로그인IVYThe room Everett showed me was bigger than I expected. High ceilings, wide windows overlooking the mountains, soft lighting that made the wood floors glow warm. A king-sized bed sat against one wall, a plush armchair in the corner, and a private balcony with a view that could take anyone’s breath away. For a second it almost felt normal—like I was checking into a fancy resort instead of stepping back into the nightmare I had tried so hard to escape. But then the truth settled in my chest like cold stone. This wasn’t a vacation. This was a deal. Seven days. One week of being Everett’s model. One week of facing the past I thought I had left behind.And Cassian was here.Everett hadn’t said a word about it. He had smiled, handed me the key, and walked away like it was nothing. But the second I stepped inside and saw the camera bag on the table by the window, I knew. That bag was Cassian’s. The same one he used at the lake house. The same one that had captured every moment he stole f
IVYThe train ride felt like a slow descent into something I couldn’t escape.Five hours of watching mountains rise and fall outside the window, five hours of cool air leaking through the cracks, five hours of my own thoughts screaming louder than the wheels on the tracks. Everett had sent the address and time two days ago. He had also wired money into my account — a “bonus” he called it, enough to make my stomach turn. It was real. He wasn’t joking. I stared at the notification for a long time before I bought the ticket. I didn’t tell Sarah. I didn’t tell Jonas. They would have screamed at me to say no, to run the other way, to stay far from Everett and anything that smelled like Cassian. But I was tired of running. Tired of hiding. Tired of feeling like the past was always one step behind me. If diving back into the murky water was what it took to end this once and for all, then I would dive. Even if it meant I might drown.The train pulled into the small station at the edge of t
IVY The cafe door felt heavier than it should have when I pushed it open. My hands were already cold, even though the evening air outside wasn’t that chilly. I stepped inside and the smell of fresh coffee and warm pastries hit me, but none of it felt comforting. It felt like walking into a trap I had chosen to step into. My heart was hammering so hard I could feel it in my throat. I shouldn’t have come there. I knew that. I scanned the room. Everett was sitting at a corner table near the window, one leg crossed over the other, a cup of something steaming in front of him. He looked relaxed, like he had all the time in the world. When he saw me, his mouth curved into that familiar smile — the one that always made my skin crawl, like he was already imagining me in ways I didn’t want to be seen. I walked over. My legs felt unsteady. I sat down across from him. Didn’t smile back. “Hi, my sexy Ivy,” he said, voice smooth and low, like we were old friends catching up
I came back to the motel with tears still drying on my cheeks. The park air had been cold, the bench hard, Everett’s words sharper than any knife. I wiped my face with my sleeve before I reached the door, took a deep breath, forced my expression into something that might pass for calm. Noah was waiting inside. I couldn’t let him see me like this—not shattered, not raging, not ready to break all over again. I needed to hold it together. Just for tonight. I pushed the door open. Noah was on the couch, elbows on his knees, phone in his hands. He looked up the second he heard me. His face changed instantly—worry flooding in, eyes searching mine like he could read every secret I was trying to hide. He stood. Crossed the room in two steps. “Is everything okay?” he asked, voice low and urgent. I managed a small nod. Forced a smile that felt like it might crack my lips. Then I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around him. He hugged me back immediately—tight, fierce, li
IVYI shouldn’t have come.The thought hit me the second I stepped off the motel stairs and felt the evening air bite my cheeks. The park was only a ten-minute walk, but every step felt heavier, like my shoes were filling with wet cement. Noah was back in the room, probably already wondering why I’d rushed out with that weak excuse about Mr. Chen. I’d kissed his cheek, smiled like everything was fine, and left before he could ask more questions. I hated lying to him. I hated that I was walking toward Everett instead of staying in his arms where—for once—nothing hurt.But Everett’s message had been clear: meet him, or he’d come to the motel. He’d said “that nice guy next to you.” He knew Noah was here. He knew where I lived. He knew too much. And if he showed up at the door, if he started talking in front of Noah… I couldn’t let that happen. I couldn’t let Everett drag Noah into this filth. So here I was, walking toward a man I despised, telling myself it would be quick, telling my
IVY Dinner should have been simple. The takeout boxes were spread across the small table—fried rice still steaming, dumplings glistening with sauce, spring rolls crisp and golden. Noah sat across from me, sleeves rolled up, chopsticks in hand, laughing softly at something I’d said about the motel’s flickering neon sign. The room smelled like soy sauce and comfort. For a moment I almost believed we were normal—just two people sharing a meal after a long day. No ghosts. No shame. No weight pressing on my chest. But the food tasted like cardboard. I stared at my plate, pushing a dumpling around with my fork, watching the sauce swirl without really seeing it. My mind kept drifting back to the photo of Mom. To Cassian’s hands on her. To the note that called me a toy. To Everett’s voice on the phone, low and mocking: “You’re amazing when your breasts jiggle while he fucks you from behind.” Noah noticed. Of course he noticed. He set his chopsticks down, leaned forward, and to
We stayed tangled on the wide sectional, limbs heavy, hearts still racing. The fire had burned low, casting long golden flickers over Cassian’s back, the sweat cooling on my stomach, the faint stickiness where he had marked me. Neither of us had moved to clean up or cover ourselves. It felt too soo
I woke to the soft brush of fingertips tracing my cheekbone, slow and gentle, like someone afraid of startling me. My eyelids fluttered open, heavy with sleep and the kind of bone-deep exhaustion that comes after crying and coming and crying again. The first thing I saw was Noah’s face hovering abo
I finally made it back to my apartment just after nine that night. The hallway light flickered like it always did, the key stuck a little in the lock like it always did, and when the door swung open the familiar smell of coffee grounds and laundry detergent hit me like a hug I didn’t know I needed.
Dinner came and went, and I never left the room.I sat on the window seat, knees pulled to my chest, staring out at the black lake and the snow that hadn’t stopped falling since I arrived. The house was quiet except for the occasional muffled laugh drifting up from downstairs (Marcus and Elena, pro







