LOGINCASSIANTwo days had passed since I agreed to Everett’s deal, and every hour felt heavier than the last. I knew what I had to do tonight. The pressure from Everett had grown stronger with every message he sent — short, sharp reminders that my time was running out. One more recording. One exclusive video of Ivy, and then he would help us disappear. No more hiding. No more looking over my shoulder for Claire, her father, or Noah. Just me and Ivy in a new place where no one knew our names.But the fear never left me. If Ivy found out what I was planning, everything would be over. She would stop trusting me. She would look at me with the same pain and anger she had before the accident. I would lose her forever. That thought haunted me like a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from. She had become my whole world again — soft, trusting, letting me hold her, kiss her, touch her in ways that made my heart race. I couldn’t let that slip away.That night, I waited until the house grew quiet. I walk
CASSIANI pushed open the heavy door to Everett’s office without knocking, my blood already running hot. The room smelled of expensive wood and fresh coffee, but all I could focus on was the man sitting behind the big desk, flipping through papers like he didn’t have a care in the world. My fists were clenched at my sides as I walked straight toward him.Everett looked up with that calm, almost amused smile he always wore. “Oh, Cassian, what are you doing here? Is there something you want to talk about? I’m still a little busy with some files.”I stopped right in front of his desk, my voice low and sharp. “Ivy doesn’t know anything about her past. Not even the accident. I’m here because you promised to help me get out of my old life with Ivy, so you better not make her remember what happened in the past.”Everett leaned back in his chair and laughed softly, like I had told him a joke. “Cassian… Cassian… you’re so funny. Are you that panicked when I bring up something you never told Iv
IVYThe moment I stepped back into my new room, the heavy door clicked shut behind us. Cassian followed me inside without a word. I sat down on the edge of the big bed, my legs still a little tired from the walk around the stables. The room felt too quiet after everything that had happened today. My mind was spinning with questions I couldn’t quite put into words yet.Cassian knelt in front of me, taking both of my hands in his. His palms were warm and steady, the way they always were. He looked up at me with those deep eyes that made my heart feel both safe and nervous at the same time.“Are you okay?” he asked gently. “I know you’re trying to remember your past, but for now, it’s better to enjoy what’s happening now. I’m sure you’ll remember it sooner or later.”I looked down at our joined hands. His thumbs stroked the back of my fingers in slow, soothing circles. “Yeah, I know,” I said softly. “I’m not trying to force anything here. I’m just confused about the situation. Who Everet
IVYLunch felt strange from the very first moment we sat down at the long dining table. The room was beautiful, with high ceilings and soft light coming through big windows, but the air between the three of us felt heavy. Cassian sat on my right, close enough that his knee brushed mine under the table. Everett sat directly across from me, watching me with a calm, steady gaze that made my skin prickle. I tried to focus on the food — fresh salad, grilled chicken, and warm bread — but every time I looked up, Everett’s eyes were still on me. It wasn’t rude, but it wasn’t comfortable either. I felt awkward, caught between the two men, like I was missing a big piece of the story that everyone else already knew.Everett finally broke the silence after a few minutes. He set his fork down and looked straight at me.“I never thought you’d survive, Ivy.”His words hit me like cold water. I paused with my fork halfway to my mouth. “I never thought I’d be here either,” I said quietly. “It’s a mir
IVYThe morning air felt different when Cassian finally helped me into the wheelchair and pushed me toward the hospital lobby. My bag was packed, sitting on my lap, and my heart beat with a mix of excitement and nervousness. I kept telling him I could walk on my own now, that my legs were strong enough, but he just smiled and insisted. “Let me take care of you a little longer,” he said softly. I didn’t argue. His care made me feel safe, even if part of me wanted to prove I was getting better.When we reached the lobby, a luxury black car waited right outside the entrance. It looked expensive, shiny under the sunlight, with dark tinted windows. I didn’t remember ever seeing it before, but I assumed it was Cassian’s. Everything in my life right now seemed tied to him, so I didn’t question it. I just let him help me from the wheelchair into the back seat. He buckled my seatbelt carefully, his fingers brushing my arm, sending that familiar warm flutter through me.As the car pulled away
CASSIAN I stood by the window, staring at the city lights flickering in the distance while Ivy slept peacefully behind me. The business card in my hand felt heavier than it should. Everett’s offer kept playing in my head like a bad song I couldn’t turn off. I didn’t want anything to do with him anymore. I knew how he worked — there was never a clean end, only more demands, more control. But the truth was simple and brutal: I needed him. If I wanted any chance to disappear with Ivy and start over, Everett was the only one who could make the arrangements fast enough. Claire, her father, Noah — they were all closing in. I could feel it. I glanced back at Ivy. She looked so small and innocent in the hospital bed, her breathing steady, one hand curled under her cheek. My chest tightened with a mix of love and guilt so strong it almost hurt. She trusted me completely now. She let me hold her, kiss her, touch her in ways that made her body respond even when her mind was still blank.
I opened my eyes to the unfamiliar weight of an arm slung across my waist, warm and heavy, pinning me gently to the mattress. For a heartbeat everything was soft confusion—the cotton sheets tangled around my bare legs, the faint smell of salt and sunscreen clinging to my skin, the slow rise and fal
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.
IVY I was sitting on the terrace with my knees pulled to my chest, staring at the ocean without really seeing it, when my phone buzzed against the glass tabletop. The screen lit up with Sarah’s name. I almost let it go to voicemail—my head was too full of noise—but something in the way the phone v







