Page 41 of The Bratva's Plus-Size Bride

Nodding once, I maintained my brother’s intense eye contact. “Yes, I understand, Ari.”

He stared at me for another long, almost painful moment before he nodded and let go of a frustrated breath. “Good. Now get out of here.”

Blinking back the absolute rage I felt as it coursed through my system, I stepped out of his office without delay. I didn’t stand around and joke with him like I normally would. Instead, I returned to my office and remained there until the end of the day, stewing over what happened and wondering how I was going to fix it.

By the time I left and found myself locked in rush hour traffic, I found myself looking forward to seeing Gemma.

Ari’s wrath and his demand loomed over me like a beast that needed to be tamed, and his words lingered in my mind as a reminder of how badly I fumbled the situation. It made both my heart and my head ache, aware that I was in the hot seat.

But the thought of being with my wife felt like a salve to stave away the sting that lingered from knowing the Ivanov situation was completely in my hands.

Chapter 21 - Gemma

The usual clacking of keys filled the kitchen as I worked away at the island countertop, busy wrapping up a piece due by the end of the day. My focus had been razor-sharp for most of it, but as the afternoon rolled around, I found myself slipping somewhat.

I wrapped up a paragraph and yawned before wiping at my eyes.

Upon opening them again, I looked over at the clear bowl on the counter, spotting the red beta fish as it swam. Its tail fins swished through the water beautifully, the light catching on its small, iridescent scales.

Watching it move happily through the water, looking much better than it had on the boardwalk, I smiled. The little guy was a reminder of our night together, and my heart warmed at the thought alone.

It had been more than nice, and I found myself reflecting on that time often. There were no expectations or plans to carry out—instead, we had a spontaneous night and managed to grow closer because of it.

Regardless of how tumultuous the start of our marriage and relationship had been, with a bit of time and work, it was beginning to feel like something genuine.

That familiar incoming mail sound from my laptop made me perk up, tearing my attention away from the fishbowl.

Glancing over, I clicked on the icon and pulled up a new email from Norman.

At first, I wondered if he had another last-minute assignment for me, or if he needed to change some publication dates around, but those assumptions were immediately wiped from the slate as I read it.

My throat went dry as my eyes raked over the email, heart breaking in my chest as the reality set in like a slap to the face.

“What?” I whispered to myself, reading the email again and again.

They were letting me go. Norman apologized for the development, but he didn’t feel that I could do an adequate job from home. They wanted everyone to be in the office as it has always been, and my inflexibility was something they couldn’t keep supporting.

It was all over.

All of my hard work. My dreams, my time, my money, and all of my effort to go above and beyond every time. Even though I wasn’t a salaried employee, I acted like I was. I worked my ass off for that internship, and yet it was all gone, just like that.

Blinking back at the screen, unable to escape that haunting email, it didn’t take long for the emotion to burn in my nose and eyes. For the damning reality to sink into my skin and ache.

It was almost impossible to fully process, but in that moment, it felt as if everything came undone around me. Regardless of how hard I tried to make it work, and how sure Ben had been about the plan working, it was already done, and there was nothing I could do about it.

I could crawl back on my hands and knees begging Norman for my position back, but I knew what he was like. He was a no-nonsense man, and when he made up his mind, that was the end of it.

Even if I worked like my life depended on it there, he had already decided I wasn’t worth the time or effort. There would be no point, and I would only be wasting my breath.

To me, that internship was everything. It was the very reason I was in New York in the first place and the reason to keep going despite it all. I lived and breathed that position because it was the embodiment of my hopes and dreams. It was my guiding light.

But to them, I was just an intern. It was a position that needed to be filled, and sooner rather than later, they would fill it again with someone new and flexible. They would give someone else the chance to live out their dreams without sparing me a second glance.

From my seat in the kitchen, my hands began to shake as that wave of misery crashed over me, and I couldn’t even try to stop it. Hot tears streamed down my face as a choked sob wracked my chest. With my face in my hands, I cried into the sleeves of my sweater to the point of pain.

As much as my face and body hurt, it didn’t even compare to the brutal ache of knowing I lost out on that opportunity. Knowing that the stability and personal attachments I had from that office wouldn’t be mine to access anymore stung more than I ever could’ve guessed.

Even as those words continued to move through my mind, I couldn’t stomach it. I didn’t understand.

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