Chapter 0349

Ivan stays...late. Way too late.

I see my dad's expression when he comes home with the groceries, as he spies me out here with my sort-of-ex-boyfriend, and

then glances at my husband, who is sitting on the couch with his boyfriend. I can’t hear him, but I see him groan in confusion.

Ivan laughs a little. “Should I go in and say hi?”

“Nope,” I say, wrapping my arms around my knees, starting to get a little cold as night falls. “I think that nobody in that house is

very happy to see you here. Except maybe Janeen. But she just thinks you're hot.”

“Really,” lvan says, perking up and looking around for her.

“Don't,” I say, laughing and swatting his arm. “She'll just rope you into being one of her regulars at the club. She'll drain your

bank account and leave you sobbing.”

“Yeah,” Ivan says, turning back to me and raising his eyebrows provocatively. “But don’t you already know, Fay? Complicated,

hard-to-get girls are kind of my type.”

I roll my eyes at him, but I can’t help laughing anyway. “Why do you even like me, Ivan?” I ask, shaking my head and genuinely

wanting to know. “I mean, is it just the hard-to-get thing? Do you just like a challenge?”

“Are you a challenge?” he asks, turning his head and looking me up and down.

“Well, I am married,” I point out, laying out the facts like they’re obvious. “And I hate you, and you’ve already got a bruise on your

face from the guy who got me pregnant, so,” I shrug, “yeah, I think that qualifies as challenging.”

“Yeah,” Ivan says slowly, nodding a little and considering my points. “But your marriage is a sham to make your baby legitimate,

and your baby daddy is locked up forever, and, above all,” he takes a moment to really look into my face now, making me hear

him, “you don’t hate me, Fay. Not really. Not in your heart.”

“Don't I?” I ask, letting my eyes fall to his mouth.

“Maybe for now,” he murmurs. “But...you have a heart. You know what's right. And I did what I did because it was right.”

“Right for you,” I sigh, closing my eyes and letting my head hang back a little.

“And for you,” he replies, but I almost feel him lean back in his chair, giving me my space. Because if this is real for him — like

actually real? Then he knows that he’s playing the long game. And he’s not going to be getting much more from me tonight.

I open my eyes when I hear the door

slide open. My brow furrows when I

see Janeen coming out with

beers in nd, shutting tie com

behing er. “Hey,” she says, plopping

down in the chair next to lvan and

setting the beer in front of him. “I

thought I'd bring you your last drink

before Mafia Jr. in there rips you to

shreds.” Please read the original

content at .

“Who, Danny boy?” Ivan asks,

grinning and peering into the house

where Daniel is still lel g atus his

isis cress ORO Still casual,

continues to read contentedly beside

him. My dad sits on Daniel's other

side, watching a game on the TV.

Ivan laughs a little. “I can take him.”

Please read the original content at

.

“I don’t know,” Janeen murmurs, smirking and likewise looking in at Daniel. “He’s got a couple inches on you.”

“Yeah, but I’m scrappy,” Ivan says, over-confident and optimistic in his usual charming way.

“Don't underestimate Daniel,” I sigh,

leaning back. “He boxes. And I’m

A hifi to

pretty sure his deg {peo

Hit) latinyeyes drift to the green

spot on lvan’s jaw and he turns to

me, laughing, as Janeen sees the

direction of my gaze. Please read the

original content at .

“No way!” she says, laughing and hitting lvan on the arm. “You told me you fell at work!”