BOUND TO HIM BY FORCE

2. SECRETS AND HEARTBREAK

“Where can I help?” Ivan asked, his fresh— just shaved smell having me smile. They were all making me so excited to enter the married world. Mom and dad just had everyone jealous with how in love they were, even I was jealous, I wanted a love like that.

Their love story was the craziest I had ever heard. He had been a mafia king, right. She had been taken to him as a gift by another drug lord. My mother had switched everything up, asking my dad to marry her and take care of her. In return, he would have a wife who wouldn’t care what he did for a living.

“Please take the plates to the dinner table,” I said to Ivan while carrying the salad bowl to the dinner table where dad stood, on the phone.

“Masha, go get my bag in our room,” Dad said with me turning and already running there. I took the steps two at a time, getting to the door nearly heaving. The handle was pushed down, pushing the door, and I rushed in.

I stopped in my tracks, doing an aaahhh sound but also doing my disgusting face. I shook my head, a large bouquet of red roses on the bed with petals spread all around it, a large box of chocolates that mom and I would devour all weekend long, and a paper bag. I shook my head, see what I was talking about, they were always doing these romantic gestures for each other and it was just too much for my poor lonely heart. I was definitely taking notes for my own marriage but for that night it meant I would be sleeping with my Airpods on because it was going down all night long in the room. I took the bag and turned, running down the steps. I jumped past some until I was before dad, holding out his bag for him.

He took it in hand.

“Thank you.” He said with me smiling and doing a respectful bow of the head.

“Mommy is home!” My mom shot from the front door.

Aahh man, my world.

I rushed out of the living room to throw myself at her, arms around her waist. My head picked up, my chin on her chest with me giggling.

“What is it?” She whispered with me wiggling my eyebrows.

“A surprise,” I said back.

“Give me your bag please,” I asked, already taking the bag, not wanting her to go to the room and spoil all the goodies that were waiting for her. She took off her shoes and pulled her ribbon from her hair.

“Here, take my slippers. How was work?” I asked, combing her hair with my fingers then taking her shoes in hand.

“Urgh, I need Vlad.” She said with me laughing out loud. Mother was so dramatic most of the time.

“Well, he is in the dining room, my lady,” I said in my fake British accent as she laughed.

She walked into the living room as I stood by the entry, watching. My dad turned; mom just literally collapsed on him. Dad chuckled and wrapped his one arm around her.

“Greg, I will call you.” It was all dad said before dropping the call. His wife and source of life was there. When he saw her, he immediately dropped everything he was doing and just gave her his hundred percent attention.

It was the exact thing Kane did. Every time I walked in wherever he was, he just left what he was doing and came to me, my lord I loved it so much.

“Stop looking like a lovesick puppy.” Of course, it was Ivan, having me roll my eyes and turn to him.

“Will you tell them today?” I asked him.

“Masha no, look at them, they had a long day and don’t need my drama,” Ivan said back with me turning to him.

“You have been putting this off for a whole year and I can see that it is killing you. I am only saying this because I can see that it’s affecting you. You can’t keep pushing it forward. I want to see you happy.” I said to him as he sighed, a hand through his dark hair which he dyed when he was ten and never stopped since then. Through all his teenage years, he had done everything he could to wipe his identity, to wipe the features that made him different, and I hated that. I felt such sadness and pain for him because I could see that he was struggling. I took his hand in mine.

“I will be there, they will understand,” I said to him with his eyes coming back to me. He sighed again, his arms coming around my form to hug me as his chin fell on my hair.

“You are my rock, you know that?”

“I know brother, now, let me go put this away and we can all eat dinner together so dad can grill you about Becca,” I said with Ivan pinching me, having me laugh and runoff.

I dropped mom’s shoes in their closet, picked up her slippers then dropped her laptop bag in their shared study. I rushed down, jumped down the stairs as I had since I was a wee baby.

“Done?” I asked, sticking my head in the kitchen.

“Yep,” Ivan said back, carrying the last bowl out.

I smiled at him, walking behind him to the living room.

I walked to mom, who was seated next to dad, them talking about business for sure but you would think they were flirting. The way they stared at each other was just amazing, I had never seen a twenty-three-year married couple that in love, maybe the world was not ending after all.

I knelt, pulling off my slippers from mom’s feet and slipping her own.

“Thank you, baby.” She said back, smiling as I smiled back, slipping my shoes and giving her a back hug which she turned her head to kiss my face.

“She is growing too fast, isn’t she?” Mom asked with me shying away. I always did when my parents were complimenting me or talking about me.

“She is, they all are,” Dad said with mom nodding her head.

“And Ivan closed the deal over the week. He takes his skills from me.” Mom said with me shaking my head because I knew it was on.

“Thyra, the lack of cooking skills, I agree, he took it from you, but business, my lovely wife, don’t even start please, he took that from his dad,” Dad said with mom turning to stare at him. They stared at each other for a couple of seconds as Ivan and I stared at each other, giggling and shaking our heads.

We went about plating the food on their plates, then our plates.

My head picked up only for me to roll my eyes.

“Oohh lord, come on.” I groaned. They had been staring at each other for so long it turned sort of s*xual. Mom stood from her chair to his where she kissed his lips.

“I love you.” Mom said.

“I love you too wife,” Dad said with my insides melting. I just wanted to die but it was so cute.

Mom decided to pull her chair right next to dad’s. We were lucky she did not sit on him. One time, they had just stood up together and rushed out with Ivan and I left sitting with our jaws on the floor, food staring back at us.

Dad cleared his throat with all heads snapping to him.

“Wife, our son has a girlfriend and her name is Becca,” Dad said as I laughed, he just threw it on the table like that. Mom opened her mouth to close it, standing up to sit down but she could not hold it. She stood up again and walked around the table.

“Come here, my boy.”

Ivan had no chance. He was pulled up and squashed in warm arms as I took up my phone, snapping a picture. The picture was sent to Kane.

Masha: Mom just found out Ivan has a girlfriend.

It was not even a minute before a text came shooting back.

Kane: Poor guy.

I laughed, shaking my head.

Masha: Aren’t you supposed to be at a party?

I texted, shaking my head.

Kane: You are the only one who is not at this party.

He texted back with me smiling and blushing.

Masha: Have fun.

Kane: You too.

I locked my screen and placed my phone back in my pocket, smiling like a five-year-old.

“When am I meeting her?” Mom asked with me laughing and shaking my head.

Ivan stared at me for help with me laughing harder.

“She is out of the country mom, she is visiting her grams, maybe when she comes back,” I said back, mom looking at me and squinting her eyes at me.

“When Masha replies it’s never good. But I am so happy for you my boy, come here again.”

Ivan was pulled back in a hug just like that.

Mother finally sat down on her chair with us eating our food which was so good there was no way we were not having a great conversation at the table. It just went hand in hand.

Mother was telling us how she thought her female secretary has a crush on her. We laughed as she told of the awkward moments when the secretary walked into her bathroom to just stare at her pee. We laughed until we cried because we knew mom twisted the story a thousand times. I shook my head, the food done, with just the wine sipped now and again. We were all of legal age so, most of the time dinner was served with a glass of wine.

The conversation fell away, silence falling over with Dad staring at mom in a way that just made me internally scream yet blush at the same time. I knew it was just a matter of time before they stood up and bid us goodnight. Mom turned to dad and well, it was just a matter of seconds.

My glass was placed down, me turning to Ivan and staring at him. He stared back at me. He knew it was the perfect time to speak and so did I. He was so nervous, his chest was pushing up and down and I thought his heart would escape. My hand quickly gripped his under the table, it shaking so bad, his face turned red by the second. His skin was boiling, thinking he would faint.

My free hand pushed his glass of wine to him. He picked it up and drank to set it down.

“Mom, dad...” His voice was shaking, squeezing his hand now and again.

I wanted to say some soothing words but it was not the time, I could only hold his hand as he walked through this.

Heads turned, dad the first to pull away from his queen. His eyes fell on Ivan, seeing his seriousness in the matter with father sitting up straight, paying his hundred percent attention to his firstborn and only son.

Mother also turned around to stare at Ivan, her playful smile falling as she stared worried at her son and eldest child.

“What is it, Ivan?” Mom asked, worried with Ivan heavily breathing. My hand slipped from his to his back, rubbing it in circles and not even wanting to imagine what he might be going through, what he might be feeling. I wanted to cry myself but held it in.

“I….” He could not speak, the words stuck in his throat, watching it constrict and release, veins all over his skinny tall neck.

He could not take it all back now, he had already called for them so he had to spill it out and I was sure he regretted even opening his mouth.

“Dad. I love you so much. I look up to you. You are my world and I am forever grateful and praying I become at least half the man you are. Mom, I love you so much…” Ivan trailed away, tears clouding his eyes as mine just fell from seeing him like this. He had such a soft heart and his tears were so near they just swamped his eyes whenever he was emotional.

I wanted to hug him but I could not, feeling the eyes on me but I was staring at Ivan, giving him emotional support. I knew mom and dad were just looking from one to the other, waiting for Ivan to spill it out.

Mom suddenly stood up with dad following after her.

Ivan’s chair was pulled back, with mom and dad crunched down before Ivan. They had their killer faces that scared the s**t out of me. Those two were scary as hell when serious.

“Tell us what happened?” Mother asked with her dangerously low voice. I knew she was ready to get her guns and rush out to kill whoever had her son so emotional, which he never was.

Dad gripped Ivan’s hand and stared up at him, patiently waiting for Ivan to speak.

“I don’t mean disrespect. Mother, I am sorry for I know I will hurt you but I…...” He trailed away, knowing the next words he would spill would have everything sour in a second.