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Mikhail and my dad strike up an easy conversation, and though I hardly pay attention to the contents of the discussion, I detect a lightness in Dad’s tone that I haven’t heard in a while. It sounds genuine. And I wonder if that means his campaign is doing well or if he’s gotten that good at pretending his world is all sunshine and roses.
I don’t particularly care anymore, and rather than maintaining a polite persona, I eat with single-minded determination, ready to excuse myself as quickly as I can get through my meal.
“Aren’t you feeding your daughter enough, Molly?” Mikhail teases, and when I glance up from my plate, he’s watching me with mild amusement.
“Well, I’ve certainly been trying…” Mom says, her cheeks coloring at the unexpected accusation.
Mikhail rests a hand over her, his lips curling into an affable smile. “I’m only joking. Of course. I imagine that in your condition, your appetite has grown considerably. Hasn’t it, Dani? Maybe even doubled?”
My stomach turns violently at the heavy-handed implication, and I drop my fork as my eyes snap toward my dad. He has the decency to look ashamed, his eyes only holding mine before they drop uncomfortably.
“You told him?”
“He only wants to help, honey,” Mom says from across the table.
And when I turn to look at her, I find her expression entirely too hopeful. What in god’s name have they done now?
“Help?” I repeat, the word bitter as it leaves my tongue. “How can you possibly help me, Mr. Sidorov?” I ask, turning my gaze to him as my lips twist into something of a snarl.
“I think you know that I’ve been in love with you for a long time, Danielle—from the moment I laid eyes on you, in fact,” he says, his words like silk and honey.
It’s the performance of a lifetime, one I suspect he’s putting on entirely for my parents’ benefit. Because he sure as fuck isn’t convincing me.
“Your parents told me about your circumstances, how the man who put you in this compromised position is no longer around to care for you and your baby….”
The words are so sick, so twisted. He almost makes it sound as if Efrem left by choice, but I have the note that says otherwise, a note I keep safely tucked away in my nightstand. He didn’t leave me. He was taken from me by Mikhail, who’s standing in front of me now, making it sound like he didn’t murder Efrem by luring Pyotr and his men into a trap. He knew exactly what he was doing—just like he does now.
“It would be my honor to protect and care for you and your child in his stead. I’ll provide for you and love your child like it’s my own.”
“If?” I don’t need to ask. I know what’s coming, but I want him to say it. I want to see the expression on his face when he finally sees his trap close around me. He’s been laying this one for a long time now; he all but said it at the charity event: I always get what I want in the end.
“If you marry me,” he says simply, and even though I know they’re coming, the indecent proposal makes my heart skip a beat.
His expression is impressively open and vulnerable, his hard face managing to mimic the emotion of hope. However, I can see in his eyes that he’s already sure of his victory.
“It’s a noble and very generous offer,” Mom points out. “Dani, you need to take it.”
“No,” I say, shaking my head vehemently to emphasize my refusal. Just the thought of it revolts me. I don’t want to be anywhere near Mikhail. Not for dinner, let alone a lifetime.
“Dani,” Dad says, his voice parental and commanding. “If you refuse to terminate, then you will marry Mikhail.”
What a very PC term he’s chosen for our dinner guest—terminate, like I’m just letting my child go, perhaps on to bigger and better things.
“We’re not going to support your immature and, frankly, reckless choice to keep a baby you’re not ready for. But since we can’t make this decision for you, then I insist on you accepting his proposal. Mikhail is a good man, someone who not only can support you and your child financially but is willing to. And he cares for you deeply. So if you won’t take care of yourself, then at least let him take care of you and your child.”
“Think of your baby,” Mom murmurs, her voice imploring, her eyes wide with concern.
“You don’t get to pull that card after telling me I need to get an abortion,” I state, standing so suddenly that my chair falls back with a loud crack as the back hits the hardwood floor.
Mom stands, too, her lips pressing together in frustration. “Gentlemen, will you excuse us? I need to speak with my daughter for a moment in the other room.”
She doesn’t wait for a response, rounding the table and gripping my wrist as she pulls me from the room.
“I won’t marry him,” I hiss as I let her drag me into the front room. “I wouldn’t marry him if he were the last man on Earth.”
“Please, Dani, you need to see reason. Think of how hard it’s going to be raising a child on your own. You’ll have to live in a bad part of town because that’s the only kind of place you’ll be able to afford. Living off food stamps if you can’t find a well-paying job. Do you know how dangerous and stressful that kind of life is? And what happens when you fall short on a payment? Are you going to let your child go hungry? Or without a bed? Being a parent is hard enough without trying to be a single mom.”
“You don’t think I’ve figured that out by now?” I ask, wrenching my wrist from her grasp. “And yet you and Dad are perfectly comfortable letting me go it alone. Maybe if you weren’t so concerned with how the world sees us, you could start thinking about actually being a family for me, you know, the kind that supports their daughter when she’s in a bad spot. Not the kind that turns their backs because someone might gossip and call me a slut. Well, I don’t see how Mikhail is a better solution. He’s nearly twice my age and a corrupt, sadistic asshole, Mom. He’s the reason Efrem isn’t here to help me raise this child.”
