Ivy's POV“You love Sylvia?” The Lycan Queen presses her mouth in shock, looking between the two with wide eyes. She doesn’t seem mad, exactly, but she seems confused–not quite sure what to say. What could she say, after all? The man who’s just undone her daughter’s engagement is suddenly pronouncing his love for her. There are very few positive ways this situation could play out. “I do love her,” Wilson declares boldly, jaw set with determination as he doubles down on the declaration. Sylvia looks at him with wide, shining eyes. A smile starts to creep across her face until she’s beaming widely, looking at him like he’s the center of the universe. “Well, do you love him, Sylvia?” The Lycan Queen asks. “I do,” Sylvia confesses shyly, stealing another glance at him. The Lycan King narrows his eyes at the pair. “How long has this been going on?” He asks gruffly. “Since my eighteenth birthday,” Sylvia replies with a blush. “Since you were eighteen?” The king repeats, glaring at
Ivy's POVWilson looks happier than I’ve ever seen him look before. His fingers are interlocked with Sylvia’s, but now there’s no shame to it, no hidden fright at the possibility of being seen during even the briefest moment of fleeting touch. Instead he pulls her closer as the Lycan King and Queen rush forward to hug the happy and congratulate them on their newfound engagement. “Congratulations!” The Lycan Queen says, smiling happily at Sylvia. “You shall have a wedding after all, and–you know, it’s every mother’s dream for her daughter to marry for love with a partner who can give her what she needs. I’m glad everything is working out for you.” I feel a slight sting at her words, certain it’s a thinly-veiled jab at me and my status, which has done nothing but drag Spencer’s down. My weakness, my vulnerability–those things I’ve shed. But as a viable marriage candidate for Spencer, from a crown politics standpoint, I don’t really have much going for me. “I’m glad Sylvia is going
Spencer's POVAs I stare into Ivy’s eyes, I can’t help but see her as guilty. After having the warriors follow her around for the past couple of days, I was enraged to learn that Alpha Quentin was the man she’d been sleeping with. How she looked leaving his bedchambers has haunted me, how ready she was to throw herself at him. As though our mate bond has meant nothing to her this whole time. Ivy grabs my arm and pulls me into her room quickly. “What are you talking about?” She hisses, keeping her voice low. I glare at her. I can’t believe that she’d try and feign ignorance with all of this–after the warrior confirmed he saw Ivy pull Alpha Quentin into a conference room, I’ve been pacing back and forth in my bedroom, trying desperately to figure out how to confront Ivy about all of this. But then I’d received the mind link from my mother, the Lycan Queen, telling me that Sylvia is no longer engaged to Alpha Quentin, and that she’d be marrying Beta Wilson instead. What I can’t fig
Ivy's POVAt the look of profound hurt in Spencer’s eyes, I can’t help but feel shocked and stunned by his audacity. “You need to mind your own business and leave me alone,” I snap at him. “Don’t forget–you left me. What right do you have to feel upset about what I do or don’t do with other people? You want to move on? Fine! It’s not like you’d give me a choice in the matter either way!” I didn’t sleep with Quentin, but you know what? Maybe Spencer needs to think I did, even just for a couple moments. Maybe then he’ll be able to understand that he can have me or he can leave me, but he can’t drag me along behind him forever.Maybe then he’ll have it in him to take me back. Spencer shakes his head, eyes blazing with fury. He stalks towards me, still breathing heavily. I watch the rise and fall of his chest. “This is unacceptable,” he growls, a low hum of a sound that sends shivers along my skin. I look up at him defiantly. “Oh, is it now?” I ask, voice dripping with fake pity. “Li
Ivy's POVAs I’m struggling to gather my breath, Spencer’s hands are already fumbling with the buttons of my blouse, trailing across my skin and burning like a brand. His lips break from mine abruptly, then trail along my jaw, my neck, my collarbones. I feel like I’m on fire, lost in the sweet haze of his kisses, of his sweet affection. For a few fleeting moments–just a few–I’m in Spencer’s arms, and everything is right in the world. But then I remember everything that’s happened between us, the context that brought him to my bedroom, and I finally have it in me to push him away. “Wait,” I tell Spencer, placing my hand soldily on his chest as I shove him away. “Wait, no, this–this isn’t right.” Spencer looks up at me, mouth half-open. His lips are already slightly swollen and he’s breathing heavily, clearly caught up in a thick haze of lust. Half the buttons on my shirt have already been undone, and my skirt is riding up my thighs. “How could this not be right?” He asks breathi
Spencer's POVSeeing Ivy spread out on the bedsheets, breathless and barely able to form words, is almost enough to make me break my resolve and just fuck her like this. But there’s something so addictive about making her beg. I continue to trace my tongue over her. I know exactly where Ivy wants me to focus, and find endless pleasure in just barely grazing that spot, making her whimper and gasp. She’s so wet she’s dripping onto the floor, and the entire lower half of my face is covered in her sweet taste. I could eat her out forever. “I could get you off whenever you want me to,” I mention to her offhandedly, stopping for just a second to continue to taunt her. “You know what you have to say.” Ivy’s legs, clamped firmly around the sides of my head, tremble. “I–I won’t–” I thrust my tongue into her, and her words dissolve into moans again. “Whenever you want me to,” I say again. “Fuck, Spencer!” Ivy breathes out, clutching my hair tightly. “Fuck, fuck, fuck–” I gradually star
Ivy's POVAs Spencer wraps his arms around me and pulls me onto the bed beside him, I find myself reeling from what just happened between the two of us. I can feel him seeping out of me, a strange warmth pooling out from between my legs, a sticky reminder of what’s just transpired. As the aftershocks roll through me, I look up at Spencer, whose eyes are half-closed as he stares up at the ceiling. Almost subconsciously, he pulls me even closer against his bare chest, and I can hear the steady thrum of his heartbeat beneath his skin. We just had sex. We’re not together anymore–Spencer is engaged to Delilah, and if anything, he’s been avoiding me like the plague. But even despite all of that, we just had sex. What does this mean for us? My mouth falls open as I look up at Spencer again, admiring the gentle angles of his face. I want to trace my fingers along his skin, to feel every inch of him. But now that our intimacy has ended, it feels forbidden to touch him in such romantic wa
Spencer's POVAs Ivy speaks, I can feel my heart beginning to warm. “What is it?” Ivy asks, locking eyes with me and tilting her head. She seems confused as I continue to gaze at her. “It–it’s nothing,” I manage to say, breaking eye contact and looking away. The only way I’ve been able to bear not being with Ivy is by avoiding her completely. I’ve been doing everything in my power to make sure our paths don’t cross, because I’ve known that the second the opportunity presented itself, I’d have her back in my arms. Not being with Ivy is agony, but I’ve been able to manage it by keeping her at arm’s length. But listening to her explain her love and passion for Wilson and Sylvia, I can feel all those feelings I’ve been trying to bury claw their way back up. The woman I’ve fallen in love with is kind, warm and gentle. She’d do anything for anyone out of nothing but the goodness of her heart. Despite everything Ivy has been through, she tries to see the world in the best way possible.
Spencer's POVI can feel Elder Jet watching me as the life slowly ebbs from my body, and I want to tear his eyes out. He’s smirking down at me, lips curled into a sickening grin. I grit my teeth as I look up at him. I think I could stand up if I wanted to, maybe land a couple weak blows, maybe draw a bit of blood, but what’s the point? I’d rather save my energy for when I know I’d at least have a fighting chance at getting something done. “Your army is failing,” Elder Jet says to me, crouching down by my side. “Or rather—you failed them, didn’t you? Because you weren’t strong enough, weren’t smart enough, weren’t able to do what needed to be done. I suppose losing Ivy rattled you even more than I would have anticipated, hm?” He chuckles, a bitter, rasping sound. “You can’t even begin to imagine how glorious it feels to get everything you ever wanted so perfectly laid out for you.”I’m still trying to reach out to my centurions, hoping to rally them and their troops to battle. But ag
Spencer's POVElder Jet’s cold laugh chills me to the bone. “My, my, Prince Spencer,” he says smugly. I can see him towering over me, can feel the droplets of my own blood pooling into the ground below me as the silver mist works its way into my skin. “I thought you’d at least be able to put up a better fight than that!” “A prince’s pride is often his own undoing,” comes the witch’s voice, prompting another wave of revulsion to come over me. “So I can’t say I’m particularly surprised.” I let out a ragged cough, droplets of blood splattering out this time. That can’t be good. My chest burns as small drops of silver continue to worm through my skin, and the sizzle of my flesh on fire combined with the iron tang in the back of my throat makes me want to puke. I want to speak, want to form words, but it feels like my vocal chords have been severed and drenched in lighter fluid. Reinforcements. We need reinforcements. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Gamma Everly, Alpha Leo, and
Spencer's POV“I really did try to warn you.” The witch’s words are nonchalant, spoken with a sigh as she tucks the silver spray back into one of the pockets of her dress. She watches Gamma Everly, Alpha Leo, and Wilson carefully as the silver spray begins to take effect. A shiver of revulsion runs through me as I realize what’s happening. Their pained, piercing screams fill the air as they all swat at their skin frantically, as though they’re being stung by a swarm of bees. Those little droplets of silver mist, innocuous and beautiful as they seem, appear to be burrowing into everyone’s skin. I can see little pinpricks of blood running down every inch of exposed flesh–even Gamma Everly, who’s encased almost head to toe in her heavy red armour, has blood on her face as she tries desperately to rub the spray off her face. The smell of overcooked meat fills the air, and my stomach turns. Small wisps of smoke are rising up from the site of everyone’s exposure. Gamma Everly, Alpha Leo,
Spencer's POV“Step away from them!” Gamma Everly’s voice is strong as she levels her sword at the witch’s chest. Even in the pale moonlight, her red armour seems to glow, almost illuminating her in a crimson halo. The blade’s edge is wicked sharp, and even just looking at it makes my skin feel a twinge of sympathetic pain. Her eyes are cruel and hard as diamonds as they bore right through the witch’s skull. But the witch only lets out a calm, melodic laugh as she trails her fingers along the sides of the small silver bottle she’s just procured. Alpha Leo and Wilson exchange concerned looks as they stand behind Gamma Everly, prepared to back her up the moment she needs it. “Gamma Everly, please don’t be so foolish,” the witch says with a sneer. “And tell those men to stand down, too. Ivy and Spencer are dying. There’s nothing you can do to save them. I can take you down in an instant if I want to, but I figure I should do you the courtesy of sparing you that pain now.” “Not a chan
“I love you.”Ivy’s final words to me ring in my ears like gunshots. I hold her close, I kiss her forehead softly, I do everything I can think to do because I can feel her slipping away. Her body is so small in my arms, so frail, and I can tell I’m losing her, and then–Ivy’s strange, dreamed-up world flickers in and out of view, alternating between the woods and the battlefield outside of the barracks. All at once, she’s not in my arms. I don’t know where she is, but I’m lying on bloodstained grass and I can hear the fighting all around me and my throat feels like it’s on fire. I’m awake now. This isn’t a dream. It hits me all at once, the crushing weight of realization–if we’re not inside Ivy’s mind anymore, if we’re not intertwined in that beautiful place where we could avoid the rest of the world, that must mean Ivy wasn’t able to sustain the connection for any longer than she did. And considering the poison she’d swallowed, considering the undeniable consequence of that…She’s
Ivy's POVIt takes me a good couple of moments to realize I’m not dead. Death, I’d always imagined, would be cold. Distant. Disconnected–and that’s only if I’m aware of anything at all. But as my eyes slowly open and I continue to hear the overwhelming cacophony of war all around me, it slowly dawns on me that I’m not, in fact, dead. The pain hits me a couple moments later. In my mind, it had been a nagging sort of reminder. But all at once, my throat is burning like it’s been doused with acid once more, and blood keeps dribbling down my lips. The overpowering iron taste is enough to make me want to throw up, but I do my best to hold it back. The feeling of bile against my already-shredded throat would no doubt push my already-excruciating agony to new, unimaginable heights. I’m trembling from head to toe. My entire body feels weak and limb, barely within my control. It’s hard to feel much of anything beyond the pain, really. How am I alive? I should be dead. ‘Hang in there, Ivy
Ivy's POV“Loving you is the best thing I ever did.” Spencer’s hands in mine are soft and warm and reassuring. He feels like coming home. Like relaxing. Like finally letting myself feel peace. I look at him, and my heart flutters. He’s going to be the last thing I ever see, and I couldn’t have chosen a better view. “Thank you for telling me,” I say to Spencer. It feels as though a weight has been lifted from my shoulders. I’m almost ashamed to admit it, but for so long, I’ve been clinging to the notion that Spencer left me because he wanted to. Because he could. “I wanted to tell you sooner,” Spencer admits. “There were so many times… but then there would be people around, or Delilah would interrupt me, or–did you know she told me she’d explain the whole situation to you herself, so no one would be suspicious and think the engagement was false? That was her entire reason for me to keep it a secret! All so the rest of the world would believe that Delilah was my mate, not you.” I
Spencer's POVIvy and I are lying in the grass, and as time continues to pass in this stolen in-between, I can tell her mind is racing a thousand miles a minute. I roll over so I’m facing her. I could spend a lifetime admiring Ivy–her soft, sculpted features, her beautiful blue eyes as endless as oceans, the way her auburn hair spills over her shoulders. When I'm this close to her, when we’re almost face-to-face, I can see faded freckles splashed across her cheeks like constellations. She’s a work of art. Her gaze is fixed on the sky up above, lips parted ever so slightly, hands clasped over her chest. And she’s completely, utterly lost in thought. I reach over and grab one of Ivy’s hands. She jolts ever so slightly at the touch, then looks over and smiles distantly at me. I furrow my brow. “What’s on your mind?” I ask her. “It seems so silly to bring up now,” Ivy mumbles. “Don’t worry about it, please.” I tilt my head, looking her over once more. I’m trying to etch every last
Spencer's POVMy only regret is that I didn’t have a proper ring to give her. I know the ring I would have used to propose to Ivy, had I had the chance. The ring that’s been in my family for generations. The one with decades of history behind it, that would have symbolized her place as my future queen. If Ivy and I ever got the opportunity, that would be the ring I offered to her. But as I kneel on the grass, feeling the dew slowly soak through the fabric of my pants, and reach into my back pocket, I’ve still got a ring for her. “Ivy,” I say softly. Her voice is a prayer on my lips. “You are the most courageous, brave, incredible, and beautiful girl that I’ve ever known. You’re the love of my life and the only thing that matters to me. I want nothing more than to–to spend the rest of my life with you…” I look away, the words beginning to choke me up, but return my gaze to her as I press on. “I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you and make you my Queen.” “Sp