ASHER'S POVI woke before the others.It wasn't unusual as years of discipline had carved the habit into my bones but this morning was different. The room was still dark, the edges of dawn just a faint gray seeping through the curtains. The clock on the nightstand glowed faintly: 4:53 a.m.I didn't move at first.I lay there, eyes half-open, letting them adjust, letting my breathing stay steady. On my left, Ivy was curled in the sheets, her cheek pressed against the pillow, her lashes soft shadows against her skin. She looked impossibly small, fragile, like one wrong move from the world outside could shatter her.On her other side, Kai sprawled like he owned the space. Typical. One arm tossed lazily across her waist, his chest rising and falling in that careless rhythm only he could manage, even in the middle of chaos.And there was an ache in my chest I couldn't name at first.I'd shared before. With Kai. With Levi. Hell, it had never been an issue. We'd split women without hesitatio
IVY'S POVThe silence after Kai's words wasn't silence at all. It pulsed, thick and alive, crawling over my skin.I could feel both of them watching me Kai steady and unreadable, Asher dark and burning. Their stares pinned me where I sat, making my breath shallow, making the air too heavy to swallow.I knew they weren't enemies. They had shared before. They knew each other's edges. But tonight, the edges were sharper, closer to cutting.I stood too fast, nerves fraying. "I should just... sleep. It's late."Asher pushed up from his chair at the same time Kai rose from his crouch. Two predators moving in sync."You're not sleeping alone," Asher said flatly."Neither of us is leaving you," Kai added, softer but no less certain.Their words should have soothed me, but instead they set something hot and restless loose in my chest. My hands shook as I brushed them over my dress. "Fine. "Asher's jaw ticked, but he gave a sharp nod. Kai smirked faintly, like he'd already won something.We le
IVY'S POVThe walk to Asher's office felt longer than it ever had. The night pressed against the windows, heavy and restless, while the silence between the three of us throbbed like an open wound.By the time we stepped in, it was a little past nine. The room smelled faintly of leather and smoke, the shadows from the lamp stretching across the wood-paneled walls. Asher tore at the buttons of his shirt the second the door shut, his movements sharp and furious. The crisp white fabric hit the floor, leaving him in just a fitted white vest, his chest heaving like he'd been caged too long.Kai crossed the room without a word. He went straight for the bar tucked in the corner, pulling down a bottle of vodka, three small glasses, and a tray of ice. His calm was a knife, deliberate and dangerous.I didn't have Kai's composure or Asher's rage. My legs gave out beneath me and I dropped onto the leather couch. My body sank, but my chest stayed tight, every breath scraping like sandpaper. My hand
IVY’S POVKai’s hand clamped around my wrist the instant I whispered his name. The air shifted with him, sharp and purposeful. He yanked the curtain shut and killed the lamp in one smooth movement, plunging the room into suffocating dark.“Don’t move.” His voice was calm, but underneath it pulsed with something dangerous.Moonlight cut across his face, sharpening his jaw, his body strung tight like a drawn bow. I followed his gaze back to the fence and there it was . That tiny, steady blink of red. A camera. Watching. Recording.My chest seized. He was here. On this property. Outside Asher’s walls.My voice scraped out, thin and broken. “Kai…”He didn’t answer. He was already moving swift, silent, deadly.Boots hammered against the wood floor. Asher. He stormed into the room like a wildfire, fists clenched, eyes blazing with fury barely contained.“What the hell happened?” His voice cracked like a whip.Kai’s reply was curt. “Fence. Camera.”Asher’s gaze cut to me, then to the window.
IVY’S POVAsher’s voice cut through the night like a blade.“We found the bastard.”The words hung in the air, sharp and heavy, snapping me straight out of the daze I’d been in.Kai didn’t move right away. He stood at my side, calm on the outside, but I saw the subtle change in him,his shoulders tightening, his jaw locked just enough to notice.Asher, on the other hand, looked like a storm barely contained. His strides were quick, his fists clenched, his whole body brimming with anger.I felt caught between them; between ice and fire.“What do you mean, you found him?” My voice came out thinner than I wanted, but I had to ask.Asher’s eyes softened briefly when they landed on me. “Exactly that. He’s been circling, but now we’ve got a lead. No more hiding. We end this tonight.”“No,” Kai said, his tone cool, deliberate. He didn’t need to raise his voice; the weight in it was enough. “Not tonight. Not like this.”Asher’s head snapped toward him, fury flashing across his face. “The hell
IVY'S POVKai leaned back in his chair, wiping his mouth with the napkin Nana had given him. A softness settled on his face, different from the usual practiced calm he wore."Thank you, ma'am," he said warmly. "That meal... honestly, it's the best I've had in a long time. You've given me more tonight than money ever could."Nana flushed, pleased. "Oh, hush. It's just stew."He shook his head. "Not to me. Family meals mean everything."The weight of his words pressed on me. I busied myself with the dishes, but my chest felt tight.Then Kai reached into his wallet. Before I could stop him, he slid five crisp hundred-dollar bills across the table.Ella froze, her big eyes going wide. "W-what's this?"Kai smiled, ruffling her hair. "For you, little lawyer. Be good, study hard, and keep shouting 'Objection!' whenever you need to."Her hands shook as she picked the bills up. "But... this is so much!""Not for you," he said gently. "You're worth it."Ella squealed, ran around the table, and