Page 71 of Stripped

Pim'sheartbeat picked up at seeing the ballet mistress. "I just wanted to speak to Irina for a moment."

"You are the last person she wants to see right now."

Wraith put his hand on the small of her back, a small reassurance. "I know. I realize that but—"

"Let her in," Irina's voice called out from inside.

Zoya held the door open, letting them in. Irina was tucked up under a blanket on the couch, her broken ankle casted and propped on a pillow. Dark circles rimmed her red eyes and a pile of discarded tissues lay on the floor. "Who's this?" she asked.

"My friend—"

"Robert Wraith. I'm Primrose's boyfriend."

Pim glared at him.

"Have a seat." Irina waved her hand around the living room. Pim picked the chair closest to her.

"Irina, I just wanted to say how sorry I am about Thomas."

"Thomas was a fool, but he was my fool…" Irina's voice trailed off at the end.

"I want you to know I had nothing to do with your accident. I've always respected you as a dancer."

"We all had a part to play in it," Irina said.

"You should go. You're upsetting her," Zoya replied, standing at the entranceway. "She needs time to heal."

Pim glanced between the two women. "Irina, Thomas said something strange to me on stage. He said he was glad to be rid of my grandfather's grip."

"Aren't we all." Irina picked up a tissue and wiped her eyes.

"I don't understand," Pim said.

"You wouldn't. You're spoiled and naïve. You only see what you want to see."

Pim bit her lip. The accusation stung, especially now that she saw the truth in it. "Does the name Viktor Sokolov mean anything to you, because when I mentioned it to Thomas, he froze. I know he had heard it before. I could see it in his eyes."

"You really need to go." Zoya said, her voice rising. "I insist she gets some rest."

"Primrose," Robert said, standing.

"Wait. She has a right to know." Irina pushed herself up on the couch, grimacing as she readjusted her leg.

"Know what?" Pim asked. "Tell me."

"You know I'm from Russia. When I was eight, my stepbrother offered to send me to Moscow to study at the ballet. He had escaped the village and was a successful businessman there. I begged my father to let me go, and after many discussions and fights between him and my mother, he finally agreed."

"Irina, don't do this," Zoya interrupted.

She held her hand up. "It's fine. I have nothing to lose now. I studied there until I was fifteen. Until I became pregnant." She paused, taking a deep breath. "I was sent home, disgraced. My parents tried to hide it. They wanted to raise the baby as their own after it was born, save our family from the shame. I went back to Moscow after… well… the ballet wouldn't take me back. The only person I had on my side was my stepbrother. I stayed with him until I was recovered, then he sent me to Edinburgh to finish studying dance. When I completed my studies, I was accepted into SNB, the corps de ballet. It was a start. It was there I met your father. He served on the board in your grandfather's name. We became close, fell in love."

Pim let out a soft gasp. Her father and Irina. She wasn't sure she wanted to hear any more.

"Shall I continue?" Irina asked with a softness in her voice that hinted of sympathy.

Pim nodded.

"No one knew. We kept it hidden, out of respect for your mother, until one day Angus found out. He was furious and flew into a rage, threatening to have me fired. You see, Angus had approached me many times, flirted with me and had made several propositions toward me, all of which I had either avoided or turned down. He had become obsessed."

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