Chapter 11
IVY
Istood at the bar, gripping the edge of the counter hard enough that my knuckles went white.
Eric Hale was sitting in the VIP section with Leo Donati.
My mind spun, trying to make sense of what I'd just seen. Eric had been in that booth with Leo, Grayson, and Sofia. Not just passing by. Not just a brief hello. He'd been sitting there like he belonged, like he was part of whatever discussion they were having.
I didn't want to believe it. He was a construction worker. That was who he was.
And yet, one thing kept going through my mind.
The new alliance.
The words Sofia had mentioned during girls' night swam through my head. The Donatis were meeting with potential allies. People who could help expand their operations, strengthen their position.
It was the only explanation, but it was not the explanation I wanted.
Maybe he was doing commercial building for them?
But why meet here? In the VIP section? Wouldn't that be something done through emails and staff?
No, this was something bigger that required the heads of the families to be involved.
An alliance made the most sense.
"You okay?" Jade, one of the other servers, touched my arm.
I flinched. "Yeah. Fine."
"You don't look fine."
"Just need a minute." I grabbed my tray, needing something to do with my hands. "I'm good."
She gave me a skeptical look but didn't push. Thank god. I didn't want to try to explain the spiral I was tumbling down.
I moved through the floor on autopilot, taking orders and delivering drinks. But my gaze kept drifting up to that VIP section. I couldn't help it. Couldn't stop myself from looking, even though each glance felt like pressing on a bruise.
Eric was still up there. Still talking with them. Still looking completely comfortable in a space that screamed danger and power.
He'd lied to me.
Construction business. Import regulations. All of it bullshit.
He was involved in this life. Had to be. You didn't sit down with Leo Donati for a casual chat. You didn't get invited into that booth unless you had something they wanted.
Unless you were part of their world.
I delivered another round of drinks, smiled at a table of regulars, cleared empty glasses. The routine kept me moving, kept me from completely falling apart.
But the anger was building.
Four years. Four years he'd been gone, and when he came back, he'd fed me lines about his brother and taking over the family business. About wanting to make things right.
And I'd believed him.
I'd let him back into my bed. Into my life. Into the parts of me I'd locked down after he left.
God, I was so stupid.
My eyes found the VIP section again. Eric was looking down at the main floor, and for a moment, our gazes locked.
I couldn't read his expression from this distance. Couldn't tell if he knew I'd seen him. If he cared.
I turned away, my jaw clenched so tight it ached.
"Hey, sweetheart." A hand landed on my hip as I passed a table near the stage. "How about you bring me another whiskey? And maybe stick around for a chat."
I stepped away from the touch, biting back the snarky remark I wanted to make. "I'll get your drink."
"Aw, come on. Don't be like that." He reached for me again, fingers curling around my wrist. "Just trying to be friendly."
"And I'm just trying to do my job." I kept my voice level, professional. "Now if you'll excuse me—"
"One drink with me. That's all I'm asking."
The anger I'd been swallowing down surged up my throat. "I said no," I snapped.
"Bitch." His grip tightened.
"Let go of me, asshole!" I yanked my arm back hard. My elbow collided with something, and I heard the crash before I registered what happened.
Jade's tray. Full of drinks. Now scattered across the floor in a puddle of glass and liquor.
Wonderful, just fucking wonderful.
"Shit," Jade muttered, stepping back from the mess.
The music seemed to dim. Conversations quieted. I felt eyes on me from every direction.
Including from above.
I looked up, unable to help myself. Leo, Grayson, and Sofia were all standing at the VIP railing, looking down at the commotion.
And Eric was right there with them.
His expression was masked, but I could see the slight furrow of his brow. Those dark eyes were focused entirely on me.
Good.
I shot him a look that I hoped conveyed everything I was feeling. The hurt. The betrayal. The rage.
Then I turned to Benny, the bartender. "I need some air."
"You good?"
"Yeah. Just... five minutes."
He nodded, already gesturing to one of the bouncers. "Take your time. We'll handle this."
I didn't wait to see what happened to the handsy asshole. Didn't care. I just needed out.
Needed to breathe.
The employees' door led to a back hallway that opened onto a small alley behind the club. The air was cold, biting against my flushed skin, but I welcomed it. Needed it.
I pressed my back against the brick wall and tilted my head up toward the sky. The stars were barely visible through the light pollution, just faint pinpricks struggling through the haze.
My hands were shaking.
A mix of rage at Eric, and frustration with the stupid handsy man. He'd been the tipping point, but Eric was the main reason.
Four years ago, Eric had left without explanation, and it had nearly broken me. I'd spent months waiting for him to come back or reach out, to tell me what happened, to give me something that made sense.
And when he finally showed up again, when he gave me those explanations and those promises, I'd let myself hope.
I'd let myself believe.
The tears came before I could stop them. Hot and angry, spilling down my cheeks.
I closed my eyes as I pulled a napkin from my pocket. I dabbed at them, not wanting to ruin my makeup while I still had hours of my shift left.
Even though I just wanted to go home and scream, curl up under a blanket with wine and drink myself silly. Cry my eyes out to Elena at how men were the bane of my existence.
This was exactly what I'd been afraid of. Exactly why I'd tried to keep my walls up, to protect myself from getting hurt again.
But he'd slipped past every defense I had.
And now I was right back where I'd been four years ago. Standing alone, crying over a man who'd lied to me. He hadn't vanished without a trace, but he might as well have.
The Eric I knew was a lie.
The door behind me opened.
I didn't turn around. Didn't need to. I knew who it was before he spoke.
"Ivy."
Eric's voice was soft, like he was approaching a wounded animal.
Good. I just might bite like one too.
I opened my eyes but kept my gaze on the sky, on those struggling stars. "Don't."
"We need to talk."
"No, we really don't." I finally looked at him, not bothering to hide the tears. "You lied to me."
"I didn't—"
"You're in business with Leo Donati." The words came out sharp, cutting. "You sat in that VIP booth like you belonged there. Like you were part of... their world."
He stepped closer. Not touching, but close enough that I could feel the heat of him. "I can explain, Ivy."
"I'm sure you can, Eric." I laughed bitterly. "Was any of it true? What we had? Your brother? Your work? The family business… is it the family business like the Donatis?" I stared hard at him, praying he'd say I was wrong, that I had it all twisted.
"I wanted to tell you."
So it was true. He was a part of that world. How? What significance did his family have? If he was meeting with the Donatis, then it had to be big.
Did I even want to know?
"But you didn't." I pushed away from the wall, putting distance between us. "You let me think you were just some guy running a construction company. Let me believe all those things you said about wanting to make things right."
"I meant every word."
"Did you?" I turned on him as the anger boiled over, and my voice hitched. "Or was this whole thing just... what? A game? A way to pass the time while you're in town making deals with criminals?"
Something flashed in his eyes. Something dark and dangerous. "You think I'd use you like that?"
"I don't know what to think anymore, Eric. I thought I knew you. Thought I understood why you left, why you came back. But clearly, I was wrong."
"You weren't wrong." He moved closer again, and this time I didn't back away. "Everything I told you was true. My brother died. I had to take over responsibilities I never wanted. And leaving you was the biggest mistake of my life."
"Then why lie about this?" I gestured back toward the club. "Why not tell me you were involved with people like the Donatis?"
"Because I knew how you'd react." His jaw tightened. "I knew you'd look at me exactly the way you're looking at me right now."
"And how's that?"
"Like I'm someone you can't trust."
The words hit home. Because he was right. That was exactly how I was looking at him.
But wasn't I justified? Hadn't he earned that mistrust?
"You're working with Leo," I said quietly. "With the Donatis. For people who do things that—" I stopped, shaking my head. "I know things, Eric. I know who the Donatis are, what they do." I searched his eyes. "And your family is the same?"
"Yes. We're trying to work with them, and yes, we're the same.
Same businesses. But when we met, I was only doing construction.
It was how our family first began, and it's where our roots are.
It's what I enjoy. When Daniel died, I needed to take over for him, step into a role that wasn't the one I wanted but the one I had to do. "
The truth was stark. Honest in a way that made my chest tighten.
"What does that mean?"
He was silent for a long moment, and in that silence, I saw him weighing something. Deciding how much to tell me, how much truth I could handle.
"It means that my family has to get dirty sometimes to survive," he said finally. "When my brother died, I inherited more than just construction contracts, businesses to manage, and trade routes."
I wanted to ask more. Wanted to demand details, specifics, something concrete I could use to understand what I was dealing with.
But part of me was afraid of the answers.
"So everything you told me this morning was a lie."
"No." He stepped closer, and this time when he reached for me, I didn't pull away. His hand cupped my cheek, thumb brushing away a tear. "The construction company is real. Briticanna Buildings exists. It's legitimate. But it's not the only thing my family does."
My stomach dropped. "So there's blood on your hands?"
He held my gaze, emotions simmering in those dark depths. "Yes. It was not something I wanted to drag you into. You'd been through enough hell in your life. But leaving you has been my biggest regret. I wanted to tell you everything soon, to see if you could accept it, that you'd still…"
"Want you? Care for you?" I finished for him as he swallowed.
How could I get past this? Accept that he was involved in all of this crap? I'd been kidnapped once, was I really willing to dive into this world for him? I'd followed Elena into it, but that was different.
"I can't do this." I pulled away from his touch, wrapping my arms around myself. "I can't be with someone who lies to me. Who keeps parts of himself hidden because he thinks I can't handle the truth."
"That's not what I was doing."
"Wasn't it?" I met his eyes. "You had plenty of chances to tell me. This morning. Last night. When you showed up at my apartment with flowers. But you didn't. You let me believe what I wanted to believe."
"Because I wanted you to look at me the way you did last night." His voice was raw, struggling to mask his emotions. "Like I was someone worth trusting. Someone worth... loving."
Love. Is that what he felt? A part of me wanted to be touched, but how could I love a person I didn't truly know?
"I did trust you," I whispered. "I was starting to. And then I see you up there with them, and I realize I don't even know who you are."
"Yes, you do." He moved closer again, crowding into my space. "You know exactly who I am. You knew me before any of this. Before my brother died, before I took over the family business. That person is still here, Ivy. Still the same man you fell for four years ago."
"Is he?" I searched his face, looking for something familiar. Something I could hold onto. "Because that man still lied to me and abandoned me. That man was building a relationship on half-truths and then bailed out via text."
"That man was scared." The confession came out quiet. Vulnerable. "Scared that if you knew the whole truth, you'd walk away. Scared of dragging you into this world. But then I found you again. And I couldn't lose you again. Not when I just got you back."
My throat tightened. "You should have trusted me."
"I know."
"You should have told me the truth."
"I know."
"And now I don't know if I can believe anything you say."
He didn't respond. Couldn't, maybe. The silence stretched between us.
I turned toward the door, needing distance from him, from this conversation, from the way my heart kept pulling toward him despite everything.
I just wanted to work, to keep myself busy, to deal with all of this later.
His hand caught my arm.
"Ivy, wait. Please."
I was so sick of being grabbed by men tonight who thought they could tell me what to do.