Page 61 of Sinful Embers

I stare at him, my pulse roaring in my ears.

“He did get back into stockbroking,” I murmur. “When we moved to Vegas with him, he had a firm there. But after Vivienne died, everything just… fell apart.” My throat tightens. “Maybe that was my fault.”

“Why would you say that?” He looks at me curiously.

“When I think of it now…” I swallow, my throat feeling dry. “I realize just what a burden I must’ve been to everyone. They had to live this lie because one word of the truth could’ve sent me into so weird psycho episode.”

Dmitri’s head snaps toward me. “Don’t do that Leigh,” he says sharply. “None of what happened to you was your fault. Unfortunately you were born to be a heiress of not one but two of the biggest organizations in the world. That a big cross to bear for an adult let alone a little girl. Unfortunately you weren’t blessed with the best parental figures either.” He coughs and wipes his mouth as he continues. “Your grandmother had a stroke after her husband was killed and then she lost Thea and Nikolas. It took her a long time to recover. She entrusted you to her daughters best friend and widowed husband.”

I blink.Why is he being so… so… caring?It’s confusing me and making me feel awkward as I not only have his brother brother-in-law’s blood on my hands but I’m the one responsible for the poison that’s eating him from the inside out. Yet here is still in his own fucked up way trying to protect me.

“You were never a burden, Leigh.” His voice lowers, rough with conviction. “The people around you banded together because they loved you. They bent the world to fit the reality you knew so that you’d feel safe. Not because you were weak. But because you were fiercely protected.”

Something thick lodges in my throat.

“I envy that kind of love,” Dmitri admits after a beat.

I glance at him, surprised by the rawness in his tone.

“My father always favored my brother,” he continues, his gaze fixed on the horizon. “No matter what I did, it was never enough. He was always the golden child.”

I tilt my head slightly. “So you stole an heiress to build your own empire and top his exponentially.”

Dmitri’s lips quirk, but there’s no humor in it.

“At first,” he says simply. “But after Thea died… something changed.” His eyes darken. “Then one day, I walked in on Vivienne abusing you.”

A shiver rips down my spine.

“She’d yanked a chunk of your hair out. Your little cheeks were blood-red from where she’d slapped you.” His jaw tightens. “I looked into your eyes, Leigh—your green, green eyes—and I saw it. Defiance. Courage. You refused to cry.”

I stiffen, my breath hitching.

“You were three,” Dmitri says, almost in awe. “And that’s when I fell in love with the bravest little girl I’d ever met.”

A wave of nausea rolls through me. “What?” My voice is strangled.

He exhales sharply. “Not that kind of love, Leigh.”

I recoil, disgust twisting through me. “You pervert—”

Dmitri hisses, cutting me off. “Not. That. Kind. Of. Love.” His tone is sharp, irritated. “The kind of love a father has for his child.”

The words hit me like a punch to the gut.

“I thought your father was dead. You had no one to champion for you,” he goes on. “And I knew what Carlos and Vivienne were doing. I was part of that plan.” He clenches his fists. “But I also knew what kind of monsters they were—fuck, I’m that kind of person too. Seeing you like that… I knew that day my plans had changed. I started seeing Vivienne and Carlos in a whole new light. I knew too that the only way to protect you was to go ahead with the fucked up plan only I’d be the one running it.”

I stare at him, my skin prickling with unease. “Still you’d end up with all the power.”

“No. I’d end up ensuring no one stole your power.” He exhales sharply. “To this day I’ll always regret the way I handled Vivienne they day I walked in on her abusing you. She wasenjoying your pain. Feeding off it.” His eyes flick to mine, stormy and unreadable. “I snapped. I told her I’d kill her if she ever laid a hand on you again.”

A tremor runs through me.

“A few hours later, your grandmother announced that your father’s body had been found. Burnt beyond recognition.” His jaw flexes. “That the man posing as him—bearing an uncanny resemblance—was an imposter.”

My stomach lurches. “That’s why my mother ran.”

“That,” Dmitri nods, “and because Carlos tried to kidnap you. He planned to hold you for ransom. Demand Matriarch from your grandmother.”

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