Rejected: A love story

Chapter 183: Jealousy

Nikolai stood by the window of his living room, staring out at the grey sky. It had been several days since he had heard from his wife and son. Usually, Viktoria would call every single day, and Mateo would babble into the phone about the toys he was playing with. But now, there was nothing but silence.

His mother and his cousins were sitting in the room with him. The house felt heavy with worry. No one was talking; they were all just waiting for the phone to ring.

"I can’t just sit here," Nikolai said, turning around. He looked at his mother. "Something feels wrong. Why isn’t she picking up her phone? Why hasn’t Nathan sent a message?"

"Maybe they are just busy, Nikolai," his mother said, though her voice was shaking. "They are in a big city. There is a lot to see."

"No," Nikolai said. "She wouldn’t go this long without calling. I’m going to call the Keith office."

He picked up the phone and dialed the number for Nathan Keith’s main office in America. After a few rings, a secretary picked up.

"Keith Enterprises, how can I help you?"

"This is Nikolai," he said, trying to sound calm. "I need to speak with Mr. Nathan Keith right now. It is about my family."

"I am sorry, sir," the secretary replied. "Mr. Keith isn’t on seat at the moment. He is out of the office for the day."

Nikolai gripped the phone tighter. "He isn’t on seat? Then where is he? My wife and son are with him. I haven’t heard from them in days."

"I don’t have his location, sir. He is handling private matters."

"Listen to me," Nikolai said, his voice getting louder. "Get him connected with me once he is available. It doesn’t matter what time it is. Tell him Nikolai called and it is urgent. I want to speak to him directly."

"I will put a note on his desk and alert his team, sir. I will tell him to connect with you the moment he returns to his seat."

Nikolai hung up the phone and looked at his family. "He’s not there. The secretary says he’s not even in the building."

"That’s it," Nikolai said, walking toward the closet to get his coat. "I am going to America. I’ll go to the airport right now."

"Wait!" his mother cried out, standing up quickly. She looked afraid. "Nikolai, hold on first. Please."

"Why, Mother? They aren’t answering!"

"If you just show up there, it might cause trouble," she said, clutching her hands together. "We don’t know what is happening. If Mr. Keith is just busy and you fly across the world, it will look like you don’t trust him. Let’s wait until the morning. If he still isn’t back on seat by then, then you can travel. Just give it one more night."

Nikolai looked at her scared face and sighed. He put his coat back down. "Fine. I will wait until tomorrow morning. But if I don’t get a call by then, I’m getting on a plane."

He sat back down, staring at the silent phone on the table. Every minute felt like an hour.

##########

Nathan was in his study when Alex came in. Alex looked serious and held his hat in his hand.

"Mr. Keith," Alex said, speaking in a low voice. "I have a message. Nikolai called the main office. He was very worked up because you were not on seat. He told the staff he needs to be connected to you right away. He and his mother are very worried about his wife and the boy."

Nathan frowned. He hadn’t thought about how much noise Nikolai would make. But before he could answer, he saw a shadow at the door. Viktoria was standing there and she had heard everything.

Her face went pale. She put her hand over her mouth. "Nikolai..." she whispered.

Suddenly, it was like she woke up from a dream. The guilt hit her hard. For the last few days, she had been enjoying the garden and the quiet house, but now she remembered the man waiting for her back in Russia.

"He must be so scared," she said, her voice shaking. "I have been so selfish. He thinks we are in danger."

She looked at Nathan, her eyes wide. "I need to call him. I have to tell him Mateo is okay."

She went to grab her own phone from her pocket, but Alex stepped forward and shook his head quickly.

"No, ma’am," Alex said firmly. "Remember what I told you when you arrived? You must keep your phone off. It is for your safety. If you turn that phone on or use it to call out, it can be tracked. We don’t know who is watching or if someone is trying to find your location to do you harm."

She turned to Alex and held out her hand. "Please, let me use your phone. It’s a local line. It’s safer. I just want to tell him we are fine so he stops calling the office and making a scene."

Alex looked at Nathan, waiting for a signal. Nathan didn’t like it, but he knew she was right. If Nikolai kept calling the office, it would draw too much attention.

"Go ahead, Alex," Nathan said.

Alex handed her the phone.

Viktoria stood by the desk, holding Alex’s phone to her ear. Nathan watched her closely, his arms crossed over his chest. He felt a sharp, bitter taste in his mouth just seeing her wait for that man to answer.

"Hello Nikolai, it’s Viktoria." She said immediately the line connected

Nikolai’s voice was so loud Nathan could hear the frantic tone even from a few feet away.

"Viktoria? Is that you? Where are you calling from?" Nikolai shouted.

"Yes. It’s me, Nikolai. I am using a friend’s phone," she said. Her voice was calm, but she looked down at the floor. "I am so sorry. We got busy with the travels and the boy. I didn’t realize how many days had passed."

"I have been calling the Keith office every hour!" Nikolai said. "They kept telling me Mr. Keith was not on seat. I was ready to get on the plane, Viktoria. My mother hasn’t eaten. We thought something terrible happened."

"We are fine," she reassured him. "Mateo is sleeping. He is very happy here. Mr. Keith has been very kind to us."

Hearing her say his name like that, like he was just some "kind" stranger made Nathan’s jaw tighten. He felt a hot wave of jealousy hit him. He wanted to grab the phone and tell Nikolai that this woman was his, that her name was Fiona, and that she was never going back to Russia. It burned him to hear her comfort another man.

Suddenly, Nikolai’s tone changed. He stopped speaking English.

"Виктория, послушай меня внимательно," Nikolai said, his voice dropping into a low, fast Russian. "Ты в безопасности? Этот человек, Кит... он тебя удерживает? Почему ты не пользуешься своим телефоном?" (Viktoria, listen to me carefully. Are you safe? This man, Keith... is he holding you? Why aren’t you using your phone?)

Viktoria blinked, her expression turning serious as she listened to the rapid Russian.

"Нет, Николай, все в порядке," she answered back in the same language. "Просто здесь проблемы со связью, и нам советовали быть осторожными." (No, Nikolai, everything is fine. There are just connection problems here, and we were advised to be careful.)

Nathan stood there, feeling his blood boil. He couldn’t understand a single word they were saying. To him, it sounded like a secret code, a life they shared that he was locked out of. He hated that Nikolai could reach her in a way he couldn’t. He hated that they had a language that belonged only to them.

"What is he saying?" Nathan whispered, looking at Alex.

Alex shook his head. "I don’t know, sir. It’s too fast."

Nathan took a step toward Viktoria. He felt a burning anger because he felt like a stranger in his own study. He watched her lips move as she spoke those Russian words, looking so much like the woman he loved but acting like someone he didn’t know at all.

Nikolai was still talking fast on the other end, his voice sounding protective and demanding. Viktoria nodded as if she was taking orders.

"I have to go, Nikolai," she said, switching back to English for a second before hanging up. "I will call you when I can. Kiss Mother for me."

She handed the phone back to Alex and looked at Nathan. She saw the anger on his face and looked confused. "Is something wrong, Nathan?"

"What did he say at the end?" Nathan asked, his voice harsh. "Why did he switch languages?"

"He was just worried," she said simply. "He wanted to make sure Mateo and I were not in danger. It’s just easier for him to express his feelings in his own language."

Nathan turned away, staring out the window. He felt like he was losing a war. He had her in his house, but Nikolai still had her heart and her tongue.