Page 109 of The Pakhans’ Curvy Prize

"Worse?" I repeat, my voice cracking.

"More protective and possessive. More determined to keep you exactly where you are." Ekaterina's dark eyes hold mine steadily. "You think they'll walk away when they find out you're carrying one of their children? They'll dig in deeper. They'll fight harder. They'll become impossible."

Sharon makes a small sound beside me that might be agreement or disbelief. I can't tell which. My mind is spinning, trying to process what Ekaterina is saying. Part of me knows she's probably right. But another part of me is still terrified that the pregnancy will be the thing that finally breaks whatever fragile connection we've built.

"Do you love any of them?" Ekaterina asks quietly.

The question hits hard, snapping my attention back to the older woman. I open my mouth to deny it, to brush it off with some casual response, but the words won't come. Because the truth is becoming impossible to ignore. My feelings for these three dangerous, complicated men have grown into something I can't control anymore.

"I don't know," I say finally, but even as the words leave my mouth, I know they're a lie.

Ekaterina's expression tells me she knows it too. She waits patiently, her hand still covering mine, giving me space to find the words I'm struggling to say.

"Russ makes me laugh," I admit quietly. "Even when everything is falling apart around us, he finds ways to make me smile. He makes me feel lighter, like maybe things aren't as hopeless as they seem."

Ekaterina smiles lovingly as I describe her son's traits. Sharon squeezes my hand tighter, encouraging me to continue.

"Nick grounds me when I panic," I say, my voice barely above a whisper. "When my thoughts spiral out of control and I can't breathe, he's there. He doesn't try to fix everything or tell me it'll be okay. He just exists beside me until I can find my balance again."

"And Alex?" Ekaterina prompts gently.

"Alex understands without demanding explanations," I say. "He sees through all the walls I've built and doesn't push me to tear them down faster than I'm ready. He just waits. He's so damn patient it can be annoying sometimes."

The admission hangs in the air between us, and I realize with startling clarity that I've just confessed to falling in love with all three of them, in ways that are completely different but equally consuming.

"The secret can't stay hidden much longer," Ekaterina says, her tone shifting to something more practical. "Between the stress you're under, the danger surrounding all of you, and the fact that you're living directly inside Bratva territory now, those men deserve to know sooner rather than later."

"I know," I whisper, even though the thought of telling them makes my stomach twist with anxiety.

"She's right," Sharon says reluctantly beside me. "Marla, you can't keep this from them forever. Eventually they're going to notice. And when they do, they'll be pissed you didn't tell them sooner."

I know they're both right. Logically, I understand that keeping the pregnancy secret is only making things worse. But the fear of what happens when I finally tell them is overwhelming. What if they do start competing? What if the fragile balance we've found shatters completely? What if one of them decides he can't handle sharing me and a child?

"What if it destroys everything?" I ask, my voice breaking.

Ekaterina's grip on my hand tightens. "Then you survive that too. But I don't think it will. Those three men have already chosen you, Marla. A baby won't change that. It will only make it more permanent."

Permanent. I'm not sure if I like the sound of that. Butterflies take flight in my stomach and a chill runs down my spine, but I can't tell if it's from excitement or dread.

Sharon and I eventually make our way back to the bedroom we're sharing in the mother-in-law building. She falls asleep quickly, her breathing evening out within minutes. But I lie awake staring at the ceiling, unable to quiet my racing thoughts.

The weight of everything presses down on me, making it difficult to breathe, much less sleep. Sooner or later I have to tell three Bratva mafia bosses that I'm carrying one of their children.

Headlights suddenly sweep across the bedroom window as the men finally return from the merger meeting and my heart gets stuck in my throat. Sooner or later...

46

MARLA

Friday drags by in a haze of panic and dread. Every time one of the men walks into the room, my heart jumps into my throat and the words almost spill out. But then someone's phone rings, or Sharon appears, or Ekaterina asks a question, and the moment passes.

I can't keep doing this. This pregnancy secret is eating me alive from the inside out.

Evening finally arrives, and Sharon retreats to the main house with Ekaterina after dinner. The four of us are alone in the living room of the mother-in-law building.

Russ sprawls across the couch looking relaxed for the first time in days. Nick sits in the armchair near the window, his long black hair tied back, wearing dark jeans and a black henley.

Alex leans against the doorframe between the living room and kitchen, arms crossed over his chest, his gray-streaked brown hair slightly disheveled.