19.Brandon's POV.The image of what Demi did to Ivy wasn't out of my head yet, and I hated it.I should have been happy that someone else was making Ivy’s life miserable. As a human, she deserved it. If anyone was going to make her life hell, it should be me and me alone.But somehow, watching Demi do it didn’t feel right. It pissed me off in a way I couldn’t explain, like someone was taking something that belonged to me. I had never been a fan of sharing.She hadn’t been the same since that night during dinner. Not that she had ever been confident around Demi, but it was worse now. She was constantly looking over her shoulder, barely speaking. She jumped at the smallest sounds, flinched when someone called her name too suddenly. It was pathetic. And it made it way too obvious that something was wrong.Even her Mom noticed.I had come down to the living room and saw Ivy. She sat there at the dining area with her Mom. They seemed to have been discussing something.Her fingers curled
20.Ivy's POV.I can’t do this.The thought circled in my head like a vulture as I stood in front of the mirror, staring at my reflection.My face was pale, my lips pressed into a thin line, my eyes dull and tired. I barely recognized myself anymore.I had done exactly what Demi wanted.The lingerie was already on, delicate and lacy against my skin, hidden beneath my clothes. But it felt like a second layer of shame, wrapping itself around me, suffocating me.I ran my hands down my thighs, pressing out imaginary creases in my jeans, but the movement did nothing to ease the tightness in my chest. My stomach churned, and the thought of what I was about to do made my skin crawl.Then, as if on cue, my phone vibrated on the dresser. I swallowed hard, already knowing who it was.I picked it up, my hands clammy as I read the message.Demi: It’s finally the day.Demi: Don’t even think about chickening out.Demi: Unless you want your mother and the whole school to know what you’ve been up to.
21.Ivy's POV I sat frozen in my seat as Jackie’s words echoed in my head.Demi overdosed on Saturday. Reports have it that he’s brain dead.I blinked at her, my brain struggling to process the sentence. “What?”Jackie sighed, rubbing her temples. “I said—”“No, I heard you,” I cut in quickly, my voice sharper than I intended. “I just… I don’t believe it.”Jackie raised an eyebrow. “Why would I lie about something like this?”I had no answer to that.Before I could say anything else, the classroom door opened, and our teacher walked in. His usual serious expression was even graver than normal, his lips pressed into a thin line.“I have an announcement,” he said, setting his papers down on the desk. “And unfortunately, not a good one.”The class fell silent instantly.“Over the weekend, one of our students, Demi, was admitted to the hospital after an overdose,” he continued, his voice solemn. “And he is currently brain dead.”A murmur rippled through the room. Gasps and hushed whisper
Ivy's POV Brandon’s slow, deliberate clapping filled the room, each sharp sound making my stomach churn. He was smirking like he’d just won a game I didn’t even know I was playing. His eyes gleamed with satisfaction, with something dark and entertained, like he was savoring the moment.“Wow, Ivy,” he drawled, shaking his head with mock admiration. “Who would’ve thought? The prim and proper Ivy has this side to her.”My throat felt tight. My entire body was frozen in place, my pulse hammering so loudly in my ears that I barely registered my own shaky breaths. I didn’t want to look, I shouldn’t look, but my eyes betrayed me, flickering to the wall where it was all laid out.Photographs. Screenshots. Undeniable proof of what I had done.My secrets, my lies, my worst nightmares, taped up like some grotesque art exhibition for him to enjoy.I felt like I was going to throw up.Brandon took a slow step forward, his smirk widening as his sharp gaze traced every humiliating detail spread acr
23.Brandon's POV.As Ivy lost consciousness, I carried her up the stairs, adjusting her weight effortlessly in my arms. She was lighter than I expected, and her body was slack and warm against mine. Her head lolled slightly against my chest, and a faint sigh escaped her lips. Soft, almost content.Carefully, I laid her down on the bed, taking extra care as I pulled the blanket over her. And I stood there, staring down at her.Her face was peaceful, framed by dark waves of hair that fanned out over my arm. Her long lashes brushed against the curve of her cheek, and her lips. Christ, her lips, were parted just slightly, as if inviting something they weren’t even aware of.She looked different like this. Very peaceful.Just Ivy. Just a human.And I couldn’t look away.My pulse thrummed in my ears, an unfamiliar heat settling in my chest. I told myself it was nothing. Just an observation. But it didn't feel like nothing.I let my fingers brush against the soft strands of her hair, pushin
Ivy's POV.The party was perfect.With loud music pulsing through the house like a heartbeat, the air was thick with energy and the scent of sweat, perfume, and alcohol. People filled every available space. Amari had truly outdone herself, and I knew she was ecstatic about it. I should have been too. After all, I had helped plan this.But I wasn’t.Instead, I was stuck in my own head, completely bored out of my mind and detached from everything around me.I leaned against the wall, staring blankly at my untouched drink. The red plastic cup sat between my hands, growing warm from my grip. Around me, people laughed, shouted over the music, moved in waves that never stopped. I wasn’t really seeing them. My mind was elsewhere.I’d told Amari that parties weren’t my thing, and that I wasn’t in the mood, that I had a million other excuses lined up to avoid it. Even using Demi's unfortunate condition as one excuse.But she didn't listen. She dragged me here and practically threatened to ti
Ivy's POV I feigned confusion, trying to make my voice steady. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”Brandon didn’t buy it for a second.He shifted closer, his body brushing against mine in the smallest, most deliberate movement. It wasn’t even a touch, not really, just a slow, careful invasion of space. His hand hovered near my hip, so close that I could feel the heat radiating off of him, and could sense the exact distance between his fingers and my skin.My pulse kicked up, but I forced myself to hold my ground.“I smelled you the second you got there,” he murmured, his voice low, almost thoughtful.My stomach tightened. I knew exactly what he meant, but I wasn’t about to admit that.“I don’t—”“I smelled you,” he repeated, cutting me off, his tone quieter now, almost amused. Savoring. Like he was rolling the words around in his mouth just to enjoy how they tasted. “And I smelled what watching did to you. That little pulse of arousal you tried to fight.”I went still.Every
Brandon's POV.I hadn’t planned on this.Teasing Ivy had started as just that. Just teasing. To watch her squirm, to prove that no matter how much she tried to act unaffected, she wasn’t. Because I knew it.I saw it in the way she stiffened when I got too close, in the way her throat bobbed with every sharp swallow, in the way her breath hitched even as she was trying so hard to stay indifferent.But this time, the second my eyes dragged down her body in that little black dress, something shifted.I felt it.The sharp pull in my gut. The sudden heat curling through my veins. The way my own breathing faltered without permission.She smelled too fucking good.Like something soft and sweet, vanilla and honey, with the faintest trace of that lotion she always wore, something subtle, something dangerous in how easily it wrapped around my senses. But beneath that, beneath the innocent surface, was something else.Something raw and undeniable.Her arousal.It clung to her skin, subtle but in
94.Ivy's POV.I was not prepared for this.The second Brandon opened the door, my mind just blanked. Completely.He stood there, freshly showered, damp hair falling messily over his forehead. Water still clung to his skin, glistening in the dim light, dripping down the sharp lines of his collarbones, trailing over the hard ridges of his abs before disappearing beneath the loose waistband of his sweatpants. Every inch of him looked like something out of a damn magazine, and I couldn’t stop staring.My throat felt suddenly dry, my grip tightening around the tray in my hands.Brandon smirked, clearly amused. “Are you just going to stand there gawking?”His voice snapped me out of it. My eyes jerked up to his face, and heat rushed to my cheeks so fast I thought I might combust on the spot.“I—no, I—” I stammered, struggling to gather a single coherent thought.His smirk deepened.I swallowed, trying to shake off the embarrassment. “I brought you food,” I muttered, shifting the tray in m
93.Ivy's POV Brandon had been gone for two days. Not that I was keeping track, or that I cared.I wasn’t noticing how quiet the house felt without him. I wasn’t catching myself glancing at the door of my room every night, half-expecting to hear his footsteps. I wasn’t wondering where he had gone or why he had left without saying anything. It wasn’t any of my business.I kept telling myself that. Over and over again.But by the second night, the silence was gnawing at me.I finally gave in while helping Mom clean up after dinner. She washed the dishes and I dried, with the warm scent of dish soap filling the air. I tried to keep my voice casual, like I wasn’t fishing for information.“Mum, where’s Brandon?”She hummed as she rinsed a plate. “Oh, he went on a weekend getaway with Amari.”My fingers clenched around the dish towel. “Oh.”Just like that, my mood shifted.Mom didn’t notice. She kept talking, smiling as if it was the sweetest thing in the world. “It’s nice that they’re spe
92.Brandon's POV Amari spun around the second I stepped inside, her face instantly paling.She looked startled, like a kid caught sneaking out past curfew, like she had been in the middle of something she didn’t want me to see. Her hands twitched at her sides, fingers curling slightly as she took a small step back.“W-what are you doing here?” she asked, her voice unsteady. Her wide eyes flicked from me to the hallway, like she was already calculating an escape route.Before I could answer, her father turned to me, wearing a warm, practiced smile. Completely unfazed.“Brandon,” he said with an approving nod. “Amari told me you two went on a weekend getaway. That’s good. It’s nice to see you both spending quality time together.”I didn’t respond.I was too focused on her. The way she wouldn’t meet my eyes. The way her shoulders were drawn tight, her stance stiff like she was waiting for something, dreading something.Her father didn’t seem to notice the tension radiating from her. Or
Chapter 91My mind was a tangled mess, thoughts twisting in every possible direction, colliding and unraveling all at once.The witch’s death wasn’t some freak accident. Someone had killed her, ripped her heart out before she could finish the ritual. That wasn’t just a coincidence. That was deliberate. That meant there was something to find, something someone didn’t want me knowing.If the mate bond was real, there would be no reason to stop me from checking it. No reason to go as far as murder just to keep me from questioning it.Which meant there was something off about it.I exhaled through my nose, gripping the wheel a little tighter. This should have unsettled me, should have made me feel worse than I already did. But beneath the frustration, beneath the questions and the chaos, there was something else.Relief.Because if this mate bond wasn’t real, if it had been manipulated, then I wouldn’t have to be bound to Amari. I could sever it completely. I could be free of it.The thou
90.Brandon's POV Amari didn’t say a word for the rest of the drive.She just sat there, arms crossed, staring out the window. Her expression was unreadable, but the way her fingers gripped her sleeves told me enough. She was holding something in, whether it was anxiety, anger, or fear, I wasn’t sure.By the time we reached Hex Hollow, the town was draped in mist, making the narrow roads seem endless. It was smaller than I expected. The trees by the road side weren’t normal. Their trunks twisted like they were in pain, and their bark were covered in strange carvings.What the hell is this place?The witch’s house sat at the very edge of the area, partially hidden behind some trees. It was old, the wood had darkened with age, and the windows concealed by heavy, dust-coated curtains. The place had a presence, something subtle but undeniable, like the house itself was watching us.I knocked once.The door creaked open just enough for a woman to peer out from the shadows. Her face was s
Brandon's POV I didn’t even have to think twice.The moment I stepped out of my father’s office, my decision was already made. I was going to Hex Hollow. No second-guessing, no hesitation. It didn’t matter how far it was or how much of a pain in the ass the trip would be. I needed answers.For days, I had been reading up on manipulated mate bonds, digging through every scrap of information I could find. The more I read, the more the pieces started falling into place.Black magic had been bound centuries ago, forbidden and sealed away. But that didn’t mean it was completely inaccessible. There were still ways to tap into it. And the ones who could were those who had given themselves over completely, souls already claimed, corrupted beyond saving.Those people were the only ones capable of forging a mate bond.And my gut told me that was exactly what had happened to me.The day I decided to leave came faster than I expected. I had smoothly lied to Amari that we were going on a weekend
Brandon's POV I found my father in his study. The heavy scent of old books, leather, and his colonge filled the air, a smell I had long associated with him. The fireplace crackled softly in the background, casting flickering shadows along the walls. He barely looked up when I stepped inside, his eyes scanning the documents on his desk with focus, the soft scratch of his pen filling the silence.I shut the door behind me. “Dad.”His pen paused mid-signature, then he set it down carefully beside the paper, finally lifting his gaze to meet mine. “Brandon.” He gestured toward the chair in front of his desk. “Have a seat.”I walked further into the room and sank into the chair, leaning forward slightly, resting my elbows on my knees. “I need to talk to you about something.”His expression remained unreadable, but he leaned back in his chair, interlacing his fingers over his chest. “About?”“The mate bond.”For a brief second, something flickered in his gaze, mild amusement, maybe, but
87Brandon's POV.The entire day was shit.It felt like something had burrowed under my skin, clawing at me from the inside, refusing to let go. No matter what I did, training, schoolwork, anything, I couldn’t shake the feeling off.Ivy’s words kept playing in my head, over and over, like a damn broken record.She had said it so firmly, so convincingly, like she actually believed it. Like she could just walk away from this and pretend none of it had ever happened.It pissed me off more than it should have.I tried to focus. Tried to let it go. But my punches in the gym were off, my movements were sluggish. School was even worse. I barely heard a word any of my teachers said, staring blankly at my notes only to realize I hadn’t written a single thing down. Every little thing irritated me, the scraping of chairs, and the way the clock seemed to drag on endlessly.And, of course, Amari noticed.She had been watching me all day, her gaze sharp and calculating, waiting for the right momen
Ivy's POV.Dinner was quiet, the only sounds filling the space were the soft clinking of cutlery against porcelain plates. It was just the three of us. Brandon, my mother, and me. I pushed a piece of chicken around my plate, watching as the sauce smeared across the white ceramic. Then something clicked in my mind, a memory from yesterday that I hadn’t fully processed until now. Setting my fork down, I glanced up at my mother. “Hey, Mom,” I said, keeping my tone light, casual. “Were you at the carnival yesterday?”She froze.For a split second, I saw it, the way her expression flickered, a flash of something almost like panic before she smoothed it over, replacing it with her usual warm, easy smile. It happened so fast that I might have imagined it."The carnival?" She let out a soft chuckle, shaking her head as she reached for her glass of water. "No, sweetheart, of course not. Why would I be there?"I frowned, studying her face carefully. There was nothing there now, no trace of th