Chapter 21 – IVY
Chapter
Twenty-One
IVY
Ispend the evening helping Evelyn cook dinner. Lately she’s been teaching me recipes from her Italian heritage. Within the past few months, I have learned so much from Evelyn and of course, Venom. My mind swirls with all the new knowledge I now possess.
I feel different, as if instead of being plucked like a pretty flower, I’ve been watered and tended to so I can grow and thrive.
This place no longer feels like a prison, but an actual home with people in it I care about… as frustrating as one may still be at times.
My mind is still flustered with the way Venom left me earlier. I’ve been trying to keep myself busy to avoid facing what he told me and more importantly, how it made me feel to hear it.
“You seem distracted,” Evelyn signs.
I look into her concerned eyes and sigh. “I’m sorry. I am a bit,” I say out loud.
“Does it have something to do with a particular handsome blond in the greenhouse?” She raises a brow and smirks.
“He sure knows how to leave a lasting impression.”
Of course it’s about him. Everything I’ve been feeling since coming here has to do with him. The bad, the good, and the fucking scary. And damn if the idea of giving him my heart isn’t the scariest thought I've ever had.
I shouldn’t want him. Craving him feels like a sin. Loving him could surely be a death sentence. But there’s a part of me that strangely trusts what he said, that my heart would be safe with him. I want to give it to him, which is even more frightening.
I’ve spent my whole life feeling like I’m holding my breath or just never having enough air to satisfy the parts inside of me that ache. But with Venom, it’s like I can finally let everything go and… breathe.
Venom sees me in a way no one ever has. I want to give him the piece of me no one has ever owned. In fact, I want to give him all my broken pieces. Something tells me he’d be the one to glue me back together.
It already feels like he has partially mended my pieces. Although he has certainly bled in the process of dealing with my sharp jagged edges.
Evelyn leans forward, eyes soft. “It’s okay to feel what you’re feeling. You have brought out a new side to him. He can be hard to read but I’ve been with him long enough to know better. And our charming boy has been lighter. Happier.”
“Really? I feel like I’ve been doing the opposite.”
She smiles. “Venom is not like other men. You challenge him. He needs that.” She gives me a light push on my shoulder.
“He does seem to enjoy that,” I say with a smile.
Her expression suddenly turns serious. “But I have one request. If you’re still planning on leaving, don’t tell him you’re in love with him. Please. Do him that one kindness and just go.”
I laugh. “In love with him? I’m—it’s not—I—”
I shake my head, not knowing how to even respond to that.
I look back to the counter where the tomatoes are waiting for me to cut.
Suddenly my hands feel too sweaty to hold the knife properly to cut them.
I rub them against my pants and look back to Evelyn with, no doubt, flushed cheeks. She simply gives me a knowing smile.
I nod, then get back to cooking dinner.
“Your cooking skills have improved,” Venom says from down the table.
“Is that a compliment?”
“It is. Hold it dear, who knows when there will be another. You’ve also gained weight.”
“That’s not typically something you should say to a woman, but considering—”
“Considering you were nearly starved for nine months…”
“Yes, that. I welcome the gained weight.”
“So do I. It looks good on you. I’ll never complain about having more curves on your body to admire.”
“That sounds an awful lot like another compliment.”
He shrugs, and I take a bite of food to stifle my growing smile, and we stare at each other.
There are so many times I wish I was a mind reader to truly know what Venom is thinking, like right now.
He stares at me like it's me he wishes he was eating and that thought alone has my cheeks flushing and breaking eye contact.
We continue on in silence until I decide to do something I haven't done before.
I pick up my plate and cup and walk to the opposite end where Venom sits. I pull out a chair and take a seat right next to him.
He eyes me curiously. “You're awfully close, darlin’. Aren't you afraid the viper may strike? Or is it I who should fear the teeth of the little beast next to me?”
“Would you like me to bite? I can’t promise it won’t hurt.” Is this flirting? Am I flirting with Venom?
“You sank your teeth into me long ago, and it’s a pain I do so welcome.”
I bite my lip and look away. His hand shoots out, thumb pressing against my mouth, and my gaze snaps to those piercing blue eyes.
“Now, now,” he murmurs. “Save the biting for me. Release your pretty little lip.”
I obey. He drags his thumb over the spot where I’d held it captive, his gaze lingering on my mouth before lifting to my eyes.
“You are a wicked temptation,” he says, thumb still tracing my lips. “Fill my glass with your poison and I’ll drink it gladly… and beg for more.”
“What if I ask for something else instead?” My words come out breathy.
He tips his head, studying me then raises his brow. “Go on then.”
I swallow down my nerves and give in to the heat blossoming in my chest.
“Kiss me.”
Venom’s eyes darken with a predatory hunger. He stands, knocking back his chair in the process, pulls me from my seat and presses me against the wall by my throat. My mouth parts with words I want to say but I’m hushed by Venom’s lips crashing against mine.
His hand travels into my hair, pulling tight, holding his prey in his hungry grip as he devours me. Our tongues dance together, tasting each other and speaking unspoken words.
I fist his hair and pull, causing him to groan in pleasure into my mouth. His arm slinks around my waist and he lifts me. My legs wrap around him.
He tastes of whiskey and forbidden fruit.
I want more.
“Venom,” I moan as I break away enough to catch my breath, leaning my head against the wall. He rests his head against my chin as his chest rapidly rises and falls. Then he kisses my neck and sets me down, taking a step back.
I look at him, both of us breathless and still hungry. His eyes bore into me as he clenches his hands, seeming to fight against something within him. Perhaps the same feeling I was trying to fight.
“Come to a ball with me,” he blurts out.
I shake my head in confusion. “What? A ball?”
“Yes, a charity ball in Georgia. Next weekend.”
“That’s a bit far, isn’t it?”
“We’ll be flying private. This is important and I want you with me.”
“Ok,” I softly say.
He runs a hand over his pale blond hair, smoothing it back in place, then leaves the room without another word or glance.
I succumb to my weak knees and slide down the wall until my ass hits the wood floor and sit there, still catching my breath from the kiss.