28. Ivy
IVY
D azed, my mind fuddles between darkness and reality as my body awakens.
It’s a sickly sweet moment of bliss, where you’re happily stuck between two places, too blinded by the harmony of it to remember what those places really hold.
If I were suffering in a bad dream, I’m not now, and my reality is too hazy for me to decide if I want to wake up or not.
The second I acknowledge my current state, my mind reverts to last night’s memories. Flashes of light dance across the back of my eyelids, replaying the mayhem.
Teddy.
Cameras.
Bubbles.
Teddy.
Bubbles.
Laughter.
More bubbles.
More Teddy.
Dammit.
Outside of the hut, it was for show, a performance that smudged at the seams as we continued to enjoy the champagne provided. The second we hid away, we didn’t fall asleep like we should have.
No.
That would have been too easy.
Instead, the liquor warmed our veins and loosened our lips.
Inhaling slowly, I remember how vulnerable he was.
“Have you ever loved the memory of someone more than you remember loving them?” His head in his hands, his shoulders slumped. The cocksure ass hadn’t made an appearance in here; it’s like his walls were down, whether he liked it or not.
I didn’t like it.
It made him real, and it brought me far too close to caring.
“I haven’t really experienced grief to understand that,” I admit, and he turns to me with a tight smile, his hand on my knee.
“I hope you don’t, Princess.”
I should stop there, keep my mouth shut, and leave it be, but it seems the bubbles are affecting both of us.
“Are you referring to your father?” I ask, and he nods. Clearing my throat, I push even more. “How does your mother feel about it?”
He scoffs. “That bitch cares about nothing but herself.”
The pain in his voice tells me it’s true.
“Now that’s something I can understand,” I declare, a sad smile tainting my lips as we clink our glasses together and take another sip.
Nuzzling further under the covers, the distant sound of music isn’t enough to penetrate the fortress we’ve created. I should want to throw myself out of here and put even more distance between us, but I don’t have the strength. Not mentally.
“Who has traumatized you like that?” he asks, and I shake my head.
“We’re talking about you.”
His eyes meet mine. “Amuse me.”
“My life is that sad it would amuse you,” I grumble with a snicker, but he waits patiently, staring me down until I sigh.
Pursing my lips, I turn away from him, focusing on the draped entrance. “My father likes to control my every move, and my mother likes to hold power over what I look like when doing it.”
“How bad?”
I cock a brow at him. “You do remember ruining my wedding day, right?”
His nostrils flare as he huffs, but he quickly brushes it off with a sigh. “I would do it again.”
“Ruin my wedding day? I hope not. I want a happy life eventually, you know,” I grumble, turning away as silence floats over us for a moment.
“Do you not have a happy life already?” he asks, and I scoff.
Is he serious?
“Am I happy here? Yes. But does it feel like I’m putting a Band-Aid over a bullet wound? Also, yes.”
“How do we change that?”
“ We don’t. I do.”
Torn from my thoughts, I suck in a deep breath and freeze.
I’m still here, in The Love Hut, and I’m not alone.
My fingers trace over the surface beneath me, ghosting over the ridges of what I can only guess are someone’s abs.
Not just someone’s.
His.
Which means the firm surface beneath my cheek would also be… him.
Instinct takes over and I yank back as my eyelids fly open. My gaze finds a pair of eyes staring at me at the same time his hand wraps around my wrist, preventing me from moving any further.
“Good morning, Princess.”
“Teddy,” I reply, clipped, trying to pull my wrist free from his grasp, but it’s futile. “Let go.”
“You’re running.”
“I promise to walk,” I reply with a megawatt smile, and he rolls his eyes.
“I don’t want you to go.”
“And I don’t want to stay.”
His tongue drags across his bottom lip, and I hate that I track the movement. But not as much as I hate the way he looks even hotter all disheveled and basking in the gentle moments after waking.
Another attempt at tugging free of his hold fails, and I huff. “Teddy.”
“Ivy.”
“Let go.”
“I will…”
His eyes lock on mine, making it impossible to turn away, but it’s clear he’s not done. “You will what?”
“Let you go.”
“Your hand says otherwise,” I retort, and he smirks.
“I like you sassy.”
“I don’t like you at all.”
“We’re back to that?”
“We never left that.”
My chest tightens, threatening to call me a liar, and I can see the similar sparkle in his eyes.
“Well, that mindset is not going to help the next part.” He flexes his fingers against my skin.
“Next part?” I shouldn’t have asked, I should have just shut him down. The mischievous tilt to the corner of his lips confirms it before he even speaks.
“Spend the day with me.”
“No.”
“Spend the day with me outside of the spotlight.”
“No.”
“You’re not even thinking about it, Princess.” He runs his free hand through his hair, making him look even hotter.
I can’t breathe.
“I don’t need to think about it, Teddy. Just like you didn’t need to think two years ago when you rejected me.”
Guilt washes over his face, his eyes saying a thousand words, but it’s like I can’t decipher the language to understand. “One day, Ivy.”
“You don’t deserve my time,” I breathe, and he nods.
“You’re right, but give it to me anyway.”
“Why would I do that?” My chest tightens, my mind, body, and soul all battling one another as I wait with bated breath.
He sits, keeping his fingers around my wrist as he speaks. “Because you can. Because you have a choice. I’ll even spend the day groveling,” he offers, and I scoff.
“Oh yeah? And what does groveling look like to you?”
“Say yes and find out.”
A knock rattles my doorframe far too quickly, making my heart race as I second-guess my decision for the tenth time in just as many minutes.
I shouldn’t have agreed.
Maybe if I remain quiet, he’ll disappear.
Another knock, another skip of my heartbeat, and I think I’m going to be sick.
My fingers tremble as I defy myself again and race to the door, swinging it open fast before I change my mind again.
Teddy stands across the hall with his foot propped against the wall behind him. His hair is still ruffled, but he’s changed into a pair of swim shorts and a simple white t-shirt.
“I thought you had changed your mind,” he admits, raking his eyes over me from head to toe.
I’ve been stared at, sized up, and everything in between so many times in my life that it doesn’t bother me anymore. Not unless it’s him, or one of my other hated mates. It makes my skin prickle with an undeniable heat when it’s them.
“I had?”
His smile grows. “But you’re still here.”
“I could change it back.”
“But you won’t,” he says with a shake of his head, and my hand curls around the door, ready to prove him wrong, when another face appears.
“Angel.”
My eyes widen as his gaze rakes over me, just as strong as Teddy’s.
I can’t deal with both of them at the same time.
“Archer.”
He points his thumb over his shoulder as he takes a step, placing himself between Teddy and me. “Good old Theodore tells me my services are needed.”
“Don’t call me that, ass,” Teddy grumbles, shoving at Archer as he moves to his side, but his eyes are set on me. Clearing his throat, he nods at his friend. “I asked Archer to clear up some things for us.”
“Some things?” I repeat, and he nods.
“Truth things,” he clarifies, and my eyes widen in surprise. “So, ask me anything, I’ll answer, and Archer will confirm if I’m lying or not.”
Archer huffs. “Let’s limit it to three or something. I do have a life, you know,” he mutters, glaring at Teddy before he turns to me. “What will it be?”
“I don’t know, you’re kind of putting me on the spot right now.”
“You’re telling me you haven’t thought of a single question in two years?” Archer retorts, pushing me like always, and I huff, my irritation rearing its ugly head.
“How do I know what’s true or not?”
Archer rolls his eyes. “Tell me your name.”
“Ivy.”
He steps closer, pressing his palms against my arms for a second before the left side warms.
My eyes widen.
“Now tell me a lie.”
“My name is Fiona.”
Another moment, and his right hand turns to ice against my skin.
“You have to deal with that all the time?” I breathe, eyes latched on his, and he blinks at me for a second.
“Every second of every day,” he admits, the words almost a whisper, like it’s some kind of secret.
I can’t even imagine what that feels like. The overwhelm it must come with is enough to give me a headache, but the practice and grounding you must have within yourself to not let it consume you is something else entirely.
“Back to me,” Teddy declares, nudging Archer’s side as he beams at me, and I appreciate the interruption. I don’t need to get caught up in yet another someone’s pain.
“Ask away,” Archer murmurs, and I clear my throat.
“Do you regret rejecting me?” I ask, my chest burning intensely as he sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“No.”
My heart aches as Archer’s left hand grows hot against my skin.
“At least he didn’t lie,” Archer adds, and I clear my throat.
“Maybe this isn’t a good idea.”
“Two more questions,” Archer responds, tightening his hold on my wrists as I fail to calm the emotions rippling through my body.
“Were you telling the truth last night when you told me the only times you’ve used your magic on me?”
His hand falls away from his face as he stares deep into my eyes. “Yes.”
Another flash of heat from Archer.
“One more, Angel.”
Taking a deep breath, I rub my lips together. “How do you know my brother?”
“Through Baron. They’re both dragon riders, right?”
Ice dances across my skin, and the wink he tosses me lets me know he lied on purpose.
“Tell me the truth,” I insist, and he shakes his head.