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I tilt my head. “You’re a terrible liar, you know that?”

She sighs and stands up carefully, making sure not to wake Anya. I follow her as she steps out of the room and walks down the hall to our bedroom. Once we’re inside, I close the door behind us and lean against it, arms crossed.

“So what is it?”

Rosie takes a deep breath, then lets it out slowly. “What I’m about to say…” She trails off, clearly nervous.

“Go on, what is it?” I prompt.

She bounces lightly on her heels, biting her lower lip. “Uh… So you remember my ex? The one we were both thrashing the night we met? The one who was marrying my stepsister?”

I nod. “I remember. Where is this going?”

She hesitates, then forces the words out in a rush. “Well… that ex is Luke.”

Her voice drops so low I almost miss it, but I catch every word.

I go still. “What?”

“Yeah,” she says, nodding quickly. “Luke is my ex.”

She continues before I can respond, words tumbling over each other. “But I had no idea you two were related when I first met you. If I had known… I swear I didn’t. And you have to know I didn’t use you to get back at him or anything like that. It wasn’t like that at all.”

It all makes sense now, why she was so uneasy during dinner. My nephew. The same man who betrayed her with her own stepsister was the one sitting at my table tonight.

Interesting. Very interesting.

I keep my voice calm. “Did you just find out tonight that my nephew is your ex when he walked in… or did you already know before today?”

Rosie bites her lower lip, then reaches up to tuck her hair behind her ear. She looks down at her fingers, pinching them nervously. “I knew before today.”

I nod slowly. “When?”

She keeps her gaze on her hands. “The next day after we met. I saw you at Luke’s wedding… and that’s when I found out you were his uncle.”

I finish for her. “And you ran.”

She nods, swallowing hard. “I got scared. When I realized you weren’t just Luke’s uncle, but the Bratva Devil too… I panicked. And then when I found out I was pregnant…” Her voice wavers. “I was terrified of you. Of your reputation. Of what you might do if you found out about the baby.”

I listen quietly as she tells me how scared she was, how she hid in New Jersey for four years, how she built a life alone because she was convinced I was dangerous. That I would take Anya away. That I would hurt her.

When she finishes, I step closer and tilt her chin up so she has to look at me.

“I would never hurt you,” I say quietly. “You know that now, right?”

She nods, eyes glassy. “But I didn’t know that back then.”

I let that sit for a moment, then ask the question burning in my chest.

“Luke… do you still have feelings for him?”

“God, no!” she says immediately, shaking her head hard. “I’m over him. I have been for a very long time.”

She hesitates, then adds, “But… Luke wants us to get back together.”

My chin hardens. “What?”

She continues quickly. “I first ran into him at Mabel’s wedding. He hinted at us getting back together, but I told him no. Tonight he told me he’s getting a divorce because of me… and that I should leave you and come back to him. That he can protect me from you.”