“What? What does that even mean?”
I find Joy’s eyes. “I had to kill my wife tosaveher after what her own father did to her.” I clench my jaw. “I know how it sounds. But it’s true.”
“And what happened to the father?”
“I cut off his legs. Tit for tat. He needed a taste of his own medicine. He never bothered me again after that.”
Joy searches each of my eyes, her chest heaving.
“It was the right thing to do. It wasn’t easy—like how Igor probably made it out to you.” I sit back, watching Joy. “He was five years old at the time. Even today, he still doesn’t know everything.”
Joy flicks her eyes between each of mine, still standing, watching me.
Quite frankly, I never tell that story to anyone. My guards don’t know the full truth. My butler and maid know even less.
Nikolai is the only one who knows. He’s very sensitive around the subject and has only ever mentioned it once.
If that’s the reason Igor’s doing all of this, then good for him.
“I don’t understand,” says Joy. “Why don’t you just tell Igor the truth?”
“Because I’d rather have Igor see me as a monster than know the truth.”
Joy frowns. “Why?”
“The truth can be upsetting,printsessa.It would probably turn him into who I am today.”
I swipe another piece of hair away from my face, sighing.
Fuck. I need to put an end to Igor and his antics. Right now.
Igor blames me for his mother’s death. And because of that, he wants to destroy me.
He told Joy this story to weaken me.
Now, he’s not just attacking me for what I did to his mother.
He’s attacking me because I stole his girl. Even though they were fucking broken up.
Either way, she was never going to be Igor’s.
Joy is mine. And it’s really important she stays here until I have Igor and the other men he’s working with under control.
I don’t want anything to happen to Joy.
And I don’t want my son knowing the truth about his mother.
I’m protecting both of them.
Joy bites her lip. She’s still looking at me, but not saying anything.
“Speak to me, Joy.”
“I can’t.”
It takes a lot for her to be lost for words.
Tears are forming in her eyes again. She takes a step back.
