Page 35 of The Life of Anna, Tenth Anniversary Edition, Act 2

Rehearsals for Swan Lake flew by, and before Anna realized it, opening night had arrived. In the early afternoon before the first performance, Peter and Anna went home to relax before they had to return to the theater to get ready. They were naked in bed, Peter poised to thrust into Anna, when someone knocked loudly at the apartment door.

Peter shook his head and Anna moaned as he pushed into her body. “Whoever it is can come back later.” He groaned and kissed her as he slowly thrust in and out. Anna wrapped her legs around his waist and met his rhythm with her hips.

A few minutes later, the knocking repeated. Anna looked up at Peter, who shook his head again. “You feel too good to leave...” He quickened his movements.

A few minutes after that, as they moaned and thrust hard against each other, Peter’s phone rang. It was Dariya’s ring. Peter cursed. “I’ll call her back.” He kissed Anna as he thrust even harder. Within minutes, they both cried out loudly and Peter rested his head on her shoulder, breathing heavily. “This is a really strange time for her to call.” He rolled off Anna and picked up his phone from the nightstand and looked at it.

Another knock at the door. Peter cursed in Russian and stood. “Whoever it is, I’m going to fucking kill them,” he muttered. He pulled on his sweatpants and went to answer the door. Anna heard Peter exclaim, “Dariya!” and then him speaking rapidly in Russian.

Oh, no! Anna jumped off the bed and searched for her discarded clothes. She found her sweatpants, but her shirt and bra were out in the other room. She pulled another shirt out of the dresser and yanked it over her head.

Dariya sounded very upset, at least by her tone. Then again, Russian kind of always sounded angry.

Anna stood in the middle of the room, unsure of what to do. She hesitated to go out into the living room. But she was curious about what Peter’s wife looked like.

She didn’t have to wonder for long. Peter walked into the bedroom with an apologetic look on his face. “I’m sure you heard?”

Anna had sat down on the bed and nodded. “Why is she here?”

He frowned. “She wanted to see me dance. And surprise me.”

“She doesn’t sound very happy.”

“Well, I did just answer the door covered in sweat from making love to you.”

“Doesn’t she know we live together?”

“I’d told her that, but I don’t think she put two and two together. She?—?”

A beautiful woman with long blonde hair and sapphire blue eyes stepped into the bedroom doorway. She stood tall, her curvaceous figure accentuated by the tight jeans hugging her long legs, while a low-cut red peasant blouse showcased her impressive cleavage. Anna couldn’t help but stare. Peter had fallen in love with her when he had Dariya waiting for him at home? Why?

Peter ran his hand through his hair, looking back and forth between the two women.

Anna bit her lip. “Peter, do you want me to leave?” She didn’t want to be in the way.

He sighed. “Dariya, this is Anna Kunzberg. Anna, this is Dariya.”

Anna stood and gave her a timid smile.

Dariya looked her up and down and then looked back at Peter. “Is rather fat for ballerina, da ?” Her voice was low and thick with an accent.

Peter gasped. “Dariya! That was rude.”

Anna put her arms around her stomach. Her face had filled out and she imagined she did look rather fat for a ballerina.

Dariya shrugged. “Is true.”

“Give her a break. She’s pregnant.”

Dariya’s eyes got wide. “You got her pregnant?”

Peter narrowed his eyes. “What if I did? It was before you gave me your ultimatum.”

She snapped in Russian and then launched into a flurry of fast-paced speech, punctuating her words by repeatedly pointing at Anna.

Anna stood silently staring at the floor as they argued. Oh, this was not what she wanted for Peter. Who could she stay with while Dariya was here? Aaron? Travis? Devin? She supposed she could stay at the house... Yes, that would be the best option. She could use Alex’s car to get around.

Peter raised his voice at Dariya and pointed to the door. She narrowed her eyes and then stomped out of the room.

“Peter, I’m so sorry,” Anna said softly. “I don’t want to cause trouble. I was thinking maybe I could go stay at the house for a few days... or however long she’s in town.”

He looked at the door and then at Anna, and stepped close. “I don’t want to lose you.” He gently cradled her cheek.

“It’s not real,” she whispered, her heart aching. “Take me to the house and fix things with her. I can use Alex’s car to get around.”

“You shouldn’t be in that big house all by yourself.”

“I’ll be okay. Aaron lives close by.”

Peter sighed and looked thoughtful. “I won’t tell anyone she’s my wife. She said she wants to stay for a while. She can be... an old friend and we had a fight over her or something like that. I’ll be the bad guy.” He gave her a sad look. “I never wanted to hurt you, Anna.”

She forced a smile. “I know.”

An hour later, Peter dropped Anna and a suitcase at the house in Presidio. He hesitated to leave her, but she insisted she’d be alright. Now that he was gone, though, she wasn’t sure. The house was so big and empty. She wondered if Frau Gersten was still around. Aaron might know. He seemed to know everything about her past life.

When she called, Aaron told her that Frau Gersten had moved back to Germany, but there was a woman who came and cleaned the house every few weeks. “Are you thinking about moving back in?”

Anna looked around at the great room. “I’m here right now. Peter and I... had a fight.”

“Oh no, Anna. I’m so sorry.”

She tried to smile. “It’s okay. I forgot how big this place was.”

“Do you want some company?”

It was tempting, but she couldn’t risk him getting hurt. “I’m okay.”

“I’ll... make some calls about a housekeeper for you and let you know. Do you need a ride tonight?”

“Alex’s car is here. Do you know if it runs?”

“Everything in the house has been kept in order, just in case you needed it. The car should run perfectly.”

“Thanks, Aaron.”

“Come see me when you get to the theater tonight, okay?”

“Okay.”

Anna went upstairs and unpacked. Alex’s clothes had been put away in the closet. Strangely, it didn’t hurt as much to be here. She missed Alex terribly, but she didn’t feel the stabbing pain in her heart. It was more like a dull ache. Almost comforting. She pulled one of his sweaters down and pulled it over her head, then went to watch TV until she had to leave for the theater.