“Well, he was right, wasn’t he?”
That stuns me into silence. “Excuse me?”
Suddenly, it’s like the world is spinning on its head. “The f**k does that mean?”
“What am I, Matvey?” she asks. “I’m not your girlfriend; I’m not your fiancée. I’m certainly not your wife. So what am I to you?”
“You’re my woman,” I rasp.
“I’m your side piece.” Her voice starts to crack. “As far as the world is concerned, that’s what I am.”
“Who gives a s**t about the world?”
“I do!” she screams. “I do, Matvey! If someone like Tom Hill can be right about me, then I care!”
“You’re married to another woman,” she cuts in. “So how was he wrong?”
“That’s different,” I protest. “That’s necessary.”
“Yes, and for how long?”
That question catches me off-guard. “What does that mean?”
“What else can it mean?” she ha
