I want to hit him. Want to scream. Want to grab my children and run as far as I can. But he’s right. I have nowhere to go. No money. No way to support them without him. I’m trapped.
“What do you want?” I ask finally.
“The truth. All of it. Starting with why you tried to find me after that night.”
“I was pregnant. I thought you should know.”
“And when you learned who I was?”
“I realized telling you would be a mistake. You would take control. Force me into your world. I couldn’t let that happen.”
“So you kept them secret for years.”
“Yes.”
“And then we ended up married anyway.”
“Yes.”
“Do you have any idea how insulting that is? To be in the same house as my own children and have no idea they’re mine?”
“I don’t care if it’s insulting. I care about protecting them.”
“From me. Their father.”
“From a stranger who happens to share their DNA.”
He stares at me for a long moment. “I could have been part of their lives. I could have known them since birth. You stole that from me.”
“I saved them from you.”
“You made a choice that wasn’t yours to make.”
“It was absolutely my choice. They’re my children.”
“And mine. Whether you like it or not.”
We stand there, two feet apart, both refusing to back down.
“I’m telling your parents,” he says finally.
“What?”
“Viktor and Svetlana. They’re coming here tonight. Pavel is calling them now. They need to know their grandchildren are also my children.”
“No. Don’t tell them.”
“Why? Because you lied to them too?”
“They don’t need to know.”
“They deserve to know. They signed their daughter over to me as part of our arrangement. They should know they also signed over my children.”
“Luca, please?—”
“It’s done. Pavel is already making the calls. They’ll be here within the hour.”
“You can’t do this.”
