Page 54 of Ruthless Daddies

Unknown: Then you’ve already made your choice.

The thread ends there. No more texts, no indication of what happened next. But the implications are staggering. Elena was planning to leave. To run away.

I sit back, the phone clutched tightly in my hands. My mind races, questions and doubts swirling. Why was Elena so desperate to escape? Who was she texting? And what happened to her that night?

One thing is clear—her death wasn’t just an accident.

I step out of the children’s room, my mind still spinning from the discovery of Elena’s hidden phone.

As I close the door softly behind me, I almost walk straight into her.

Svetlana.

She’s standing in the hallway, her arms crossed and a smug smile playing on her perfectly painted lips. Her blonde hair is pulled into a sleek ponytail, and her dress—tight and low-cut—looks more suited for a nightclub than this house. The sight of her makes my stomach churn.

“Move out of my way,” I say, but she doesn’t, smirking instead.

“Where do you think you’re going?” she says.

“What do you think you’re doing here?” I shoot back. “You’re not welcome here.”

She laughs softly, a sound that makes my skin crawl. “Is that so? Last I checked, Ivan’s word is the only one that matters in this house. And he called me here.”

The words hit me like a slap.Ivan?My mind rejects it instantly. She’s lying. She has to be. There’s no way Ivan would?—

“Don’t flatter yourself,” I say, my voice cold. “Whatever game you’re playing, it won’t work. You don’t belong here.”

Svetlana’s smile turns vicious, her eyes glittering with amusement. “Oh, sweetheart,” she purrs, stepping closer. “Tell me, Alice, do you think you’re the only one Ivan lets into his life? Into his bed?”

Her words hit like a slap, and I can feel the heat rising to my cheeks. I know what she’s doing—trying to get under my skin, to rattle me. But I can’t let her see how much it’s working.

“Whatever history you think you have, it’s in the past,” I say. “You don’t belong in his life anymore.”

Before she can respond, I hear footsteps behind me.

He looks…different. His usually composed demeanor is strained, his jaw tight and his eyes shadowed. But he doesn’t look at me. His gaze is fixed on Svetlana.

“Svetlana,” he says, his voice low but firm. “What are you doing here?”

She tilts her head, her smile softening as she steps toward him. “You called me, Ivan,” she says sweetly. “I came because you needed me.”

I glance between them, my heart sinking. The way he doesn’t immediately deny it, the way his hand flexes at his side—it’s all too much. She wasn’t lying. Hedidcall her.

Ivan doesn’t respond to her words directly. Instead, he steps forward and takes her by the arm, his grip firm but not rough. “Come with me,” he says curtly.

Svetlana glances back at me as he leads her away, her smile triumphant. My chest tightens painfully, and I feel like the air has been sucked out of the room. I watch them disappear down the hall, my feet rooted to the spot.

20

NIKOLAI

The engine purrs beneath my hands as I guide the car through the streets of the city, the glow of the dashboard casting faint shadows over Alice’s face. She’s quiet, staring out the window, her fingers twisting in her lap like she’s trying to make sense of something she can’t put into words.

She hasn’t told me why she wanted to come into the city—why she insisted so much. And yet, here I am, driving her because I can’t seem to say no. Because somewhere along the way, I’ve stopped caring about logic or self-preservation when it comes to her.

I glance at her from the corner of my eye, watching the way the lights of the city play across her features. She’s beautiful in a way that sneaks up on you, not loud or obvious, but impossible to ignore once you’ve noticed.

And I’ve noticed. Too much.

---