"Was it? Because Valentina thinks?—"
"I don't care what Valentina thinks." Damian's voice is sharp now. "The marriage is temporary. Once this is over, I'll file for divorce."
I know that already, but the way he says it, after everything—it feels like a blow. It hurts more than it should, especially since he’s already told me his plans. It’s not as if I want to stay, but… I press my hand to my mouth to keep from making a sound.
“Careful how you talk about my wife, brother,” Konstantin says, his voice taking on an edge, though there’s some humor in it. "Is that what you want?"
Another long pause. "It's what's best for her."
"And what about what she wants?"
"She doesn't know what she wants. She's twenty-two, Konstantin. She's been through trauma. She thinks she wants me because I saved her, but that's not real."
"You sure about that?"
"I'm sure that she deserves better than a man like me."
I can’t listen to any more of the conversation. Water forgotten, I pivot quickly and head back upstairs, my chest aching and my eyes burning.He thinks I’m no better than a child. A little girl who doesn’t know her own mind.It hurts, especially considering all I’ve been through. Considering that I’m a mother myself. I thought Damian respected me more, but looking back through that lens, it makes sense. He keeps pushing me away because he thinks I don’t know better. That he has to protect me from myself, as well as everyone else.
The next morning, I’m watching Adam play in the garden, fighting back tears and failing as I remember the conversation. I don’t even hear Valentina walking up until she sits down on the stone bench next to me, and I see her out of the corner of my eye.
She looks at me, sympathy filling her gaze. “Oh, honey,” she says softly. “Are you alright?”
I know I should nod and say yes, that it’s nothing, that it’s something personal, but instead the words spill out. “I overheard Konstantin and Damian talking last night,” I confess. “I went down for water, and I couldn’t help it. Damian was repeating that we’re going to get a divorce when this is over, that even if I did want him, I don’t know any better. That anything I feel for him is just because he saved me.”
Valentina raises an eyebrow. “Has he still not slept with you?”
I swallow hard, feeling my cheeks flush. “Not… all the way. We’ve done… some things. But every time, he tells me that I’ve teased him into it, that it can’t happen again. That that’s not what this marriage is about. He keeps pulling away after, every time. And this last time was the worst. Until yesterday, he hadn’t spoken to me in days.”
"Men are idiots," Valentina says matter-of-factly, shrugging. "Especially men like our husbands. They think they're protecting us by making decisions for us. Konstantin doesn’t get away with it most of the time because he knows I won’t stand for it. But sometimes he still wins. Like sidelining me while I’m pregnant." Her mouth turns down in obvious annoyance.
I bite my lip, looking at her. She’s elegant and gorgeous, but I can see the steel in her. She’s someone who is not to be trifled with, that’s for certain. But me?—
I’m just a former stripper. A single mother. I’m not tough or brave or anything, but someone who keeps pushing through because I have no other choice. I’m not like her. And maybe Damian sees that, and…
"But what if he's right? What if I am just confused?"
Valentina gives me a look that's both kind and exasperated. "Sienna, do you think you're confused?"
"No," I say immediately, without thinking about it. "I know how I feel."
Valentina nods. “And how do you feel?”
“I—” I swallow hard. “I’m grateful for what he’s done. I care abouthim. And I want him, even if it is temporary. I want to be able to be his wife while I am… in all the ways.”
"Then that's your answer. The question is, what are you going to do about it?"
I open my mouth to answer, but before I can, I see Damian moving down the pathway, headed for us. He’s wearing chinos and a button-down with the sleeves rolled up, and I can’t help the way my pulse thuds in my throat as I see him walking toward us.
“Sienna.” He pauses, glancing at Valentina. “We need to talk.”
My throat tightens.Did I do something wrong? Does he know I overheard?“About what?”
He lets out a sharp breath. “Valentina said you’ve still been having nightmares.”
I blink at him, realizing all at once what that statement means—that he’s talked to Valentina about me, that to some extent, he’s worried about me.
“I—sometimes,” I admit, glancing over to where Adam is playing to make sure that he’s out of earshot. “All the violence, since the night in the warehouse—” I bite my lip. “And then the attack… it’s just a lot. It’s not… I’m not used to it.”
