Page 63 of Mafia Prince's Secret Baby

“Are you okay?” Aleks asks, his sharp eyes scanning my face. “Did I say something wrong?”

“This entire conversation is wrong,” I hiss through clenched teeth.

“Well, suck it up,” Aleks snaps, his calm veneer cracking. The softness from earlier is gone, replaced with a sharper, harder demeanor. “You might not see it, but Igor’s breaking his back to keep you and Sofiya safe. He called in countless favors so Dr. Tolliver would personally treat Sofiya. He’s doing everything he can to give you the best ofeverything.”

I shrug, my gaze shifting toward the kids, who are now laughing as Lev chases Damien across the grass.

Aleks takes my silence as an invitation to keep going. “Let me spell it out for you because it looks like you need to hear it. You’re fighting him at every step, challenging him on everything, arguing his every decision. Face it, Katya—you’re not a single parent anymore.”

The words hit like a slap, and before I can stop myself, I snap, “Fuck you, Aleks.”

The rage surges through me, hot and uncontainable. No one—not Aleks, not anyone—has the right to lecture me about how I act with Igor. Or how I parent.

“No,fuck you,” Aleks snarls back, standing up so fast the bench creaks under the shift in weight. He towers over me,his imposing frame casting a long shadow. He glares down at me like a man ready to unleash hell, his voice dropping to a menacing growl. “Igor’s not so bad when you actually get to know him. Did you eventryto give him a chance?”

I shoot to my feet, my chest heaving. “You want to talk aboutgetting to know people,Aleksander?” I whisper shout, my voice shaking with fury. “Let me remind you of something: a wolf might change its coat, but it doesn’t change its disposition.”

His lips twist into a smirk, but his ice-blue eyes are cold and unrelenting. “So that’s it, huh? You’re the only one who gets to change? You’re the only one entitled to a second chance?”

“It’s not the same,” I bite out through clenched teeth, forcing myself to keep my voice low enough that the kids don’t hear. “He’s a criminal. A murderer. And I don’t even want to think about what else. It goes against every fiber of my being as a judge to evenbreathethe same air as him.”

“And yet,” Aleks says softly, his smirk fading, “here you are.”

His words strike a nerve, and I feel the air leave my lungs in a rush. I look away, my hands balling into fists at my sides.

“The sooner you accept it, the easier your life will be,” Aleks continues, his tone gentler now, but no less cutting. “You can’t resist him, Katya. You’re attracted to him. Hell, you might even have feelings for him. If it helps, I’m pretty sure he does too.”

“Fuck off, Aleks,” I mutter, turning away and refusing to give him the satisfaction of a response.

“Fine,” Aleks says, throwing up his hands in mock surrender. “Keep lying to yourself if you must.”

He pulls out his phone and stalks away, putting distance between us. I watch him for a moment, pacing as he speaks into the phone, his expression neutral.

I take a deep breath, forcing the heat in my chest to subside, and turn my attention back to the playground. The sound of laughter draws my eyes to Sofiya, who’s giggling uncontrollablyas Lev pushes her on a swing. Damien stands on the swing next to them, trying to gain momentum.

Oh, to be so young and carefree.It’s a privilege I haven’t felt in years.

But Aleks’s words replay in my mind, looping endlessly like a bad joke that refuses to fade. Who the hell does he think he is? He doesn’t know me. He has no idea what I’ve been through, how hard I’ve fought to leave this life behind. Bratva blood runs in my family’s veins, but I swore I wouldn’t let it define me.

Vasiliy is the only one who has the right to tell me what he thinks. He was the one who stood by me when I chose to follow the law, who didn’t laugh or scoff when I told him I wanted to become a judge. He was the one who comforted me when I found out I was pregnant with Sofiya, who promised me I could raise her without the shadow of our family looming over us.

I glance back at Sofiya, her beanie askew as she flies through the air, pure joy lighting up her face. My chest tightens, the weight of my choices pressing down harder than ever.

“What would Vasiliy do?” I whisper to myself, the question tumbling from my lips before I can stop it.

22

IGOR

“Have you seen Katya and the kids?” I demand, cutting straight through my mother’s conversation with the gardener. My voice is sharp, bordering on frantic.

She rises slowly from the garden bench, her hands brushing at her pants as she turns to face me. “Not since Aleks took them to the park,” she replies, calm as ever.

“Park?” The word comes out like a curse, my eyes widening. “What the hell is he thinking? Doesn’t he know it’s dangerous?”

“Calm down, Igor,” she soothes, crossing the short distance between us. Her voice is measured, the same tone she’s used on me since I was a boy, but it does nothing to stop the storm brewing inside me.

“He took enough men to fight an army,” she adds, resting her hands lightly on my arms.

---