“We’ll have to agree on something else, too.” His thumb brushed lightly against my lower lip. “I nearly lost you. I’m not going to stand here and watch you disappear again.” His voice dropped lower. “If letting her in makes you distant like before, I’ll lose my mind.”
“I wasn’t distant,” I said.
“Darling, you’ll need a better argument than that.” The teasing disappeared as quickly as it arrived. His eyes remained fixed on mine, serious again. “We can reschedule this.”
Part of me wanted to remember what her absence had done to me. I understood that her presence might not be any easier. But I also knew I wouldn’t sleep or eat. I would spend days wondering why she came here and what she wanted.
“I won’t be at peace if I don’t see her,” I said. “I need to know why she’s here.”
“So I get to watch my wife disappear again?” he asked. “Promise me you won’t do that.”
My heart warmed as I looked at him. He kept rewriting everything I thought I knew about being alone.
“Okay.” I smiled at him. “I promise.”
He leaned down and kissed me, a soft brush of lips that lastedonly a moment.
Akim returned and interrupted the moment. Dmitri and I both turned toward him. “Boss, she insists on seeing you.”
Dmitri sighed. “Show her to my office.” He took my hand and led me toward his office.
My brain started running through scenarios the way it always did when fear took hold, building every possible version of the conversation before it even happened. I kept wondering what she wanted. Did she come for Cole to hand him to Iker?
We reached the office, and Dmitri walked me to his chair. He guided me into it and settled against the edge of the desk beside me, arms crossed as he looked down at me.
“What do you think she wants?” I asked. “She won’t take Cole from me.”
“I will never let that happen,” he said.
“What if she comes in here and tells me the only way to fix things is to hand Cole to Iker? What if she—”
“Inna.” He pushed away from the desk and leaned down, gripping both armrests. The chair swiveled slightly beneath me until I was facing him directly. “Do you honestly think I would let her do any of that?”
Someone knocked at the door, and my whole body went still. Dmitri didn’t answer. “Hey.” His voice softened. “Look at me.”
“She’s here.” My eyes remained fixed on the door.
“Look at me,” he called again, and I dragged my gaze away from the door to him. “You and Cole are my priority.” His eyes held mine without wavering. “I will protect both of you with my life.”
“She will never touch him.” I wasn’t sure whether I was speaking to him or trying to convince myself.
“She’ll have to get through me first.”
The knock came again, but Dmitri ignored it. He kept eye contact, refusing to let me retreat into my own head. Slowly,the noise running through my thoughts began to lose volume. His words from last night started breaking through the panic instead.
“She may have given birth to you two,” he said, “but you’re mine. So calm down.”
“I trust you,” I whispered. “You could break me with this if you want. But right now, you’re all I have.”
My vision blurred at the edges. Dmitri leaned in and pressed a brief kiss to my lips.
“I’ve held territories, ended wars, and buried enemies without blinking. I’ve never fought to keep anyone the way I’ll fight to keep you. You are not something I acquired, Inna. You’re the woman I’ll choose every single time.”
For years, I lived without trusting anyone. But here I was, trusting this man. Cole was all I had. Dmitri was powerful enough to override me completely and hand him over if he chose to. But I believed him. I believed his words.
When the knock echoed through the room again, Dmitri finally straightened. This time, he answered it.
The door opened, and Akim stepped in first. My mother followed behind him. She wore black palazzo trousers and a floral blouse, the kind of outfit that suggested she had dressed for a meeting she intended to control. Her hair was pulled back neatly, exposing the familiar features. She looked polished as I remembered her in New York.
