I’ve alwaysknown affairs were the norm in this world.
My father had mistresses. So did Uncle Yaroslav.
Dasha and I made a bet on how many Emilio would have before their first anniversary. Three was my guess. Hers was four.
Knowing it’d happen is one thing.
Living it right now? It feels like a knife through the chest.
Even if I never wanted to marry Emilio or if we hadn’t had sex, there’s still a storm raging inside me. One filled with anger, betrayal, and heartbreak.
I breathe through my nose, trying to relax.
“Where’s Andre?” Emilio asks Hannah.
I lean closer to him, trying to make out their conversation, but the volume is too low.
“I know you’re scared,” Emilio says, a comfort in his tone I’ve never heard. “But we need to find him.”
My gut clenches with a twinge of jealousy that she gets this part of him.
But also concern for the woman.
“If she’s in labor, she needs to get to the hospital,” I say tightly.
He doesn’t look at me or acknowledge that I even spoke.
Covering the phone’s speaker with his hand, he says, “No one,” into it.
That sure as hell stings.
“I’ll get a flight.” He cuts the wheel into a hard U-turn. “Keep calling Andre. If he doesn’t answer, call Angelica. Have her drive you. Stick to the plan, okay?”
When he finally ends the call, I ask, “What’s going on? Where are we going?”
Before he can answer, the sound of tires screeching interrupts us.
I whip around my seat just in time to see two blinding headlights barreling straight toward us.
“Emilio!” I yell.
Bam!
The impact of the car rear-ending us hits us like a punch.
The Range Rover jolts forward, throwing me halfway off my seat.
Emilio shoves my head down with one hand and reaches into the console with the other, pulling out his gun while controlling the steering wheel with his knee.
“Stay down and cover your head, Liliya!” he yells.
Gunfire explodes.
The rear window shatters.
Emilio stays focused and calm, bracing his arm across the seatback and firing out the broken window.
Then, he floors it.
