Chapter 342 342. Olena - Surprise 2
Chapter 342 342. Olena - Surprise 2
Right away, Ivan points an accusatory finger at Artemiy, who has his nose broken, and blood is running down his chin, dripping onto his dark blue shirt.
“This fucking bastard put his hands on my mother.” When everyone glances at me now, he adds, “Look at what he did to her.”
My face turns even hotter as I realize that everyone can see the hickeys on my neck. So, I do the only sensible thing I can do—I bury my face into Vasiliy’s chest, and he presses a kiss to the top of my head.
Isla says, “Before you jumped to conclusions, did you ask what was going on, or did you assume something bad was happening?”
Ivan snorts. “There was no need to ask. The fact that this piece of shit didn’t even try to defend himself when I found him assaulting my mother—who was already feeling sick.”
“For fuck’s sake,” Isla mutters under her breath, which says a lot since she rarely, if ever, swears. “They are together.”
For a second, no one says anything. Then Ivan asks, “Who is together with who?”
“Olena with Artemiy and Vasiliy,” my daughter-in-law tells everyone what I should have done from the beginning and avoided this entire mess.
“My mother would never—” Ivan starts saying, but when I pull away from Vasiliy and fix him with my stare, he falls silent.
“I would not?” I wonder, my voice steady despite the turmoil inside me. “Meet good men? Fall in love? Live my life?”
The only relief I have as I confront my son is that the only ones present are Ivan’s blood-brothers and Isla. Theodore and Kade are probably entertaining Zana while we are in here, ruining Thanksgiving for everyone. I should have had an honest conversation with Ivan last night, so he would have known what to expect. Then, he wouldn’t have hit one of the men I love with all my heart.
Ivan runs a frustrated hand through his hair before throwing a stare full of hatred in Vasiliy’s direction, and another at Artemiy—who is pressing a towel to his nose. “How do you know they are taking advantage of you?”
Artemiy removes the towel from his face to speak, but me fixing him with my stare is enough to make him reconsider, and the towel returns to his nose.
My focus returns to Ivan, and I say, “I understand why your first instinct is to protect me, but you have to stop treating me like a child.”
“I am not!” he protests.
A loud breath leaves me. “You always call me at the same hour every night, and if I am late answering, you jump to conclusions right away. Not to mention that the next thing you do is get into your car to check up on me. I love you, and I know you want the best for me, but you are suffocating me, and that needs to stop.”
“I only do it because you panic very quickly,” he tries to defend himself. “And it is my duty to protect you. Always.” His eyes start to shine with unshed tears. “You suffered so much because of me, and this is the only way I know how to make your life better—by making sure no one will ever hurt you again.”
“Oh, Ivan,” I murmur. “You were never a burden, but a blessing.”
Vasiliy interjects, “From man to man, I’m telling you this—your mother is in safe hands. Artemiy and I love her very much, and loving her is a privilege.”
Ivan studies Vasiliy for a moment. “How can I be sure you will treat my mother the way she deserves?”
“While I don’t have to justify myself in front of you, I will tell you this—I was born to take care of her, as she is my other half. The one I was only meant to be with.”
Isla smiles at that. “Olena is the soulmate of Artemiy and Vasiliy. And they are in love.”
Ivan’s eyebrows shoot up at that. “You knew about this?”
“Yes,” she replies.
My son throws his arms in the air. “I can’t believe you hid something so big from me. No wonder you didn’t want me to go look for her—because she was with these two, doing God knows what.”
“They were living their lives, the way we do,” Isla huffs at that.
Artemiy says, “The reason why I didn’t fight back is that kicking your ass would have made your mother upset, and given her condition, the last thing she needs is stress.”
Isla blinks at that, then her gaze goes to the sink, where she sees the pregnancy test.
“Oh. My. God!” she screams, loud enough for the entire house to hear her. “You’re pregnant!”
Vasiliy inhales sharply, and I give him an apologetic smile because this is not the way I wanted him to find out about our baby. But my heart is also hammering against my ribcage, because I don’t know if he even wants to be a father at his age.
“Mom, what is my wife talking about?” Ivan asks, but I ignore him, my entire focus on Vasiliy, on his reaction, because right now, he has the power to break me or erase the last of my worries, of my doubts.
His eyes fill with tears. “You’re pregnant?” he asks, wanting to hear the answer from my lips.
My vision becomes blurry. “Surprise,” I reply, my voice thick with emotion. “Artemiy, you, and I are going to be parents,” I make it clear to everyone, especially to my son.
Vasiliy cups my cheeks and presses a gentle kiss to my lips. “Oh, sweetheart. This is the most amazing thing I’ve ever heard in my life.”
I smile because now I know that everything is going to be all right.
“I’m going to be an older brother?” Ivan asks.
Something in his tone makes me wince, because he doesn’t sound excited at all.
But then, he repeats his question. “I’m going to be an older brother? I’m going to have a little sister or baby brother?”
“Yes,” I tell him.
There’s a blank stare on his face as he looks at Vasiliy, then at Artemiy, and for a moment, I fear that he is going to go berserk once more.
Dominick and Andrey seem to think the same thing, as each grabs Ivan by an arm, trying to get him out of the bathroom. My son tries to shrug them off as he shouts proudly, “I’m going to be a big brother,” a huge smile appearing on his face.
His blood-brothers let go of him, and he steps in front of Artemiy. “Sorry for punching you,” he says while extending his hand. “I can be a little too much when it comes to my mother.”
Isla snorts at that.
Artemiy grabs his hand, and they shake hands. “It’s all good, son.”
Ivan points his forefinger at him while they keep shaking hands, a sinister grin appearing on his face. “Don’t push your luck, Dad.” He turns to Vasiliy. “You were supposed to protect her, not seduce her.” Finally, he looks at me. “You look radiant.”