"There wasn't time?—"
"There's always time to ask, Nico." I step closer, forcing him to look at me. Really look. "Eight years. That's how long Jack made decisions about my life without asking. What I wore. Where I went. Who I talked to. What I ate." My throat tightens. "And every single time, he told me it was for my own good. That he knew better. That he was protecting me."
"I'm not—" He stops. Drags a hand through his hair. "Fuck."
"I know you're not him," I repeat, softer now. "But you have to understand. When someone makes choices about your life without asking, even with good intentions... it feels the same. It feels like you don't trust me to handle my own problems."
"I trust you."
"Then act like it."
The muscle in his jaw ticks. Once. Twice.
"What else?" I ask.
He goes very still. "What?"
"What else did you do that has to do with my life without telling me?"
The pause is answer enough.
My stomach drops. "Nico."
"The debt." His voice is flat. Controlled. "To the Russians. I paid it."
"When?" The word scrapes out of my throat.
Nico doesn't look away. "Almost immediately. The day after you agreed to stay."
The room tilts. I grab the edge of his dresser to steady myself.
The day after.
That was days ago. Days of believing the Russians were still out there.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"The situation was complicated?—"
"Why didn't you tell me?"
He runs a hand over his jaw. "There were security concerns. The shell companies needed time to process. I wanted to make sure the transaction was?—"
"Bullshit." I step closer, my voice rising. "That's bullshit and you know it. Why. Didn't. You. Tell. Me?"
he mask he wears, the one that makes him look carved from stone, it splinters.
"Because you would have left." His voice rises to match mine. "Because the second you knew the Russians weren't looking for you anymore, you would have taken Lily and walked out that door and I would have lost you."
The words echo off the walls. Raw. Desperate.
"I couldn't—" He stops. Drags in a breath. When he speaks again, his voice is rough. Broken. "I couldn't lose you, Kristen. I wanted you here. With me. I wanted to wake up and know you were in the next room. I wanted to watch Lily feed those damn rabbits every morning. I wanted?—"
He breaks off. Turns away.
My eyes burn. Tears spill down my cheeks, hot and fast.
"You kept me here under false pretenses." My voice shakes. "You let me think I was trapped when I wasn't. You made me believe I had no options so I'd stay with you."
