Page 57 of Bratva and Betrayal: Kirill

“Oh fuck,” he curses.

“You said a bad word!” Violet waves her finger at him. “No cookies for you.”

Ares turns toward me, and the alarm in his gaze is almost amusing.

“She is why you cannot and will not take Sandrine away from me,” I verbalize, in case it’s not clear to him.

Ares staggers back, the horror in his eyes. He’s going to be a father. He knows this changes everything.

“And whether we like it or not, we’re family now, Zervas.”

He drags me a few feet away so no one can hear him. “You’re married. I acknowledge that. But do you still love her?” he asks, eyes searching. “You looked like you did in that video. But I know the man you are today.”

I go still, the answer an unwanted and undeniable truth I must face.

“I haven’t seen her in five years,” I say, my voice measured, controlled. “My daughter needs her mother.”

“And the rest?” he demands.

“We’ll figure it out.”

He huffs softly. “That’s a bullshit answer.”

Irritation flares in my chest. “It’s all I’ve got. Excuse me.”

I cross the kitchen and lift Violet down from her stool, brushing the flour from her cheek as I take her hands in mine.

She studies me for a moment, her small brows pulling together. “Is the lady still crying?”

I nod once, carrying her into the solarium where it’s warm from the winter sunshine.

Tell her in the sunshine…

Good news, bad news should be delivered with the sun on her face.

“Do you remember what I told you?” I ask cautiously, settling her on my lap. “About your mother?”

“She’s here, but she’s sick.” Violet goes very still, figuring out her own riddle.

Her eyes search my face with a kind of childish hope that makes my heart pound.

“The crying lady?” she says quietly.

“Yes, solnyshko.”

After a thin, fragile moment, Violet asks, “That was my mommy?”

“Yes,” I repeat, trying to be strong, but I’m dying inside, too.

Violet absorbs my response, her expression crumbling in small, subtle ways.

It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. I had it all under control. I had them separated. Then Ares fucking Zervas shows up and wrecked my plan. God, I want to hate him. But I can’t. I’d have done the same thing for Sandrine if the roles were reversed.

Wait, would I? Those feelings for her are coming back strong, and I don’t know if I want them.

“Why didn’t she say hi to me?” Violet asks after another dragged-out moment.

I brush my thumb along her cheek. “Because when people are sick like that, sometimes they get confused. She needs more time.”