Page 5 of Ruby Menace

Maybe she took it the wrong way. Damn women and their fucking sensitivities. I’ll deal with it later.

Trakhat’ zhenshchin!

“Of course you did, milaya.” Zoya’s lips curl. “To a woman like me, that is perfectly clear. But to someone like her?” She snorts. “She is still a child. Too sensitive for this life.”

“You mean the life you ran from?” I narrow my eyes on her. She’s still standing facing me, her back to her son. Our son. He’s watching us like an owl.

“And I told you that I was wrong, Kirill! Can you ever forgive me?” Her lower lip quivers.

“There is no need for forgiveness. I made my peace with it a long time ago.”

It’s true. Except now, there will be no peace. Not while I have both women in the same household. And I know what’s happening here – I can’t just throw Zoya out. It would be like tossing her and the boy to the wolves. Their existence has been exposed.

Chert voz’mi!

I run a hand through my hair, which feels like it’s standing on end. All that shit with Theo Avants, the Petrovs hijacking my cargo, and now this bullshit.

“I know that this must be hard for you, my love. Perhaps you had thought you could entertain yourself with that… little girl. But you don’t have to do that anymore. I’m here for you now. And your son too. You have family.”

A family.

The very thing I’ve been wanting. A wife and a heir. Now, here it is, laid out for me. Just not the way I had imagined. I look at the boy again.

Zoya turns slightly and puts her hand on his shoulder. “Come, moy syn. Stand tall so your papa can see what a fine man you are.”

Stepan rises slowly, finally looking me in the eye. He’s a tall boy and well-built for his age. Strong. Healthy. He would make a good heir.

That is if he’s yours, mudak.

“How old are you, boy?” I try not to scowl at him.

He looks hesitantly at Zoya, who replies for him. “He’s six.”

“He can’t speak for himself?”

“He’s being shy, Kirill. You’re scaring him.”

I look back at the child, who’s staring at me fearfully. He has dark eyes, just like me. I suppose his fear is natural. This must be overwhelming for someone so young.

Six.

Blyad.

She’s kept this from me for six fucking years. Six years of missing raising him. I keep my expression carefully schooled when I turn my focus back to my wife.

“You kept him from me all this time.”

“It was for the best. You must know this. Remember how things were before I left? The war with the Petrovs was at its peak. I was afraid, Kirill. I swear to you, I never would have done what I did…” She trails off, the tip of her tongue flicking over her full lower lip. “It was for the best.” Her voice has grown husky. As if she feels true remorse over it all.

But then again, Zoya was always a skilled manipulator.

Is that what she’s doing now?

Probably. But that doesn’t mean she’s lying.

If this is true…

Blyad!

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