Ivy's POV The first trimester was flying by faster than I expected, but that didn’t make it any easier. The nausea was unrelenting, sweeping in at the most inconvenient hours and dragging me from sleep straight to the bathroom. Morning sickness didn’t stick to mornings. It came in waves, unpredictable and exhausting. And yet, somewhere in the middle of the discomfort and dizziness, there was this quiet, pulsing joy. I was carrying a life. Brandon’s and mine. That thought alone kept me anchored when nothing else did.Brandon had stepped up in ways I hadn’t imagined. He was constantly hovering, gentle, relentless, completely devoted. I wasn’t allowed to lift a single thing. He made sure I ate, even when my appetite vanished, fed me in bed, rubbed my back when I curled up from slight cramps, and turned into something of a personal butler who refused to complain. And then there was the little witch always nearby, somehow knowing the exact moment I needed a cold cloth or lemon water or
Brandon's POVThis morning, I didn't let Ivy get a chance to lift a single finger.I was up before the sun, already halfway through making her breakfast by the time she stirred. Scrambled eggs, soft, just the way she liked them, thick slices of toasted bread slathered in butter, and that strange ginger tea she’d developed a sudden obsession with.I brought it all to her in bed, balancing the tray carefully as I leaned over to kiss her forehead.She tried to bat me away with a groggy glare. “I’m not an invalid, Brandon.”She said it with a pout, but I didn’t care. Watching her eat something I made, knowing it was for her and the baby, did something to me. It was more than pride. It was purpose.After breakfast, I insisted on helping her into the bath. She groaned and rolled her eyes, said she was fully capable of doing it herself, and maybe she was. But I wasn’t interested in capability. I was interested in caution. In care. I wasn’t going to risk her, or the life inside her, over stub
Ivy's POVTwo days had passed, and when I woke that morning, it felt like my entire head had been stuffed with cotton. A dull, throbbing ache pulsed right between my eyebrows, and my stomach churned in slow, miserable waves.I stayed still, hoping it would pass, blaming the wine from last night or the choppy boat ride we’d taken around the islands.But the nausea didn’t fade. It crept up hotter, stronger, curling in my gut like a warning.I clenched my jaw and breathed slow, shallow breaths, willing the sensation to settle. Brandon’s voice drifted from the kitchen, soft and casual, humming some off-key melody as he moved around the suite.The warm scent of butter, eggs, and something sweet drifted toward me, and that was all it took.The nausea slammed back like a wave and I barely made it to the bathroom in time.The sound of me retching bounced off the bathroom tiles, loud and harsh. A few seconds later, I heard Brandon’s footsteps rushing down the hall.“Ivy?” he called, knocking o
Ivy's POVGreece felt like a dream I never wanted to wake up from. The blue-domed buildings of Santorini, the golden sunlight glittering over the endless sea, the way time itself seemed to slow down here, everything felt suspended, like the world had pressed pause just for us.Every morning started the same. Brandon’s arms wrapped around me, his lips brushing lazy kisses down my shoulder as the early light filtered through the white curtains.We had slow, quiet lovemaking, the kind that made me feel safe, seen, adored. When we were done, he’d roll out of bed, hair messy, eyes still heavy with sleep, and disappear into the small kitchen of our villa. Moments later, the smell of fresh bread or honey would drift into the room.Somehow, he always managed to find the perfect breakfast. Greek yogurt drizzled with honey, ripe figs and sun-warmed apricots, pastries so soft they melted on the tongue. He’d feed me from his fingers, grinning between each bite as he stole kisses, like he couldn’t
Ivy's POVIt had been a week since Jeremy’s death. A week since Brandon carried me out of that shrine, like I was nothing more than a fragile, broken thing he couldn’t bear to face.A week since he sacked the little witch. I never even got to say goodbye. According to him, she endangered my life, and when I tried to argue, he shut me down with a single, cold look.Since then, there hadn’t been much communication between us. Just monosyllables.Yes. No. Fine. Okay.All of this, a week ago.Now we were on a private jet, the hum of the engine the only sound between us. I was curled up in one of the plush leather seats, a blanket draped over me, but my eyes were fixed on him.Brandon, my husband.He sat across from me, staring out the window, his gaze distant and unfocused. His jaw was clenched tight, his posture rigid, and his fingers were pressed together in front of him, almost like he was trying to contain something too big for him to hold.The silence between us stretched on, heavy a
Ivy's POVI woke to the thick scent of old blood and smoke clinging to the air like rot. My head pounded with a deep, pulsing ache, and my wrists throbbed where rough rope bit into raw skin.The stone beneath me was freezing, sucking the warmth from my body as if the floor itself wanted to consume me. Every bone, every muscle felt bruised, like I’d been tossed down a mountain and left for dead.I blinked hard, trying to force my vision to focus.Candlelight flickered around me in a loose, eerie circle. Shadows danced along the walls, and the walls carved with symbols I didn’t recognize. But they looked ancient. This wasn’t just some hideout.This was a shrine.And then I saw him.Jeremy stood a few feet away, his back turned, shirtless and barefoot, wearing nothing but a thin black cloth wrapped low around his hips. His skin glistened with sweat, and his muscles were tense.Even before he turned, I knew it was him. I could feel the wrongness in the air, the madness radiating from him