Page 266 of In Love with a Ruthless Man

“And you’re drunk,” Sergei returned coldly. Even if his mother had bothered to clear out the empty bottles of cognac from the room, he would still have known she was intoxicated. Tanya reeked of alcohol, and by the looks of it, his mother had also not showered for days.

Tanya returned to her seat and crossed her legs, saying nonchalantly, “It makes poverty bearable.” Born to a rich family and spoiled rotten by her parents, Tanya had lived all her life expecting to be pampered. She had dumped Fyodorfor a wealthier husband, and when her second marriage hadn’t worked, she had moved on to a third husband.

But that last one hadn’t worked too, and even worse, the bastard’s lawyer had managed to convince the court that Tanya didn’t deserve any kind of alimony.

And so for the first time in her life, Tanya had found herself bankrupt and with absolutely no one to turn to – except for this man seated in front of her.

“A monthly sum will be deposited to your account—-”

“How much?” Tanya asked baldly.

Lips tightening at how vulgarly mercenary his mother was being, Sergei managed to answer in a level tone, naming a sum that visibly surprised Tanya.

“The deposits will continue for as long as you abide by my rules.”

“And those rules are?”

Sergei leaned back against his seat, saying simply, “Don’t contact any of my family.”

Tanya couldn’t help bristling at the way her son looked at her. How dare he? Had he forgotten that his father had been nothing but a Russian peasant, a lowly immigrant without even a college education to speak for while Tanya was a Darby?

“I’m your family, too, darling,” she chided him. “And no matter how much you deny it, my blood also runs in your veins.”

Sergei’s expression remained aloof at the reminder. “If, for whatever reason, you have a need to speak to me again, you will do so by contacting my lawyer from here on. I’ve already informed him of our arrangement, and he will be here tomorrow to have you sign a contract.”

“Don’t you trust my word?”

“No.” He came to his feet, effectively putting an end to the discussion.

When her son turned away, something in Tanya wanted to lash out at him, and she called out, “You don’t have to worry, you know.” All these years, she had chafed at how unfair life was, with the way all her sons appeared devoted to Fyodor’s trashy second wife and her equally trashy daughter. She was their mother, damn them, and they should have been loyal to her.

But instead all of them had treated her as if she didn’t even exist, and she had never forgiven them for that.

She watched Sergei pause as he reached the door. “You don’t worry me.”

Liar,Tanya thought. She might have no love for her sons, but it didn’t mean she didn’t know them the way only a mother could. Of the three, Sergei had always been the too-responsible one, the son who had willingly burdened himself with worries even at a young age.

“I just wanted to ease your mind in case you did,” Tanya said lightly. “You boys were just my insurance policies,” she revealed with a soft, cruel laugh. “And now it’s paying off, so why would I even consider ruining it?”

Sergei didn’t bother to answer, but his mother’s words stayed with him, the way Tanya had meant for it to.

When the billionaire made it home, he found Fredericka asleep, curled up in the living room sofa. Misha was also there, reading quietly on the couch opposite, his gaze focused on his iPad.

Having heard his older brother’s footsteps, Misha took his glasses off and stood up, murmuring wryly, “She insisted on waiting up for you.”

“And she failed,” Sergei observed, amused.

“I bet her she would,” Misha said with a grin, “and now she has to pay up by drinking cucumber shakes every morning for one week straight. You owe me, big brother.”

When his brother left, Sergei crouched down, and just looking at her made the sick feeling in his stomach disappear.

She was his life, his reason for happiness, and she didn’t even know it. No one knew how much she had changed him, and even his own father wasn’t aware of how much it meant that Sergei could actually smile just at the thought of her.

The day he had found his mother fucking another man, he had initially thought that he had only lost the ability to trust a woman. But gradually, he had come to realize that the impact of his mother’s gross betrayal had been worse. It had also destroyed his ability to be happy for himself.

He had been happy when Fyodor had found true love with his stepmother Marianna. He had been happy when Misha received another award for hisgroundbreaking work, when Vassi achieved recognition in his profession, or whenever Seri had been selected for a project.

All these things had made Sergei happy as a son and as a brother.

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