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He was almost to the car when he realized why his father hadn’t tried to kill him on the way out, why he’d been so placid during their conversation.
Igor wasn’t angry about Roman’s coup. About the coming war.
He welcomed it. Wanted it.
In fact, Roman couldn’t help wondering if his father had been waiting for it all along.
33
RUBY
Ruby reached for the wine and poured herself another glass while her sister raised her eyebrows in surprise.
“Now I know you’re upset,” Brooke said. “Two glasses of wine on a Sunday night. It’s likeRuby’s Gone Wildup in this bitch.”
Normally Ruby would have laughed, but she was too miserable to find anything funny. She took a big gulp of wine instead. “Can you blame me? The guy I was falling for is a member of the Mafia — the same Mafia who gunned down our mom — and Adam is threatening to take Olivia away from me.”
“First of all,” Brooke said, “you said this guy is in his thirties. That means he was like, what, twenty when Mom was killed? I’m not an expert on organized crime, but I doubt he was the guy given the responsibility for taking out a major rival. And second, Adam will take Olivia from you over my dead body, and Dad’s too. You know we won’t let that happen.”
“So it’s okay that Roman’s part of the bratva as long as he’s not the one who pulled the trigger when Mom was killed?” Ruby asked. “Is that what we’re going to tell Dad when I introduce Roman as my new boyfriend?Hey Dad, he’s a boss in the Mafia that killed Mom, but don’t worry, he probably didn’t pull the trigger?”
“No need to be a smartass,” Brooke said.
“It’s a legitimate question. And I appreciate the confidence on the Adam front, but we both know you and Dad won’t be able to stop Adam if he takes me to court for custody. He’ll show up in his uniform, looking like Mr. Upstanding Community Protector. Then he’ll explain that I’ve allowed a notorious mobster around my daughter and I won’t be able to deny it under oath.”
“Okay, you’re getting way ahead of yourself.” Brooke reached for the bottle of wine and filled Ruby’s glass to the top. “Here, have some more wine.”
Ruby choked back a sob. “I’m fucked.”
She couldn’t admit that while Olivia was her first concern, she was also deeply disappointed about Roman.
It had felt so right.
“Let’s take these things one at a time, starting with the least serious,” Brooke said. “Is there any world in which you could forgive him? Some explanation he might have that would make it all make sense?”
“What could he possibly say to excuse the fact that he didn’t tell me?” Ruby asked. “It would be one thing if Mom hadn’t been killed the way she had, or if he hadn’t known, but heknew, Brooke. And that means he didn’t tell me because he knew I couldn’t live with it. So basically, he lied. And I can’t believe you’re defending him. You’re usually the first one to kick liars to the curb.”
“I’m not defending him,” Brooke said, setting down her wine glass. “I’m just saying… I don’t know. I haven’t seen you that happy in a while. And obviously, I’m not saying anything goes as long as you’re happy.”
“Then what are you saying?” Ruby asked.
“Just… maybe it’s at least worth a conversation?”
“I can never be around him again,” Ruby said. “I don’t even want to respond to his text because it will all be admissible in court if Adam makes good on his threat and ties me to Roman.”
“Fuck,” Brooke said.
“Exactly.” Ruby took another gulp of wine. She didn’t even normallylikewine.
“Let’s put a pin in the Roman thing,” Broke said. “Did Adam say he was going to fight for custody? Or was it a threat?”
Ruby tried to remember the details of the conversation she’d had with Adam when her fragile new world had come crashing down around her. “He said if Roman was ever around me or Olivia, I’d never see her again.”
Brooke took a deep breath. “So right now, you’re okay. You’re not planning to see Roman again. You haven’t even responded to his text. As long as that doesn’t change, the current custody arrangement will stand.”
Ruby took a deep breath. Brooke was right. Everything would be fine.
She just had to banish Roman from her mind. Her heart.
