I didn’t even realize my fists had clenched until I felt my nails digging into my palms.
Arseny’s hand on Anna. His body too close to hers.
Mine.
He was begging for death.
I moved swiftly across the ballroom, closing the distance between us.
The moment Anna saw me, she jerked away from him, like a woman caught doing something wrong.
She froze the moment she saw me. Her breath caught, her body stiffening, just for a second. Then she moved. Rushed into my arms. Wrapped herself around me like a lifeline.
“Gleb,” she whispered, voice unsteady. “Please... don’t do anything stupid. It was just a harmless dance.”
I stiffened. My voice was ice. “Did you forget what I did to your dance tutor?”
Her body tensed. “I... I didn’t know you’d be back today.”
“No one lays a fucking hand on you. I don’t care if I’m across the world or standing in the same room. The next man who tries? He loses that hand.”
She exhaled, her breath shaky. “I’ll remember that. But please, don’t do anything stupid.”
Arseny thinks a dance is harmless. He’ll soon learn nothing he does is harmless, not when it involves my wife.
I grabbed her wrist. “Come with me.”
She didn’t resist as I led her out of the ballroom.
The moment we stepped inside our bedroom, she turned to face me. “I was scared when I saw you.”
I crossed my arms. “And yet, you were dancing.”
She shrugged. “I have only one week left here, so...”
“So what?”
“You’re mine, Anna. I won’t touch you. But God help anyone else who tries.”
I stared at her, my expression unreadable.
“You left me alone for three weeks,” she said, voice sharp. “What did you expect? That I’d just sit in my room like a good little wife? No. I drank. I danced. I let myself forget for a while. Because why the hell not?”
“I called you every morning and every night. I texted too, but you never answered! I thought maybe... maybe you found my calls strange, so I stopped. Considering the nature of our marriage, I figured reaching out every day might be awkward.”
I took a shaky breath before continuing. “And I couldn’t just send someone to check on you. This is my family’s mansion, one of the most secure places in the world. If I put a spy here, Grandma would know instantly.”
She frowned. “I didn’t see any calls. No texts either. Are you sure you were calling the right number?”
To prove my point, I pulled out my phone and dialed her line. Silence. Her phone didn’t ring.
She crossed her arms. “I told you. You don’t even have my number.”
I turned my phone screen toward her. “This is your number, isn’t it?”
She hesitated, then took out her phone and called me. My phone remained silent.
My brows drew together. “You have a different number now?”
