Chapter 13
IVY
Sofia's hand touched my elbow, gentle but firm. "What was that about?"
I turned to face her, my throat tight. The alley behind the club smelled like garbage and cigarette smoke, but at least it was private. At least no one could see me falling apart.
"Eric." Saying his name made my stomach knot, but I shoved it down. "He's someone I was involved with. Four years ago."
Sofia's expression shifted, recognition flickering across her features. "Wait. Is he the guy you were talking about the other night? The one who left for a work opportunity?"
I nodded, my stomach twisting. "Yeah, big work opportunity was why he left. Didn't realize it was for a crime family."
"That tracks," Sofia said, her voice quieter now. "Eric Hale was called in to replace his brother. Shot in a dispute—wrong place, wrong time. Eric runs a large part of the Hale family now. He's the one heading the alliance here."
Hearing Sofia confirm it only made it all the more real, and I closed my eyes as I shook my head.
Eric was involved with the damn mafia. Hell, he was the mafia.
Was it too much for him to just be a normal guy?
"Come on." Sofia guided me toward the back entrance. "Let's get you a drink."
I followed numbly, my mind a mess. Inside, the club's music pulsed through the walls, muffled but insistent. Sofia led me past the employee areas, through corridors I'd walked a hundred times, but everything felt different now. Darker. Wrong.
She took me straight to the VIP section, the private area where I'd seen Eric sitting with Leo and Grayson like he belonged there. Because he did belong there. That was the part that made my chest ache.
Leo and Grayson were still at their table, deep in conversation that stopped the moment they saw us approaching.
"We're going to chat," Sofia stated. "Everything's fine."
Leo's blue eyes found mine, searching. "Should we postpone the alliance? Until whatever this is gets sorted?"
I swallowed the lump in my throat. My personal drama was apparently important enough to derail a major business deal. The thought made me feel small and powerful at the same time.
Sofia looked at me, one eyebrow raised.
I shook my head. "No. Don't postpone anything on my account."
Grayson nodded slowly, but his expression remained concerned. "You sure?"
"I'm sure."
Sofia gestured to the booth across from them. "Give us some space, yeah?"
The men exchanged glances but didn't argue. Leo stood, touching Sofia's shoulder briefly before heading toward the bar. Grayson followed, kissing Sofia on the cheek, though he cast one more look back at me.
Sofia slid into the booth, and I sat across from her, my whole body feeling like it might vibrate apart. She signaled a server, ordering two glasses of expensive wine without asking what I wanted.
"I want to help," she said after a moment. "But I don't know the right words right now."
I laughed dryly. "Neither do I."
The drinks arrived, and I grabbed mine immediately, taking a long swallow. The wine didn't help the knot in my chest, but at least it gave me something to focus on besides the wreckage of whatever I'd started to build with Eric.
"So, you just saw him again tonight? Meredith mentioned that Elena said he ruined a date for you," Sofia said casually. Women talked, I knew how it was.
"No. He came over after that date, he explained things, his brother's passing, that he left for the family business.
But he said it was all construction. We slept together, spent time together, went on our own date," I shared, my throat tightening.
I gulped down more wine to loosen it. "He was coming by again tonight after work.
I thought this was a thing again, that we were…
fuck, I dunno, building something?" I scoffed.
Sofia nodded, her expression perplexed. "And then you saw him here at the meeting with us."
"Yep. I feel betrayed," I said finally. The words came out broken. "He said all these things to make me think he wanted to stay. To be with me. But it was all bullshit, wasn't it? Just another lie."
Sofia took a measured sip of her drink. "The partnership we're building with the Hales. It's long-term. Operational. Eric would be based here in Ironstone, managing things on their end." She set her glass down carefully. "So that part, at least, wasn't a lie."
The information settled over me heavily. He'd be staying. But not just for me. For business. For the alliance. Because his family demanded it.
"Being with him would be dangerous," I said quietly. "This life. All of it."
Sofia didn't flinch. "Yes." She studied my face for a moment. "Did he know about Elena's ties to the family? When you brought that up?"
I thought back to the shock on Eric's face when I'd mentioned Elena being Meredith's sister. The way his eyes had widened, the genuine confusion in his voice. "He seemed really surprised. Like he had no idea."
"You think he really didn't know?"
"I'm sure he didn't," I said with certainty. "He was completely blindsided."
Sofia nodded slowly. "It's clear you really care for him."
My chest tightened. "He treated me so well before. And this time too. I wanted to believe it was all real. But this life… You've accepted it. You and Meredith. Elena too, I guess."
"We have." She leaned back against the leather booth. "But it wasn't easy. And it's not for everyone."
I traced my finger along the rim of my glass, watching the dark red wine catch the low lights. "I'm too much chaos for something like this. Too wild. I'd screw it up."
"Ivy." Sofia's voice cut through my spiral. "Do you remember what I told you? You're stronger than you think."
I looked up, meeting her eyes. Steady and sure.
"Is he trustworthy?" she asked.
The question caught me off guard. I'd been so focused on the betrayal, the lies, that I hadn't really considered the bigger picture. What Eric was, what his world meant, what being with him would actually require.
Why he was actually here. Sofia was asking if I believed they could trust him in a business perspective.
"He left me once," I said slowly. "But before that, when we were together, I always felt safe with him.
He was good to me. Kind. Like he actually gave a damn.
As for your alliance, he left me to protect me and do what needed to be done for the family.
I'm not sure I'm the best one to ask for trustworthiness in a business sense, given I wasn't involved with him on that level. "
Something in Sofia's expression softened. Her shoulders dropped slightly, tension I hadn't noticed easing out of her posture.
"That matters," she said. "How he was with you. He may have hidden all of this from you, but people do that to the ones they love, to protect them."
I nodded, knowing that the Donatis had kept things from many. I'd heard from Elena that Meredith had been kept in the dark for a long time too, which still blew my mind.
I took another drink, letting the warmth spread through my chest. "I can't figure out if he's the same person I knew or if that was all an act. Maybe the construction guy was the lie, and this is who he really is."
"Or maybe he's both." Sofia swirled her glass thoughtfully. "People can be complex. Especially in this world."
"I want to know more," I said as I sipped my wine. "About the Hales. About what Eric actually does. You could tell me, right? Share information?"
Sofia studied me for a long moment. "I could. But you'd probably be better learning it from him."
"No." I shook my head firmly. "I want to hear it from you. I can't trust him right now. Can't trust that he won't just feed me more pretty lies."
She nodded slowly, understanding flickering across her features. "Okay. What do you want to know?"
"Everything. Start from the beginning."
Sofia took a breath, settling deeper into the booth like she was preparing for a long conversation. "The Hales are a crime family. Fingers in a lot of pies. Legitimate businesses mixed with less legitimate operations. They have a large network, connections across multiple continents."
I listened, my heart pounding.
"The family started in England. Built their empire there, beginning in the construction industry, before expanding to the US and into Europe. They've got operations we don't, reach in places the Donatis haven't touched."
"So they're big," I said quietly.
"Bigger than the Donatis, actually. In terms of size and scope.
" She paused. "But influence-wise, they have less power in the US.
That's why they're pursuing this partnership.
Both families benefit. We get access to their European connections, their political reach.
They get a foothold in territories we control. "
The pieces started fitting together, forming a picture I didn't particularly like. "And Eric runs part of it."
"A large part. From my understanding, he took a leave from the family years ago, pursued something different in the construction industry, tried to be his own person.
It was probably when you met him. After his brother died, he stepped up.
Took over operations that were critical to the family's structure, returned to take his place.
" Sofia met my eyes. "He's not some low-level player, Ivy.
He's important. Connected. The kind of person who makes decisions that affect hundreds of people. "
I drained the rest of my glass. "Great. So I was sleeping with a crime boss."
"You were sleeping with someone who cared enough to intervene when your ex grabbed you at a bar," Sofia corrected. "Someone who apparently couldn't stay away even though he probably should have."
"That doesn't make the lying okay."
"No, it doesn't." She signaled for another round. "But it might explain why he did it. This world, what we do, who we are, it's not exactly first-date conversation material. Well, renewed first-date."
The server brought fresh drinks, and I grabbed mine immediately. "He had plenty of chances to tell me. This morning, when we were talking about his work. Yesterday, when he showed up at my apartment. Four years ago, before he ghosted me the first time."
"Would you have believed him four years ago? Listened to him or given him a chance? Or would you have turned your back on the darker world he was involved in?"
The questions stopped me cold. I thought about the Ivy from back then, waitressing at dive bars and being a damn dancer, barely scraping by, living in a crappy apartment or with crappy exes. Would that version of me have accepted that my boyfriend ran a criminal empire?
"Probably not," I admitted. "I probably wouldn't have been willing."
"And this morning, when you'd just reconnected? When everything was still fragile and new again, would you have listened and believed? Given him a chance."
I didn't answer. Couldn't answer, because Sofia had a point, and I hated that she had a point.
"I'm not saying what he did was right," Sofia continued. "But I understand it. The need to protect someone from the truth until you're sure they can handle it. Until you're sure they won't run."
"I should run," I said quietly. "Any sane person would run."
"Probably." She smiled, something sad and knowing in the expression. "But you're still sitting here, asking questions instead of cutting ties completely."
"Maybe I'm just an idiot."
"Or maybe you care about him more than you want to admit." Sofia leaned forward. "Look, I can't tell you what to do. This has to be your choice. But if you want my opinion—"
"I do."
"Talk to him. Let him explain everything, no filters, no protection.
Make him tell you exactly what his life looks like, what being with him would mean.
" She paused, her expression darkening. "And I mean everything.
The kidnapping with Elena and Jackson? That wasn't random, and it comes as a potential risk.
Being connected to someone like Eric puts a target on your back.
There are enemies, rivals, people who would use you to get to him.
You need to understand those risks before you decide if it's worth it. "
The memory of Elena's terrified face flashed through my mind, and suddenly my chest felt tight. I hadn't just been worried about Eric's secrets, I'd been living proof of the danger that came with them.
I stared into my glass like I'd find my decision there. "What if it's not? What if I can't handle his world?"
"Then you walk away with all the information instead of just pieces. At least you'll know what you're giving up."
The music from the main club area was a constant, the bass thumping steady and insistent. Around us, the VIP section remained empty. This late, most of the serious players had already left, those who were a part of the Donatis and wanted a moment to be alone and have a drink.
"The Hales," I said slowly. "What else should I know?"
Sofia considered the question. "They're disciplined. Strategic. Not prone to the kind of emotional decisions that get people killed." She tapped her finger against her glass. "But they're also ruthless when they need to be. They didn't build what they have by being soft."
"And Eric?"
"From what I've gathered? He's respected. Maybe even feared in some circles. He took over his brother's position and didn't just maintain it, he expanded it." Sofia's expression grew serious. "He's also here, pursuing an alliance. Planning to take up business and operations here."
"What does that mean?"
She met my eyes. "That he'd be staying if this alliance goes through without a hitch. I'd also bet good money he's found another reason to make this alliance work, and it is sitting across from me right now."
I swallowed at her words. "He barely knows me anymore. We were together seven months, four years ago. That's not enough to base major business decisions on."
"Maybe not." Sofia shrugged. "But it might be enough to influence where he chooses to set up operations in this city.
" She studied me with knowing eyes. "Besides, a man who chases after you when you're distressed and keeps stepping in to handle situations for you?
That's not someone acting out of casual interest, Ivy.
That's someone who feels strongly enough to make you his priority. "