Chapter 4
Dos
Ipulled into the driveway just after two in the morning. The house was dark, except for the faint glow of the kitchen nightlight. I stepped inside, locking the door behind me, my mind already running circles around itself.
Ivy was asleep. Her breathing was slow, steady. Peaceful.
I stood in the doorway of our bedroom, watching her for a long moment. Studying her. Her body curled under the blankets like she didn’t have a care in the world. Like she wasn’t out here making me question every damn thing.
I stepped closer, careful not to wake her. I needed to be sure. Her phone sat on the nightstand, face down. I debated flipping it over, checking her messages, but I shook my head. Not yet. Instead, I just stood there, waiting, watching. If she was faking sleep, she was damn good at it.
I exhaled and ran a hand down my face.
This shit was making me crazy.
I walked out, closing the door softly behind me, and made my way to the kitchen. I pulled my phone out and started searching.
AirTags.
I could have just asked her where she was going, what she was doing. But trust was a funny thing. It was real until it wasn’t. And I didn’t trust this situation. Not at all.
I found a pack of four on Amazon. Prime shipping. They’d be here in two days. That was step one. Step two? Getting access to her phone. I scrolled through different spyware apps, looking for something that could pull her texts, her call logs, her location without her knowing. Something clean. Something untraceable. I clenched my jaw as I scrolled, my stomach turning. The idea of spying on Ivy made me sick, but the idea of looking stupid, of being played, that made me even sicker. That’s what this was really about.
It wasn’t even about Ivy and Uno. It was about me. About the fact that maybe I had never really won at all. Maybe this whole time, I had been living in the illusion of victory. Maybe, even after all this, Uno still had the one thing I wanted. Not to come in second to him. I had thought I’d put that younger brother shit behind me. The need to prove myself. The feeling that no matter how much I accomplished, Uno was always ahead. But here I was, grown as fuck, sitting in my kitchen in the middle of the night, plotting like I was still that kid fighting for my place.
Ivy was my woman. My fiancée. But was she really mine? I didn’t know. And not knowing? That was eating me alive.
I closed the browser and put my phone down, rubbing my temples. Maybe I was overreacting. Maybe this was just paranoia. Maybe I was making something out of nothing.
But maybe…
Maybe I was right.
I woke up on the couch to the smell of bacon and coffee. My neck was stiff, my body sore from sleeping in a fucked-up position. Rubbing my face, I sat up and glanced toward the kitchen. Ivy was standing at the stove, flipping pancakes like everything was normal. Except it wasn’t.
She turned, eyes locking onto mine as I sat up. “You didn’t come to bed.”
I stretched, rolling my shoulders. “Yeah. Fell asleep out here.”
Her stare was sharp, calculating. “That’s never happened before.”
Shrugging, I stated, “Guess there’s a first time for everything.”
Ivy set the spatula down and folded her arms. “Dos, where were you?”
I leaned back, watching her. “What you mean? I was here.”
She scoffed. “Don’t play in my face. I woke up, and you were gone. You weren’t at the club, and you sure as hell weren’t here.”
I ran a hand over my face, exhaling slowly. “Damn, Ivy. You keeping tabs on me now?”
She walked around the island, closing the space between us. “I don’t have to keep tabs. I know your patterns. I know you. So, tell me… where the hell were you?”
I looked up at her, jaw tightening. “Funny. You want to question me, but I can’t ask you shit?”
She frowned. “What are you talking about?”
I stood up, stepping into her space. “You think I don’t feel it? You been moving different, Ivy. Something’s up.”
She blinked, but she didn’t back down. “You really gonna flip this on me?”
I smirked, but I wasn’t amused. “Why not? You got questions, I got some too. Like why you been acting so damn distant? Why you barely look me in the eyes when I touch you? Why Uno’s name still sits heavy between us like a ghost?”
Her breathing hitched, but she kept her chin high. “This isn’t about Uno.”
“The fuck it ain’t.”
She swallowed hard, then shook her head. “You’re deflecting.”
I stepped closer, until I could feel the heat of her body. “And you’re lying to yourself.”
Her chest rose and fell rapidly, anger flashing in her eyes. “You think you got me figured out?”
I leaned in, my lips brushing against her ear. “I know I do.”
Her breath hitched. She hated how much I got under her skin. I could see it all over her face—the frustration, the confusion, the undeniable pull between us. She shoved my chest, but I grabbed her wrist, pulling her flush against me.
“Let me go, Dos.”
I gripped her waist, backing her up against the counter. “Say it like you mean it.”
She sucked in a breath, her hands pressing against my chest, but she didn’t push me away. “I hate you.”
I smirked, my fingers digging into her hips. “No, you don’t.”
Her lips parted, her body betraying her words as she arched into me. That was all I needed. I lifted her onto the counter, my mouth crashing against hers. She met me with equal fire, her nails raking down my bare back, her legs wrapping around my waist, pulling me closer.
Anger, lust, frustration—it all melted together as we lost ourselves in each other. We weren’t fixing shit, but in that moment, we weren’t breaking anything either.
Ivy’s scent was intoxicating and addictive. The whiff I got of her pussy when she wrapped her legs around my waist gave me an instant hard-on. My morning wood rushed to her opening. She wasn’t wearing any panties under her night shirt. I pushed the tip of my dick into her, breaking the tension between us.
“Mmmm.”
“Fuck, Ivy,” I moaned as I slipped into her warmth. I grabbed hold of her ass as our bodies collided. My dick rammed her walls as the anger of our stubbornness urged us on. She grinded on me as I pumped. Her pussy was so soft and warm, I wanted to believe that it was all mine. The way her labia welcomed me in, the way it got wet with cum from me hitting her spots, the way she moaned when her walls contracted on my hard shaft, all things that belong to me. Thinking how good she felt had me about to nut. The constant moans coming from Ivy and the way she was taking this punishment made me forget for a moment that I was pissed at her. The gold between her legs was worth every piece of this beating. “Tell me this pussy belongs to me.”
“Mmm, mmm. This pussy is yours, Dos.”
“You sure?” I pumped harder.
“Ye…yessss,” she hummed.
“Fuck it!” I grunted. “Cum for me, baby. Cum all over your dick,” I commanded. My legs buckled.
I bent my knees slowly and then extended my knees straight as I rushed in and out of her gushiness. The sensation had Ivy shaking. I felt her walls pulling at my dick.
“Dos, oh Dos,” she whined as her legs tightened around my waist and the suction of her hole had both of us striking gold. The rush of her warm sticky wetness coating my dick set off a chain reaction. My seed escaped my sack, erupting deep inside her. I held on to her as we caught our breath. She gripped my back as my moist skin made it difficult for her to maintain her hold on me. I could feel her beating heart. I wanted to believe the rhythm of her heart only danced for me and as good as this moment felt, coming off this high could easily expose that the gold I thought I had was only making a fool out of me.
For the next couple of days, Ivy and I spent time together. We even went to see Nana together. Nana was doing much better at first, but she had another stroke, which was a major setback. With her still needing around-the-clock care, Uno hired an in-home caregiver to help out. We collectively decided that we didn’t want her living out her remaining years in some facility. We didn’t want to think about her not being here with us, but the truth was Nana was ninety. She had lived a good, long life. All three of us took turns keeping her company.
At my last visit with Ivy, Nana asked how we were doing. Ivy and I both said fine, but when Ivy went back into the kitchen, Nana gave me the side eye and asked me more questions.
“Boy, don’t sit there and lie to me. How y’all really doing?” she asked, her voice as sharp as ever.
I smirked. “We’re good, Nana. Everything’s cool.”
She scoffed. “Mmm-hmm. You think I’m too old to see through that bullshit?”
I shook my head and chuckled. “Ivy and I are fine, Nana. No problems.”
She leaned forward in her chair, her wrinkled hands resting on top of mine. “Now, Dos, you always was hard-headed. Always wanted what wasn’t yours.” She paused, watching me closely. “But just ‘cause you got her now, don’t mean you won’t lose her the same way.”
I swallowed, shifting in my seat. “Nana, it’s not like that. Ivy chose me.”
Nana snorted. “That what you tell yourself? She chose you?” She shook her head slowly. “Boy, let me tell you something. Women don’t just up and leave unless they missing something. You better make sure you ain’t just a distraction.”
I sighed and rubbed the back of my neck. “Nana, I love her.”
“I know you do, baby. But love ain’t enough. It never is.” She patted my hand. “You be careful with that girl. And be honest with yourself.”
I nodded, not trusting myself to say anything else. Nana always had a way of cutting through the noise and getting to the truth.
When Ivy came back from the kitchen with a glass of water for Nana, she looked between us, sensing something. But Nana just smiled at her like nothing happened.
Everything seemed good. Ivy and I ate out, went shopping, and even looked at a few wedding reception venues together. But my rotation at the club was starting tonight, and my Amazon AirTag package had just arrived.