Terms & Truths (New York Billionaires Book 1)

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Chapter 16: Home (Rowan's POV)

With a soft groan, I held down the delete button on my laptop and then closed it with a slam, tossing it on the couch. Niko looked up from where he sat, lifting his chin off his paws. 

I couldn't stop thinking about seeing him again today. Nineteen years. I hadn't seen him in nineteen years. The last time I saw him, I was just seven years old. That day, after grandpa took Nate and me out of the house, we never went back and saw him again. Within a week, we were all packed up and ready to move to New York, leaving Russia and our past with it just to get away from him. 

I was now a twenty-six-year-old grown man, the sight of him shouldn't have made my stomach churn the way it did. I was older now, an adult, I had the power in my hands, not him. 

Then how come just looking at him made me want to cower? 

Luckily, he didn't see Nate or Leo, even though he asked about Nate, Evie and I said he was out for a meeting. I doubt he even had any idea that Leo existed and it was better that way. There was no reason for him to see Leo and Nate was very clear about that. 

My father didn't tell me much, despite not listening to me when I told him to get out of my office. All I knew was that Mr. Michaels called him to discuss the will. He said he was on business in Chicago and thought he'd just stop by and pay us a visit. 

Now? After nineteen years? I don't buy it. 

After he finally left, Evie, thankfully, didn't ask any questions about why I reacted the way I did around him. She just got back to work when I asked her. 

I had no idea how long he was here for, what he would do, or how much he knew. I just knew that we had to hurry because we were losing time. This was exactly what Nate and I were afraid of, our father crashing into our lives and trying to ruin everything for us, our futures, all over again. I couldn't afford to lose any of what I'd worked so hard towards over the years and neither could Nate. 

A lot was depending on this marriage between Evie and me and the clock was ticking. I knew from what she told me that Priya asked for two weeks but we didn't have two weeks. He could figure out the power he had and ruin our lives tomorrow if he wanted to. 

I needed Evie to be my wife as soon as possible and if that meant not having a grand wedding ceremony, or even just getting married in the courthouse, then so fucking be it. She had to be my wife, she had to live with me, we had to tell people and show people and make them believe it. Because if they didn't, I was fucked. 

I told her to start packing up her apartment but I knew for a fact that she was taking this situation too lightly, only because she doesn't know the severity of it but that is none of her business and I don't intend to tell her anything. 

Standing up, I walked towards the door, picking up my apartment and car keys. "I'll be back!" I called out to Niko and then left, not even bothering to change. I glanced down at the full-sleeves fitted v-neck that I wore and the matching black joggers but ignored them as I got out of the elevator.