Page 20 of Cruel Obsession

He hesitates one more second—long enough for me to see the concern etched in his face—then nods once and heads for the door.

“I’m sorry,” he murmurs to Rosanna as he passes.

She ignores him completely.

The door snaps shut.

Silence rushes in—thick and suffocating.

Rosanna crosses her arms, the movement pushing her breasts up in a way that’s absolutely calculated. Everything about her is calculated. The dress that broadcasts wounded innocence. The makeup that somehow makes her look bothdevastated and beautiful. The way she’s standing with her weight on one hip, trembling just slightly.

It’s a performance I’ve seen variations of since we were teenagers forced together at Bratva functions.

It doesn’t work on me anymore.

“Do you have any idea,” she says, voice shaking, “what you did to me?”

“I said no at a wedding. Happens more than you’d think.”

“Youhumiliatedme!” The volume spikes, control cracking at the edges. “In front of hundreds of people. My father. His associates. Everyone who matters in this world.”

“You lied to me first.”

“I ampregnant!” She slams both palms on my desk, leaning forward. Close enough that I can smell her perfume—something cloying and expensive that makes my sinuses itch. “What was I supposed to do, Arkady? Just… tell you and watch you walk away before our wedding day?”

“Yes. That’s exactly what you should have done.”

Her mouth opens. Closes. Opens again.

“That would have been honest,” I continue, keeping my voice level. Cold. “Instead, you waited until five minutes before we were supposed to make vows and ambushed me with information you knew would change everything. Do you understand why?”

“Because you made it clear you didn’t want children!” Her voice cracks. “The very first conversation we had after my father arranged this marriage, you said no kids. Ever. You were so adamant about it, so fucking cold—”

“And you agreed,” I interrupt. “Said you wanted to keep your figure anyway. Said you understood.”

“Plans change—”

“Not mine.”

Rosanna straightens, her face going from flushed to pale in the span of a heartbeat. For a moment, she just stares at me, and I see something flicker behind her eyes. Hurt, maybe. Or the realization that this isn’t a negotiation she can win.

Then her expression hardens.

“You know what I think?” She walks around my desk—slow, deliberate—invading my space in a way that makes my muscles tense. “I think this has nothing to do with the baby.”

“Enlighten me.”

“I think you wanted an excuse.” She stops beside my chair, looking down at me. “Any excuse to walk away from marrying me. And I gave you one.”

I say nothing. Let the silence stretch.

“And then there’sher.”

My pulse kicks. Just once. Hard enough that I feel it in my temples.

“Her?” I keep my tone flat.

“The registrar.” Rosanna’s smile is all teeth. Sharp and vicious and satisfied. “I saw the way you looked at her, Arkady.”