Brandon's POV Ivy was lying on her side, her back turned to me, the sheets slipping low around her waist. The moonlight filtering through the window casting a pale glow across her bare skin. I stayed still for a moment, just watching her as she slept.Her breathing was slow and steady. And my eyes trailed lower, catching on the faint red lines across her back and thighs, marks from my claws, from my fingers. A subtle reminder of the night we’d just had. But yet, something still nagged at me.I couldn’t shake the sense of worry that I felt thinking about her with another man. She hadn’t said anything, but I knew. I knew the way her eyes flickered when she was hiding something, how quiet she got when her thoughts were too heavy to speak. The sweat on her forehead. The way she couldn’t meet my eyes.My jaw clenched as I exhaled through my nose. What if someone had gotten too close? What if something had happened, something she didn’t want to talk about? The thought made my chest tigh
Brandon's POV Kiel was so close to the surface now, his desires were merging with mine until I couldn’t tell where one ended and the other began. I pinned her against the nearest tree, my body pressing against hers, my lips moving against her in a way that was anything but gentle. It was wild, desperate, fueled by the raw energy of the run and how close Kiel was She was so sweet and intoxicating, and it only made me want her more. My hands roamed over her body, grasping her hips, pulling her closer until there was no space between us. I could feel her heart racing against my chest, her breath coming in shallow pants.Ivy moaned into my mouth, her hands clutching at my shoulders, her nails digging into my skin, matching me with a ferocity that only stoked the flames higher.My fingers traced the curves of her hips, the swell of her breasts, and I tore at her clothes, Kiel's impatience guiding my movements. The clothes fell away, leaving her bare with only her panties to the cool nig
Brandon's POV Since the time Ivy had excused herself to the bathroom, she had not yet returned, the event had dragged on longer than I’d anticipated, and my patience was running thin. The chatter around me felt muffled, like a low hum. All of a sudden, Kiel snapped alert, his senses prickling with alarm. A wave of panic surged through me and I knew something was wrong. I couldn’t place it, but the feeling was there, sharp and insistent. My eyes scanned the room quickly, but I couldn’t find her. And it only made my gut twist tighter. I didn’t wait any longer. I had to find her.I followed her scent, and it pulled me through the crowd with alarming precision. The closer I got, the more my instincts screamed at me. There was something off. Something had happened. The scent of her fear was very much undeniable, like the echo of something bad that had just happened.I turned the corner into a hallway, and there she was. Ivy. She was standing by the wall with her hands pressed to her ne
Ivy's POV I froze the second I saw him.Aaron.Standing there, just outside the bathroom door, like the last five years hadn’t happened. I watched him burst into flames right in front of me, reducing him to nothing but smoke and ash. I watched as Brandon killed him. I watched him died.Aaron died.I knew he had.So how was he here?He didn’t move. Didn’t speak. Just stood there, staring at me with eyes that were too still, too empty. There was no flicker of recognition, no curiosity, no rage. Just blankness. Like he wasn’t even real.That scared me more than if he had lunged at me.Something cold slid down my spine, tightening around my chest like a vise. My body broke into a cold sweat. The hairs on my arms stood up. My hands trembled without permission, and my knees threatened to give out.I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think.Every instinct I had screamed run.So I did.My feet turned before my brain could catch up, and I bolted. My heels clacked loudly against the floor, nearly
139Ivy's POV Jeremy kept calling and texting as much as possible, but I ignored every single one. Deleted the texts without reading them. Blocked, unblocked, ignored again. And it was getting too exhausting.Life as Luna wasn’t what I expected. It wasn’t easier, not by a long shot. But it was getting clearer. There were rules, schedules, expectations. People watching my every move. And also people teaching me how to hold my ground. I had started easing into the role. Into the rhythm of it all.Tonight was the official ball. Our first public appearance as a married couple. All it had been between us was sex. and I couldn't even deny that I didn't want him or waited every night in anticipation for him.The staff moved around me like I was a sculpture they were still perfecting. They moved about the room and around me with brushes and pins, adjusting details I couldn’t even see.The gown they’d chosen was deep black. It was sleeveless, hugging my waist so perfectly it felt like it had
138Ivy's POV “Pillows, really?” Brandon’s voice cut through the silence of the room, laced with the kind of amused disbelief that made my spine stiffen instantly. He stood at the foot of the bed, arms folded, one eyebrow raised as he stared down at the long, solid wall of pillows I’d lined straight down the middle of the mattress. I didn’t even flinch. I just sank deeper into my side of the bed and reached lazily for the book on the nightstand. “Well, since you’ve decided I’m not allowed to leave this room anymore,” I said without looking up, “I figured I should be proactive.”His eyes trailed over the pillow wall again, unimpressed. “And you really think this is going to stop me?”“No,” I said simply, propping myself up on one elbow and flipping a page I hadn’t read. “But I know what can.”That got his attention.He paused. A small shift in his stance. His smirk faltered for a half second as I reached for the bond.It tightened around his chest, invisible but very much there, pr
Ivy's POV I stared at him, frozen for a second, caught completely off guard. He stood there, leaning casually against the bathroom door like we were just two old friends catching up. That smug grin stretched across his face like it had every right to be there.“Jeremy, what the hell are you doing here?” I snapped, the words coming out sharp and loud. The shock sitting in my chest twisted quickly into anger, and something sharp under my ribs that felt like panic.Instead of answering, he stepped forward, and before I could react, he wrapped his arms around me as if we were still close, like no time had passed and nothing had changed.I shoved him back with both hands, hard. He stumbled a step, looking more surprised than hurt. “Are you mad?” I spat.He laughed. Actually laughed. Then brushed invisible dust off his sleeves like I’d just mildly inconvenienced him.“God, I’m honestly in awe,” he said, still smiling. “I’ll admit, when you used to go on and on about killing the Alpha Kin
126Ivy's POV Jackie and I had picked a day to hang out a few days back, and it just so happened to be today. I’d been looking forward to it all week. After being drowned in royal routines and Luna lessons, I needed something that felt even a little normal.I had just finished clipping the last clasp on my sandals when the door burst open.I didn’t even have to turn to know who it was.In the mirror, I caught sight of him standing there like some brooding storm, arms crossed and shoulders tense.“Where do you think you’re going?” he asked.I didn’t answer right away. I took my time applying a bit of gloss, smoothing it with my finger. I checked my reflection, adjusted the straps of my dress slightly, and only then turned around to face him.“Out,” I said plainly. “I have a date.”“A date?” he repeated, stepping into the room like the word offended him. “With who?”“Jackie.”That made him stop for half a second. But then he recovered, jaw clenching. “Ivy, you can’t just go out at ran
Brandon's POV “You know,” Liam said, throwing one leg lazily over the other and kicking his boots up on the edge of the table.“I’ve never seen a groom glow before. Brides, yeah, sure. But you? You’re out here grinning at nothing all over the palace and glowing like the moon goddess came down just to sprinkle a little blessing on your forehead.”I gave him a look and popped a grape into my mouth. “Shut up.”“No, I mean it. I never thought you'd fall head over heels for Ivy.”I couldn’t help the laugh that slipped out. “You’re actually right though.” I leaned back into the couch, letting the truth settle in my chest. “If there’s anything this whole circus of a life gave me, it’s falling in love with Ivy. I didn’t even see it happening. Because if we hadn’t been forced to live under the same roof, I probably wouldn’t have looked at her twice. But now? I’m in love with her.”He grinned widely. “So you two were actually hooking up as step-siblings?”I rolled my eyes and grabbed the clos