Chapter 79: Watch My Heart Burn
[FROLO]
They were not shutting up.
Sierra and Aleksandr.
Katya had noticed.
And it wasn’t good. Not for him. And certainly not for his parents, who were oblivious to the tension in the room.
"Money doesn’t decide the matters of the heart, Senator Aleksandr. Don’t you think?" Sierra asked so calmly, like she wasn’t already dooming Katya to the worst of fates after his parents would have long been gone.
’Might as well kill me, why don’t you?’ Katya thought to himself as he stared at the two on the screen.
In that moment, he could swear he heard the remote creak.
It was slight, but just enough.
One look at Sergei, who was tucking his tongue tight in his jaw, was enough to remind Katya that he was Moskowsky’s property. Not the son-in-law. Not the contract husband. Property.
"Maybe not. But if someone has Chairman Gamov to go home to and still chooses to look at someone else, and embarrass the chairman this publicly, then I fear money is certainly not the problem there," Senator Aleksandr said.
The remote broke.
This time, the sound was obvious.
Sergei Moskowsky.
"You alright, Mr. Moskowsky?" Mr. Romanov asked, unfazed by the man who had just broken the remote.
Katya could see the moment that his father figured out that this man probably wanted to control the narrative.
"Yeah, it’s nothing," Sergei said, his tone still so respectful and new it was a stark contrast to the man Katya had known these past few weeks.
Goodness, now even the devil had manners.
Just great.
Once again, the focus returned to the television, and Masha held her son’s hand, squeezing softly in reassurance. This was not an easy watch.
But they couldn’t help but want to know what more would come from this conversation. Or even how their family had been turned into a national breakfast discussion.
Surely it couldn’t be that bad, right?
Katya was wrong.
"You have always been vocal about your interest in the chairman, even before he became chairman. With his husband cheating, do you think you stand a chance?" Sierra asked.
Katya froze.
He was wrong.
Of course. Of all the days he had to be wrong, it just had to be one with a maniac for a father-in-law and parents who would not hesitate to pull Katya out of the marriage if they saw their son so much as flinch.
That right there was the confirmation that Yaroslav had cheated. That Yaroslav had been the scum that had ruined the young omega’s reputation. Katya didn’t even have to breathe a word, and his parents had their confirmation.
And Sergei?
He looked like he wanted to commit murder.
Like he wanted to kill everyone around him.
Instinctively, Katya leaned on his mother’s shoulder like that was the only safe place for him at the moment.
Masha didn’t say a word; instead, she side hugged her son and rubbed his arm gently, her reassurance clearly the only thing that was keeping Katya safe and free from panicking.
Or maybe it was because Katya knew his parents would protect him.
They always had. Even when the odds were a bit tricky.
And this wouldn’t be any different from a situation.
On the other side of the couch, Sergei stared at the woman’s arm, as if he wanted to cut it off completely because she was touching her SON.
It was ridiculous in every way.
He knew it.
He understood it a little too well.
Yet between the television, the politician, and the situation, the damn lounge, Sergei was conflicted intensely.
Katya didn’t pay attention to the man again. Because paying attention to Sergei meant knowing damn well that his life was never going to be the same when the day settled.
He would be doomed. Blamed. Killed, probably, and his body was dumped in some river out of the state. This was hell, and Katya was trapped in it.
"As much as I would be honored to even breathe the same air as him, the chairman already has enough on his plate at the moment. If he wants nothing to do with me, I will definitely respect that."
The couch beneath Sergei creaked in protest.
Slowly at first.
The Romanovs knew this time that it was all Sergei’s doing, his reaction to what was being said.
Yet Mr. Romanov, the man seated between his family and Sergei, didn’t even seem bothered this time. His focus was on the segment, like he too wanted to understand what the fuck was going on.
The worst part?
Mr. Romanov was smiling.
"This man would make a good son-in-law, Mr. Moskowsky. What do you think?" Mr. Romanov asked.
And Sergei stiffened.
Stopped breathing.
While Mr. Romanov just turned back to the television casually, as if he had not just threatened the very legitimacy of the unknown obsession in the room.
And Sergei was so close to exploding.
"The kids have to decide for themselves, Romanov," Masha scolded instead, her soft choice tearing through the tension again.
"If one decides to be a cheat, there is no marriage there," Mr. Romanov stated coldly.
Katya wanted to pull a disappearing act.
His parents were starting to be dangerous to his own life and theirs, too, even if they didn’t know it.
"Let the kids work it out. Focus," Masha said as Mr. Romanov didn’t say a word after that.
Instead, they continued watching the segment in comfortable silence, even if Sergei looked like he was constipated and needed to kill someone or jump off a roof with a knife to his mouth.
"Oh, you sound..." Sierra said, but the senator continued.
"Whether the allegations are true or not, Chairman Gamov deserves better treatment than what we have seen so far. And if you’re asking if I would love the chance to have coffee with him, then the answer is yes."
Katya...
Oh, Katya dared to look at Sergei.
The man was seething.
Hissing in broad daylight.
Strangely, Katya couldn’t help but wonder if this man was okay... in the head.
"Is that even an okay public position for a senator?" Sierra asked as the senator stayed composed, like he wasn’t detonating time bombs and failing at safe detonations and was definitely taking the entire city down with him.
"This is not about politics, Sierra. This is about Chairman Gamov. I have admired him for years; it is hardly a secret at this point."
"You sound like you have a confession for Chairman Gamov senator Aleksandr."
"Something like that."
"Oh, a senator who believes in romance... Well, the floor is yours, Senator Aleksandr."
"Which camera is in focus right now?"
"Camera 3... the one facing you directly."
"Alright, thank you for that," the senator said, before he looked into the camera.
"Chairman Gamov, if you are watching this, I would love the chance to earn a coffee date with you," the senator said.
"Before another scandal pops up, my recent investment in the Moskowsky group has nothing to do with that."
"Nothing?"
"Officially? It’s all business."
"Officially?" Sierra asked.
"Even politicians can be honest, don’t you think?"
Everyone laughed.
Sergei didn’t.
He didn’t find it funny.
"I think that is enough confession before I freak the entire city out. But Chairman Gamov, if you ever think me worthy of a coffee date, I would consider myself a very lucky man."
Sergei shut the television off.
The silence that followed was unnerving.
"I’m taking my child home, Romanov," Masha said protectively.
"Yeah. He can go to work from our home," Mr. Romanov said, not leaving room for argument.
And Sergei...
