Page 59 of Vulnerate

His mumbled complaint comes as I walk towards the stairs.

“You know I’m not a baby anymore and you don’t have to carry me.”

Kissing his hair, I don’t let him go as we go downstairs and agree.

“I know little man. You’re all grown up.”

He’s going to be a teenager in a few years, and I’ll have new reasons for heart palpitations every time he leaves the house.I don’t want him to grow up, I hate it and he won’t need me anymore.

I lower my voice and walk slower as though that’s enough to stop time. “Are you going to be a shithead when you’re a teenager?”

His shoes hit my knees as he shrugs, and I lift him higher, so he doesn’t fall. “Tali said you were one so I might be.”

Tali opens his stupid mouth as soon as he sees me and makes an announcement for Inessa’s benefit.

“Watch out, he’s in one of his moods.”

I hold my middle finger up, and Viktor turns to look at them, giggling to himself as I curse. “I’m not a fucking toddler.”

My language earns a stink eye from the lady of the house like she’s not married to the worst of us. My pride comes to my defense, hardening his voice and his stare as he says, “Stop bullying my dad or I’ll tell the guards where your snacks are.”

I should find it emasculating or some shit, but I kiss his head in gratitude and throw him on the sofa while he gets into his favorite hobby of arguing with Tali.

He grabs Viktor’s shoulders and picks him up, so they’re face to face as he concedes, “Don’t threaten my snacks or I won’t share them with you anymore.” He looks at my hands and sends him away with a bullshit excuse. “Go pick which car you want me to take, the keys are in my room.”

The kid is too intuitive, he looks between us gauging whether I need him to fight for me. Deeming me safe, he runs off. He’s incapable ofwalking anywhere when he thinks we’re talking about anything important, and he always runs full speed like there’s a chance he’ll miss anything.

Seeing that the littlest ears are out of range, Tali nods to my hands and asks, “Want me to go find him or we still waiting?”

We haven’t been given rules not to discuss shit in front of Inessa, but Vlad’s controlling ass would end up losing his shit if she found out he killed her family member before he was ready for the rest of the world to find out.

I focus on whatever shit he’s using my son as an excuse for rather than spilling family secrets.

“Nah I’m good, where you going?”

He hesitates in answer as he rubs the back of his head with guilt dripping off him. “Vik wanted to do some art shit, so I thought I’d take him to Dani’s.”

His projects take up the entire wall in his room, little figures made out of random shit he finds when there’s a studio set up for him to turn into whatever he wants. I hate the fact I’m excited, I’m getting the perfect excuse on a silver platter and clear my throat of any emotion before I say, “I’ll take him.”

Tali narrows his eyes at me and tries to get me to change my mind. “You sure?”

Fuck him when he can spend time with her whenever he wants, I’m the one who’ll have to search for excuses.

“Yeah, he’s my kid.”

And Dani’s my woman.

There won’t ever be someone who replaces her. It was always meant to be my little artist by my side and if she can’t take that place, no one will.

Viktor’s smilestretches from ear to ear as he stands in front of Dani’s door. My legs are pressed against his back, and I keep my hand on his shoulder as he knocks. She’s like an infection coming into people’s lives and mutating their cells until she’s written within their DNA. He’salready hooked from the little time they’ve spent together and shaking with excitement as he waits for the door to open.

she sees me. Her face falls and she quickly looks down focusing on my son rather than me.

“Hey, I thought Tali was bringing you?”

He doesn’t pick up on her not so subtle dig at my presence and shrugs full of innocence. “My dad’s better at drawing than Tali, he made me a dragon once.”

Babbling about a picture I had to trace, he follows her inside and I stare at the wall.

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