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I see Masha go quiet and thoughtful. She’s stubborn, but far from stupid, and she loves the little one. Logic and a bit of manipulation should steer her in the right direction.

“Fine,” the blonde grits out through her teeth, glaring at me from under her brows. “We’ll go to school.”

When we finished dinner, Anya made tea and put out a bowl of candies and cookies. It was impossible not to notice how Luka’s eyes lit up. But the boy sat quietly, head down, only sneaking glances at the plate, afraid to even say a word, let alone ask.

Fuck.

This is unbearable.

“Luka, if you want candy, you can take it without asking,” Ann gently steps in, clearly noticing my reaction. “Just don’t eat too many at once. Let’s start with two today, okay?”

The boy looked at her trustingly, smiled wide, and took the sweets, pressing them to his chest so carefully. Anya glanced at me and pressed her lips together in frustration. I understood her perfectly.

In the living room, I unfolded the huge couch, handed out 3D glasses, and we sat in front of the giant plasma watching The Boss Baby.

The kids were absolutely thrilled!

Just think about it, I never even imagined that watching a simple cartoon could cause so many emotions in kids. Of course, my nephews and their peers can’t be surprised by anything anymore, they have everything and more. But for kids like Masha and Luka, this was a whole event! They laughed sincerely and watched everything with wide eyes. Even Masha dropped her prickly attitude and was… just a child, maybe for the first time, carefree and happy.

After the cartoon, we watched Garfield, and the kids fell asleep. Looks like full stomachs and a sense of safety relaxed the little troublemakers, and they drifted off into Morpheus’s realm right next to us.

Masha dozed curled up against my side, and Luka fell asleep with his head on Anya’s knees while she gently ran her fingers through his hair.

My panther stared off into space, and when she looked at me, I saw an unreal amount of sorrow and pain.

She stared at me without blinking, and I saw tears gathering at the edges of her eyes.

I wanted to comfort her the only way I knew and leaned in to kiss her salty lips. But the contact lasted less than a second. She turned her face away, looking at me with an expression full of pain and anger.

“Don’t!” the brunette hissed quietly. “This is all because of you. You’re making me feel THIS!” she gestures with her eyes at the sleeping kids, and a tear slips from her brown eyes.

“Anya…” I whisper softly, and she barely audibly sobs.

“When I win, I don’t want to see you ever again,” my love informs me painfully, clearly not considering that she has no chance of winning.

We quietly got up from the couch, and I carried the kids to the bedroom. Ann carefully tucked them in, watching them for a few seconds longer.

In our room, we stayed silent.

She climbed into bed, exhausted, turning toward the window. I undressed and lay behind her. But I couldn’t stand my girl pulling away, so I wrapped my arms tightly around her from behind. Anya sniffled quietly.

“Nazar, we’re monsters… Why did we do this?” she asks in a trembling voice. “I agreed on impulse, and now I realize how stupid it was…”

“Then be mine and we’ll stop this,” I insist, not even thinking of backing down.

“It’s too late now. We promised them a carefree life for a few months. You can’t do that. This is all so wrong…”