himself, Gabriel walked to the door in a confident slow stride that reminded Dmitry of Ivan. Dmitry gave no more thought to it once it crossed his mind briefly. Everything about Gabriel reminded him of Ivan, yet Gabriel was no Ivan – that he knew.
“ Vasily, you too,” Dmitry said, looking across the room in the shadows to the man who knew so much about their private lives. “I want to talk to him alone .”
Vasily was quick about it. He walked out behind Gabriel and left Dmitry and Anatoly alone in the room together. When the door was closed, Dmitry turned and looked at his son with a more concerned glare. “Okay, everyone is gone. So tell me what the hell is going on with you.”
“ What do you mean?” Anatoly tried to ask innocently but he failed miserably.
“ You’re my son. I know when something isn’t right. That’s my job…to know my men but it’s my birthright to know my son. Okay, so before we move forward with this, I need to make sure that you’re all here. I need you with me, Anatoly.” Dmitry swallowed hard, showing the tightness around his mouth. His Adam’s apple shifted in his thick neck. All tales that his patience grew short.
Anatoly nodded and scratched his head. Shifting in his seat, he put down his glass and leaned over towards his father. “Renee is pregnant.” His eye twitched as he said the words for the first time aloud. “Pregnant,” he repeated. “With my kid. Talk about bad fucking timing.”
Dmitry raised his brow. He wasn’t expecting that. With a heave of an exasperated sigh, he sat back and smirked. “Well, that is news, isn’t it?” He ran his finger over the granite top watching the smear disappear quickly. “How far along is she?”
“ Two months. She’s been waiting to tell me, and last night when I went home to tell her to get packed, she was on the bed naked with an ultrasound picture taped to her fucking navel.”
“ Creative.” The news reminded him even more of his missing daughter and the pain of that reminder stabbed him in his heart. “You’re so young...to be a father that is,” Dmitry said, scratching his head. He’d never known the boy to have even the most basic of parental instincts.
“ Older than you when I was born.”
Dmitry nodded. “So now I understand why you relinquished your position so easily. You have other business that has to be properly attended to.”
“ Like I said, it wasn’t easy, but it was necessary.” Anatoly shook his head again. Frowning, he tried to put his emotions into words. “I never wanted to be a father. I’m sort of lacking in that area. Renee has always been the dependable one…not me.”
“ You were using protection then?” Dmitry asked.
“ No.”
“ This entire time, you’ve just been…coming inside of her over and over again and you expected what? A butterfly…a puppy maybe?” He waited for a mature answer from his son, knowing the boy could do better than that.
“ Maybe subconsciously I enjoyed the thought. I just didn’t think it would be so soon.”
“ Sounds deliberate to me,” Dmitry said, touching his son’s hand. “It’s quite amazing really that it took so long. Maybe you have weak sperm,” Dmitry said with just a hint of a clever smile.
Anatoly seethed. “There is nothing weak about me, and you know it.”
“ Then there will be nothing weak about your child. All the worry you have about rearing is natural…expected.”
“ I’m worried about more than just the child. This changes things dramatically for me…for you…for everyone involved. And now with what has happened to Anya, it is sobering. You know what I was doing last night half way around the world, but you didn’t know what was happening a few miles up the road from you. Why? Because you are not God. And no man can know everything or control everything…no matter how much money he has… no matter his title. So, the more people that he loves the more vulnerable he is.”
“ You’re angry
“ Vasily, you too,” Dmitry said, looking across the room in the shadows to the man who knew so much about their private lives. “I want to talk to him alone .”
Vasily was quick about it. He walked out behind Gabriel and left Dmitry and Anatoly alone in the room together. When the door was closed, Dmitry turned and looked at his son with a more concerned glare. “Okay, everyone is gone. So tell me what the hell is going on with you.”
“ What do you mean?” Anatoly tried to ask innocently but he failed miserably.
“ You’re my son. I know when something isn’t right. That’s my job…to know my men but it’s my birthright to know my son. Okay, so before we move forward with this, I need to make sure that you’re all here. I need you with me, Anatoly.” Dmitry swallowed hard, showing the tightness around his mouth. His Adam’s apple shifted in his thick neck. All tales that his patience grew short.
Anatoly nodded and scratched his head. Shifting in his seat, he put down his glass and leaned over towards his father. “Renee is pregnant.” His eye twitched as he said the words for the first time aloud. “Pregnant,” he repeated. “With my kid. Talk about bad fucking timing.”
Dmitry raised his brow. He wasn’t expecting that. With a heave of an exasperated sigh, he sat back and smirked. “Well, that is news, isn’t it?” He ran his finger over the granite top watching the smear disappear quickly. “How far along is she?”
“ Two months. She’s been waiting to tell me, and last night when I went home to tell her to get packed, she was on the bed naked with an ultrasound picture taped to her fucking navel.”
“ Creative.” The news reminded him even more of his missing daughter and the pain of that reminder stabbed him in his heart. “You’re so young...to be a father that is,” Dmitry said, scratching his head. He’d never known the boy to have even the most basic of parental instincts.
“ Older than you when I was born.”
Dmitry nodded. “So now I understand why you relinquished your position so easily. You have other business that has to be properly attended to.”
“ Like I said, it wasn’t easy, but it was necessary.” Anatoly shook his head again. Frowning, he tried to put his emotions into words. “I never wanted to be a father. I’m sort of lacking in that area. Renee has always been the dependable one…not me.”
“ You were using protection then?” Dmitry asked.
“ No.”
“ This entire time, you’ve just been…coming inside of her over and over again and you expected what? A butterfly…a puppy maybe?” He waited for a mature answer from his son, knowing the boy could do better than that.
“ Maybe subconsciously I enjoyed the thought. I just didn’t think it would be so soon.”
“ Sounds deliberate to me,” Dmitry said, touching his son’s hand. “It’s quite amazing really that it took so long. Maybe you have weak sperm,” Dmitry said with just a hint of a clever smile.
Anatoly seethed. “There is nothing weak about me, and you know it.”
“ Then there will be nothing weak about your child. All the worry you have about rearing is natural…expected.”
“ I’m worried about more than just the child. This changes things dramatically for me…for you…for everyone involved. And now with what has happened to Anya, it is sobering. You know what I was doing last night half way around the world, but you didn’t know what was happening a few miles up the road from you. Why? Because you are not God. And no man can know everything or control everything…no matter how much money he has… no matter his title. So, the more people that he loves the more vulnerable he is.”
“ You’re angry
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