"And I guess I was right."
"I know," he sighed. "Igor’s still not back, so Volk and I have a ton of shit to deal with."
I let out a tired hum and closed my eyes briefly, feeling exhausted from the day. Entertaining a baby nearly non-stop was no joke. "So, Volk thinks I'm unsatisfied, huh?" I remarked, a hint of amusement in my voice.
Alexsei’s expression darkened, a flicker of annoyance crossing his features. "He’s a fucking asshole," he muttered, frustration evident in his voice.
I chuckled as my phone chimed.
Mankiev:
I want to meet my grandsontonight.
Bring him to me, Caia.
It had been almost two years since I last saw my father, and life had been considerably better without him. Alexsei had made it abundantly clear he was out of my life for good. Yet, when hementioned wanting to kill him, I had pleaded with him not to. I didn’t want him to stain his hands for nothing.
I genuinely believed the best punishment my father could endure was to be completely and utterly alone.
I knew he was drowning in monstrous debt, and his shady business was barely hanging on, practically nonexistent by now. I harbored not an ounce of pity for him—he deserved every bit of his fate, and more.
Of course, word had spread like wildfire through the city's gossip mill about my pregnancy and the birth of our baby. For the past year, my father had been relentless in his attempts to see our child.
I never told Alexsei about the constant barrage of harassing texts. I had no intention of sharing them, knowing it would only fuel his thirst for revenge. Keeping it to myself felt like the best course of action, even though it was wearing me down.
"What is it?" Alexsei asked, his brows furrowing.
I quickly tucked my phone back into my purse. "Nothing, just Valeria asking for some advice. She’s going on a date tonight," I lied, guilt tugging at me for not telling him the truth.
In a way, I wasn’t completely lying. Valeria had texted me earlier, saying she was finally going on a date after years of being single, but she was unusually secretive about who her mystery man was. I couldn’t help but wonder.
"Hmm," he murmured, laying Lukyan back in his stroller as he yawned and immediately closed his eyes, clutching his little plush wolf—a gift from Volk. "So, what advice did you give her?"
"A lap dance," I replied casually.
His brow shot up. "A lap dance?"
"Yeah," I shrugged, biting my lip to hold back a smirk. "She needs some excitement; it’s been way too long for her."
Alexsei stayed quiet for a moment, clearly processing what I just said. Unable to hold back my amusement, I got up, grabbed the stroller, and started walking along the lake.
"Ever think about taking your own advice?" Alexsei teased, catching up to me.
I scoffed, incredulous. "Not a chance. You don’t deserve a lap dance from me."
There was no way—I wasn’t that confident yet.
A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips as he gave my ass a light slap before wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "We’ll see about that."
I looked at her suspiciously, lips pursed, as she continued to ignore me and played with Lukyan. She repeatedly showed him a little soldier doll, but each time, my baby showed no interest.
"What was your date's name again? I forgot."
She smiled at my son as he reached for the little police car she held in her right hand. "I didn’t tell you his name because that’s none of your business," she laughed as Lukyan grabbed the car and promptly threw it away. For some reason, my baby hated that little police car.
I crossed my arms, suspicion rising. "What are you hiding?"
She rolled her eyes and sat down on the couch, but not before giving my son other toys to play with. "I'm not hiding anything."