Page 39 of Bought By the Ruthless Pakhan

The silhouette struck me as familiar.

The housekeeper approached her and bent down. "Miss, the teacher is here."

The girl turned.

When those gray-brown eyes landed on my face, the corners of her mouth curved up, revealing two small dimples.

"Anna. Long time no see."

My heart slammed into my ribcage. I froze in place like I'd been nailed to the floor.

"Nadia..."

She'd grown taller. Her features had opened up. Her chin had sharpened a little. Small pearl studs adorned her earlobes. Her smile was just as sweet.

She jumped off the sofa and ran toward me, throwing her arms around my waist. Her face buried in my chest, just like all those mornings when she'd leapt at me from behind.

"Anna, I missed you so much."

The hug hit me like a blow.

It took several seconds before I slowly lifted my hand and rested it on her thin back. Her shoulders trembled beneath my palm. She was crying.

My throat closed up. I could barely get the words out. "Nadia, why... why are you here?"

God. Running into Nadia after five years. In New York.

Unbelievable.

"Daddy and I looked for you forever," she said, holding me tighter. "But we couldn't find you. If I hadn't seen your photo on the tutor listing, we would've missed you again..."

Daddy?

The word shot through me like an electric shock.

Ivan.

He was looking for me?

But he—shouldn't he have remarried Victoria?

All I could hear was what Victoria had said that day—that Ivan mocked me in bed. Said I was trashy. Said I was delusional.

Why would he look for me?

He should hate me.

Footsteps sounded on the stairs behind me.

Every drop of blood in my body seemed to freeze. Even my arms around Nadia went numb.

The footsteps descended. Closer. Steady. Familiar. The rhythm I'd heard in my dreams every night for years. Every step struck against the taut string of my heart, about to snap.

I let go of Nadia and slowly turned around.

He was there.

Ivan stood at the foot of the stairs, one hand on the dark wood banister. He wore a charcoal gray shirt, sleeves casually rolled to his forearms.