Til Death Do Us Part (Kornilov Bratva Duet #2) - Nicole Fox Page 0,26
relationship and tell me if I’m crazy for wanting to be with him anyway.
“I sure hope so,” I say, taking a deep breath. “Because I’m pregnant again.”
Hannah’s eyes go wide, and her mouth falls open in a smile. “Are you serious?”
I nod and hold a finger to my lips, gesturing to Theo. We still haven’t told him the news. It seems like too much to pile on him right now, especially after nearly being kidnapped by Fedor twice. I want him to have some normalcy. “We weren’t even trying. It just … happened.”
“Trust me, I’ve been there. I’ll never be rich like the one percent, but I sure as hell will fall into the two percent of people that condoms fail. Just my luck, right?”
I chuckle and give her a high five. “Amen.”
She sobers and shrugs. “But, at least Viktor stepped up and put a ring on it. Matthew’s dad is a piece of shit, but if he’d stuck around, I’d probably still have an apartment and custody of my kid.”
“I’m lucky,” I admit, hoping it doesn’t sound like I’m bragging.
“You are,” she says, her eyes narrowing. “But make sure you are safe, too.”
I frown, unsure what she means. “It’s a little late for the safe sex talk, Han. But I’ll keep it in mind in nine months.”
“I mean,” she says, lowering her head and looking up at me beneath her brows. “I know your story about Viktor’s day job is bullshit. I saw the guards standing in the hallway. They are covered in tattoos and scars. Clearly, Viktor is involved in something criminal.”
I open my mouth to argue, but Hannah holds up her hands to stop me. “Far be it from me to judge you. Believe me, if I could lasso myself to a wealthy criminal and live in a place like this, I would. But please be careful.”
“Viktor isn’t like that,” I say when she is finished. I can tell by the knowing slant of her mouth that Hannah doesn’t believe me, so I continue. “He isn’t always aboveboard, but he is a good man. He defends the innocent and protects people.”
“That may be, but I’ve known men like him. He will do whatever it takes to save his own skin. I just want to make sure you and Theo won’t be caught in the crosshairs.”
The image of Theo wrapped in the stranger’s arms fills my mind, and I blink it away, fighting back frustrated tears. “Viktor would never choose to put us in harm’s way. He loves us both, and he’d rather die than let something happen to either of us.”
She pats my hand and gives me a condescending smile. “Whatever you need to tell yourself to get to sleep.”
Fire fills my chest, and I stand up, yanking my hand away from her. “Don’t come into my house and tell me who my husband is.”
“Molly, I’m sorry—” she starts, but this time, I wave her words away, silencing her with a flick of my wrist.
“You don’t know me or my husband. You don’t know what he does for a living, so don’t come in here and tell me to be careful. You be careful, Hannah. I’m happy to help you the same way you helped me years ago, but I will turn you away if you speak ill of my family.”
Without another word, I grab Theo’s hand and lead him upstairs to my room, leaving Hannah alone on the couch.
My vision is blurry when I wake up. I try to lift my arm to wipe the sleep from my eyes, but it feels heavy and dead. I look over and realize Theo is lying on it, fast asleep.
He curled up next to me to watch a movie after we came upstairs, and we must have both fallen asleep. The television is still on, an old cartoon from when I was a kid, playing for all of the nostalgic adults up late after their kids have gone to sleep. I gently pull my arm out from under Theo’s head, shaking the pinpricks out, and turn the TV off.
I try to listen for signs of Hannah moving around the house, but it is silent. She is probably in bed. Or gone.
From the way she made it sound, she doesn’t have anywhere else to go, but given what she seems to know about Viktor’s business and the way I spoke to her, she might be in fear for her life.