Chapter 18: Vlad

Dinner at my place started out with an awkward silence as Paul sat across from me at the table, eyes on his plate.

The air was filled with the sounds of clinking cutlery, thick with a subtle unease and heavy with the weight of unspoken words.

Occasionally, he would jerk his eyes and glance in my direction and then return to his meal, which he seemed to be enjoying.

I had invited him over to my place so we could discuss the current situation on ground: the thing with me and his daughter. But I hadn't brought it up yet.

We'd been eating for the past ten to fifteen minutes, and neither of us had said anything to the other except for the few words of pleasantries we'd exchanged when he honored my invitation.

"This is good," he said finally, chewing on the bacon in his mouth. "You make it?" He grinned faintly.

That was a clear play on words, maybe to ease the tension that hovered over us like a dark cloud on a rainy day.

"Yes, I did," came my reply, indulging him.

"I see." He sipped out of his wine glass. "If you're a chef, then I'm the director of NASA."

I laughed lightly. "Your lie is super glaring."

"You started it."

I'd missed this: casually talking to my childhood friend. It was nice, and now, I was about to ruin it with this news, this bombshell. This was tougher than I'd thought, and my brain had abandoned me the moment Paul walked in.

"Strange," he said, looking around.

"What is?" I asked, knowing exactly what was on his mind.

Paul had worked for me at the Bratva in the past; the legal matters were his area of expertise, though—nothing more, nothing less. Being a member of the brotherhood meant he had to pick up on a few things. For instance, paying fucking attention to his surroundings.

I had dismissed my bodyguards and asked my maids to spread out to other parts of the house before his arrival. So, it was rather empty here today, no external voices, no third party, nothing. It was just the two of us. I knew this meeting would not end well, and no one else had to witness it; it wasn't their fucking business.

"Where's everyone?" he asked, his eyes roaming the house. "I don't even see Simon around, and he never leaves your side."

"I didn't want anyone disturbing us," I said dismissively.

He cast a suspicious gaze at me but said nothing, even though I knew he had something to say about it. There was a lot on his mind; that much I could tell. He might be dealing with a lot, like every other man catering for his family. But it was beyond that; he seemed worried about something.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I should be asking you that," he said. "You were the one who invited me over."

"We'll get to that," I replied. "But something's eating you up. What is it?"

I was truly concerned about my friend, but at the same time, I couldn't help but wonder if it had anything to do with Sienna. If it did, then what did he know? What was he suspecting? Having him talk would help me better understand how to delve into this situation, considering how delicate the matter was and what serious damage it could do.

He sighed, setting down his napkin after wiping his mouth. "It's Sienna."

Alright, here we go.

His words stabbed my heart, and guilt washed over me; however, I remained composed.

Leaning back in my chair, I asked, "What about her?"

"Listen, I know I asked you to stay away from her, and I'm grateful that you did…."

Fuck.

Now, that guilt became so overwhelming that it threatened my composure, but I struggled against it. The fact that he believed I'd stayed away from his daughter after he asked me to just made this confession even more difficult. He would feel betrayed; I was certain because I felt like I had betrayed him.

I had never felt so guilty before, and in a moment of weakness, I was tempted to brush off the real reason for this meeting. He would hate me after today, and even though I had told Sienna that I would marry her, I feared I might lose her, as well.

This was a fucking hazard: a potential disaster, an impending doom. It was a storm that I wasn't well prepared for.

Sleeping with Sienna the first time was defendable; he hadn't warned me to stay away just yet. But doing so the second time, after his warning…that was a low blow coming from me.

Paul continued, "Telling you this is a little weird, but you're my friend. I feel I can share it with you."

His words were sharper than my sharpest daggers, and they pierced my heart without mercy. It was torture, listening to him address me like a good friend.

Keep it together, Vlad. You got this .

I suddenly felt so weak, and it was like cowardice was starting to creep in, but I wouldn't have it. I might have been many things, but a coward wasn't one of them.

"She's zoning out, Vlad." Paul's voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

I raised my eyes, looking right at him.

He continued, "Lately, she's been eating less, she's been distant…." Paul dropped into the backrest of his chair with a deep breath. "She's starting to grow pale, and she's weak all the time. Her mother thinks that she's…." He couldn't say the word.

"Pregnant?" I helped him say it.

He nodded subtly. "I don't want to believe it, but I can't argue with the signs—nor can I argue with her mother."

Well, there it was. Both parents were already suspecting, so keeping quiet would only delay the inevitable. It was time to let the cat out of the bag.

I cleared my throat and adjusted in my chair, bracing myself for what would come next after my confession. "I'm sorry, my friend."

"Sorry for what? That she might be pregnant?" he asked, clueless at first. "You don't have to be. It's not like you're…." Paul paused immediately, shooting me a glare.

I was quiet, my eyes fixed on him in a way that conveyed a silent message: a message that he received. He leaned forward, his hands resting on the table. Paul didn't shift his gaze as he studied me, waiting for my next response. He looked like he was hoping that he'd misread my countenance and misunderstood my reply.

"Natalie wasn't wrong to think Sienna was pregnant," I said, locking eyes with him.

Paul furrowed his brows, his breathing growing more and more audible as he anticipated what would come out of my mouth next.

"She is. And I'm the father of the child she's carrying."

He stared at me without a word.

"I got her pregnant, Paul," I blurted out. "And now, I intend to marry her."

I watched his teeth grit and his hands ball into fists, but he was still quiet, boiling with rage. Next thing, I saw his fist flying toward my face from across the table, and I could so easily dodge the advance or deflect it, but I didn't. His knuckles landed on my cheek, turning my head to the other side.

It hurt. But I deserved it.

"Fuck you," he said, rising to his feet.

Here we go.

I wiped the back of my thumb over my lower lip and noticed it was bleeding. He got me good. But I didn't punch back; I couldn't. His reaction was to be expected.

"I told you to stay away, Vlad—I fucking begged you in the name of our friendship to leave her the fuck alone!" His voice rose on the last statement. "How could you do this? What the fuck were you thinking?" He placed both hands on his waist, pacing back and forth. "You fucked up, Vlad, and I didn't think that you, of all people, would do something as stupid as this, knowing full well what's at stake."

He said the words in an angry rush, and his tone was laced with resentment, accentuating the glaring disappointment in his gaze.

I was silent, absorbing all the words that cut deeper than an enemy blade.

"Do you know the implication of what you've done?" He faced me. "Do you know how messed up this is? Fuck!" He tipped his head toward the ceiling. "I fucking trusted you, Vlad. I knew I shouldn't have, but I did anyway. I gave you the benefit of the doubt, thinking that you knew how wrong it was to have anything to do with Sienna."

I finally managed to speak, and the only thing I said was, "I'll marry her, Paul."

He snickered in disbelief. "Do you think I'm mad because you got her pregnant out of wedlock?" Paul scoffed. "Vlad, this is Sienna we're talking about, and you know why this is so complicated, or have you forgotten what you did twenty one years ago?"

I frowned at his reminder, as the feelings I'd buried up for a long time all came rushing back to the surface.

He could tell that I was upset, but he didn't care because he was equally upset himself.

However, even in my present state, I couldn't deny the fact that this was more complicated than I had initially thought.

Paul had every right to be mad because now, there was a ticking time bomb, and it would go off very soon.