feel alive.
“Fight me,” he says. “Maybe I can beat it out of you.”
Kirill chuckles from the ring. “My God, Anton. You’re such a romantic.”
Anton ignores him, eyes fixed on me in challenge.
“Fine.” I strip my gloves off. “Let’s go.”
When he hits me square in the jaw five minutes in, I welcome the snap of pain. Because it’s better than thinking about her. Better than knowing I’ll go home tonight, crawl into bed beside her for twenty silent minutes, and leave before the sun comes up.
Even better than admitting I need her more than air, and that I’m too fucked up to deserve any of it.
CHAPTER THIRTY
FIONA
Another day.Another hour in this mausoleum of a house where every echo reminds me I’m alone.
I kick off my shoes by the door, missing my own home more with each passing minute. The creaky floorboards. The scent of my favorite candle drifting from the kitchen. The tiny chipped mug that didn’t match anything else in the cabinet.
I miss the warmth of a cozy home. Of knowing every corner and crevice. Knowing who I was when I lived there.
Poe’s meow cuts through the quiet as I sink onto the massive sectional. He leaps up gracefully, tail flicking once before he curls it around my side as he rubs against my waist.
“No, Poe.” My fingers brush through his soft fur. “Of course I don’t miss him. What gave you such an awful idea?”
He meows again, this time sharper, and I glare halfheartedly at him.
“So what if he’s ignoring me?” My eyes narrow. “I should be happy. I mean, Iamhappy.”
He gives another meow, and I huff.
“Oh, shut up. What do you know?”
He flicks his tail and jumps to the floor, leaving me alone.
I let out a sigh. What else is new? I’m always alone.
I press my fingers against my temples.
No. No, we’re not doing this tonight.
Grabbing my phone off the sofa, I scroll to Emilia’s name, thumb hovering. Distraction. That’s what I need. Something to pull me out of this spiral.
Fiona
Are you home?
She replies instantly.
