Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
Matvey
Veronica stormed into my office like a hysterical madwoman.
Her Hermès bag slammed into my chest with surprising force. I didn't flinch. Just looked up at her.
"You psycho! You bastard!" Her voice cut like broken glass. "You promised you'd help me take control of the family. How dare you—how dare you make deals with that bastard behind my back?"
I leaned back in my chair, idly adjusting my cufflinks. Her meltdown was almost refreshing. Gone was the poised, elegant mask she usually wore.
"Now I have nothing!" Her voice cracked into a sob. "Everything that should've been mine went to that illegitimate son. And that bastard's kicking me out of the family! Matvey, you destroyed me!"
"Consider it payback for what you did to Riley." I pulled a gun from my drawer and started toying with it.
Veronica went quiet for a moment.
"What do you mean?" She eyed the gun, forcing herself to stay calm.
"Think I didn't know you sent those scumbags after Riley?" I stood up, closing in on her step by step.
Veronica stumbled backward until her spine hit the wall.
"I—I was just trying to scare her."
"Scare her?" I let out a cold laugh, pressing the barrel under her chin. "You told them to 'have some fun' before they killed her. That's just scaring her?"
She shuddered. "I didn't mean to really hurt her!"
"Those three pieces of shit? Already dealt with. If Riley had lost a single hair, you'd be a corpse right now."
Veronica's face finally registered that the killing intent in my eyes was real. Her expression twisted.
"You've lost your mind! Over some bottom-feeder? Matvey, have you forgotten you still need my resources?"
"My problems are solved." My finger found the trigger. "You're useless to me now, Veronica. I don't need a damn thing from your family anymore."
It was true. Our channels were back online. I didn't need her. Didn't need to keep playing this ridiculous remarriage charade.
"No, that's impossible!" Her lips trembled. "You're lying!"
I didn't waste another word. My finger slowly tightened.
Click.
Veronica screamed and collapsed to the floor. Empty chamber. I'd removed the bullets earlier. But she still hadn't recovered. I hit the intercom button on my desk. Two guards pushed through the door immediately.
"Get her out," I ordered. "And I don't want to see her in this building ever again."
"Matvey!" She struggled as they dragged her away. "You'll regret this!"
The door closed. The world finally went quiet.
Veronica was finished. She'd never get close to Riley again.
The black Bentley tore out of the underground garage, heading straight for the little restaurant where Riley worked part-time. The sky hung heavy and gray, the air thick with the damp promise of rain.
When I pulled up at the corner, the sky started spitting drizzle. I checked my watch—Riley should be getting off soon.
A few minutes later, the glass door swung open. Riley stepped out in her oversized work uniform, blond hair catching soft light even in the dreary rain.
Then I saw Adrian. That damn kid appeared out of nowhere with a black umbrella, jogging over to tilt it over her head. He leaned down and said something. Riley laughed.
The sight nearly punched through my eyes.
They walked side by side through the rain, the umbrella forcing their shoulders almost together. Riley even nudged him with her elbow, those blue eyes sparkling with life. Then I watched that waste of space reach out like he was going to touch her hair.
My palm slammed the steering wheel. The horn blared.
"Goddammit!" I cursed under my breath.
Riley and Adrian both turned toward me. I kicked the door open and strode toward them through the rain without even grabbing an umbrella. Adrian's hand fell awkwardly to his side. Good.
"Riley." I stopped in front of her. My voice came out rougher than I'd intended.
When she saw me, those beautiful eyes turned cold and guarded. That look choked the air from my lungs.
"Matvey?" She stepped back, putting distance between us. "What are you doing here?"
"Picking you up." I moved closer. Rain slid down my temples. "Come with me."
Adrian frowned, stepping forward to block me. "Hey, boss, it's pouring. I was about to give Riley a ride home."
The kid had grown some balls. Still not enough.
"I wasn't talking to you." I didn't spare him a glance, extending my hand to Riley. "Let's go. We need to talk."
Riley looked at my outstretched hand, then shook her head firmly. "I don't want to talk, Matvey. We're done. There's nothing to say."
"There is. I have a lot to tell you. About Veronica, about those threats—"
"I said I don't want to hear it!" Her voice rose. "If you really had something to say, you would've said it already. You wouldn't have waited until now!"
She turned to leave. Adrian followed. I grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward me, breathing in that familiar clean scent as she fell against my chest. Adrian rushed forward to stop me. I locked him in place with a look.
"Get lost."
Riley took a deep breath and waved Adrian off. "Go ahead, Adrian. It's fine."
Adrian bit his lip and walked away under his umbrella, looking back every few steps.
The rain came down harder. I pulled Riley toward the Bentley. She struggled to shake off my grip.
"Let go! Matvey! You're hurting me!"
"Get in the car."
"What gives you the right to order me around?" She glared at me, eyes red. "What if I don't get in? Are you going to transfer Adrian to field work again until his legs give out?"
I froze.
"Answer me, Matvey. If you're pissed off right now, are you going to threaten to fire Adrian to make me obey?"
I stared at the defiance in her eyes, my heart sinking like it had been dropped in the ocean. The old me might've done exactly that. Would've sneered and told her there was nothing in this world I couldn't do. But now?
"No, Riley. I won't do that." Rain streamed into my eyes, stinging.
She went still, clearly not expecting that response.
"Riley, I won't threaten you with anything ever again." I looked at her almost pleadingly. "I just... need you to hear me out. Please."
She bit her lower lip. Said nothing.
"Give me five minutes." My voice had never sounded this broken. "Just five minutes, Riley."
The anger in her eyes slowly gave way to something complicated and bitter. She stopped fighting and let me open the passenger door and gently push her inside.
The moment the door closed, the world cut out. I cranked the heat all the way up. Warm air began filling the enclosed space. We were both soaked. Her work shirt clung to every curve. She was still just as stunning, no matter what she wore.
"I'm sorry, Riley." I'd owed her a real apology for so long.
She looked up, tears pooling in her eyes. "This isn't fair. You apologize when you feel like it, you hurt me when you feel like it. All I can do is take it. Can you please stop torturing me?"
Those words felt like a truck rolling over my chest.
"I know I hurt you. I know I'm a bastard." I closed my eyes in pain. "But listen—those people who wanted to kill you? That wasn't me. It was Veronica. She wanted to scare you. Wanted to force you away from me."
"The remarriage was fake, too. My shipping channels were compromised. I needed her family's influence. It was just business."
"What about the pregnancy? Was that fake too? Everyone says she's carrying your child!"
"That's just gossip. She's been spreading it herself. I—"
"Stop it. Don't insult me with this pathetic act." Riley cut me off, shaking her head in despair. "If it's really like you say, why didn't you tell me back then?"
"I'm not lying... I just didn't want you caught up in something dangerous. I wanted to protect you."
"But you already dragged me in!" Her voice broke. "You pulled me into your world, made me fall in love with you, then pushed me away over something else! You say you love me, but you hide everything from me. What the hell am I to you?"
I had no answer. She was right. My self-righteous secrecy was what hurt her most.
I was used to controlling everything. But I'd forgotten love isn't a mob negotiation.
"I'm sorry." All I could do was repeat it. "Riley, I'm sorry."
Tears spilled from her lashes. "Are you done?"
My heart plummeted into ice.
"Yeah."
"Then can I go?"
No. Never.
I grabbed her hand in panic. "Don't go. Please, Riley. Don't leave."
"I know I screwed up completely. I never learned how to love someone." I pressed her hand to my chest, my voice shaking. "Riley, you're the one who makes me feel like I'm still human. Give me one chance to prove I can change for you."
"I love you, Riley."
Riley was quiet for a long time.
"You know how long I waited to hear you say that, Matvey." Her voice was barely a whisper. "You know what? When those people said you were going to kill me, my first reaction wasn't fear. It was heartbreak."
My breathing stopped.
"I didn't believe you were that cold. So I confronted you, wanting to hear you deny it yourself.
But you said nothing." She continued. "I've survived losing both my parents.
I've survived life beating me down. I'm a lot stronger than you think, Matvey.
I just wished that when you were making those choices, you would've let me face them with you instead of shutting me out. "
I looked at this twenty-four-year-old woman. Her soul was far stronger and brighter than I'd ever imagined.
"Riley, I swear. I'll never hide anything from you again. You're everything to me."
"It's too late, Matvey." She pulled her hand from mine. "Whether it's you saying you love me or you telling me the truth—it's all too late."
Outside, the downpour had stopped. The mist slowly cleared. The whole world looked sharper than ever after the rain.
But Riley was slipping away from me forever.