Page 113 of Beautiful Deception

Inessa has lied and deceived me like everyone else has.

“Why?” I hiss.

She looks up at me with tears in her eyes.Steady, I tell myself. Don’t give in to her.

“Because I needed a job. And you offered me the position. It was too good to pass up. And I was so scared, Viktor.”

“Of me?”

“Yes. I was scared you’d kill me if you knew the truth. I was scared you’d kill my dad.”

I scoff, running my hand down my face. “I can’t believe this. I can’t fucking believe this! You lied to me. This entire time. You knew who I truly was this entire time?”

“Yes. Because of Elena. She told me about you.”

“So, you thought you could get a job with me and… what? Take all my money?”

“I went to you to beg you to spare my dad’s life. But then you gave me the job and I saw an opportunity and I…”

“Took it,” I say flatly. “You’ve been lying to me this whole time. When I told you I worked for the Bratva, you already knew. Yet, you pretended you didn’t.”

“Viktor, I never meant to fall in love with you but I have.” She scrambles off the couch and tries touching me but I jerk away from her. “I never meant to marry you but it happened.”

“How can I even believe a word you say? Youmarriedme, Inessa. And you still never thought to tell me the truth.”

“Viktor,” she sobs.

“Spare me your tears. I don’t know what’s real and what’s fake. You could have told me who you were. That’s the sad part. I would have helped you.”

“Would you?” she asks as anger flares in her eyes. “You didn’t know me back then. Would you really have spared my dad’s life if I had asked that first day we met in your office?”

I can’t give her an answer… because she has a point. I probably would have laughed in her face and found her father just to kill out of spite.

“I was just trying to survive,” she says. “You have to believe me on that. I really did just need a job. I never meant to fall in love with you but I did.”

“In all this time, you never thought to tell me? Not even once?”

“I thought of it every day! I wanted to tell you so bad but I was afraid.”

I huff. “So you married a man you were terrified of. How does that make me feel any better?” I point at her. “You should have told me, Inessa. You should have fucking told me. I pride myself on honesty after everything I’ve been through. You knew that. You should have told me.”

“I was scared you’d kill my dad.”

“And you think I won’t now?”

All the color drains from her face. “Viktor… no.”

I turn away from her. “Your tears mean nothing to me.” I storm towards the front door with Inessa running after me.

Finn exists my office and smirks at Inessa. “Got caught, did you?”

She stumbles to a halt. “You.”

“Yes. Me. I figured it out.”

With a shriek, she smacks Finn across the face. And Finn smacks her right back.

“Stop,” I growl.

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