“Ivy, let’s go home,” Sean said as he helped her up. “It’ll be fine, little sis. I promise.”
“Oh, Sean. He told me to make an appointment if I want to see Eva in the future.”
He held Ivy by her shoulders. “Then we’ll do that.”
“He left with that other woman,” she commented disbelievingly as another tear rolled down her cheek.
***
Ivy had been consumed with horrible images. She kept imagining how beautiful William’s girlfriend was and how she was probably playing with Ivy’s child. On top of that, she’d never felt lonelier. The blackness that constantly surrounded her isolated her from the world. When Ivy wasn’t with Eva, she was useless.
Moving on seemed impossible for Ivy, but as the days passed, she finally became determined to do so. She didn’t want to be a young, naive girl that kept expecting forgiveness that would never come.
Sean was home often. However, he also had a life of his own and went out at night. There were days when Ivy felt all alone, so she enrolled in more classes to learn to handle her disability quicker and was getting around well, although she was still apprehensive about venturing outside by herself. Any loud environment where someone can’t clearly discern sounds is scary for a blind person.
Slowly, Ivy taught herself to be more social. She wasn’t a con woman anymore. And she forced herself to get used to her condition. She forced herself to forget William. He was the father of her child, nothing more.
She even met a new guy, Tim, at her lessons. He was her teacher, and he walked her home sometimes. While Ivy had kept her distance from him at first, after William left her in that hall to most likely go have sex with another woman, she’d accepted his offer.
The windy day lifted Ivy’s blue mood as she tucked her arm in the crook of Tim’s while they strolled down the noisy street after class.
“Do you want to visit Chez Louis tonight?” Tim asked.
She sighed and agreed. Ivy actually wanted to decline Tim’s offer and go to William tonight, but she couldn’t handle his cold conduct anymore. She hadn’t visited Eva in two days, and William hadn’t responded to her latest message. If she didn’t hear from him by tomorrow, she would ask Sean to talk to William.
William had been pulling away from Ivy, and she’d let him go. If he wanted another woman, then so be it. But the thought still pained her. His dismissal had left a hole in her heart that never mended. But Ivy stayed strong. She fought back, trying to rebuild a life.
“Shall I pick you up at seven?”
“Okay—”
A loud honk made her pause.
All of a sudden, the mood shifted. Tim stopped walking, and a brisk rush of wind blazed past her cheek, making her shiver.
William must be nearby.
“Tim,” she started, angling her body toward him. “What’s going on?”
“Ivy,” William answered. “I’m here with Eva. She’s in the stroller.” His voice was flat, hard, and it seemed as if he wasn’t standing facing her.
“I sent you a message.”
“I replied this morning. Who’s your friend?” William asked briskly.
His loud exhales reached her ears.
Was William jealous?
Ivy was standing pressed close to Tim, their arms entwined.
“Oh, this is Tim. From class. Tim, this is—”
“William,” he finished, and suddenly, she felt someone tugging her elbow, calmly prying her away from Tim.
Apparently, William didn’t want to shake his hand.
Ivy noted William’s tensed body heat as he stood before her and held her hand, guiding it to the side and down until she felt something soft, then a little nose she would recognize anywhere.
“Eva,” she breathed.
“She’s awake,” William spoke close to her ear.
Ivy disliked yet liked what William was doing. After weeks of distance, his jealousy was making him act nicely toward her. And Ivy’s delight at touching and smelling Eva made her overlook his horrible behavior as of late.
And she wanted to stay with Eva. “Tim, I’m going to join William and Eva, okay?”
“Ivy…” William interrupted, but she ignored him.
“Okay, I’ll see you later.” And she heard Tim’s receding footsteps.
Ivy had bent forward a little to play with Eva’s hands.
“Ivy, I’m not alone. Miriam’s with me,” William said in a remorseful tone.
Ivy shot up.
“You could’ve said that a little sooner,” Ivy heard Miriam mumble agitatedly.
Ivy’s frustration with William peaked. “Yes, you could’ve mentioned that before, William.”
Now Ivy felt silly for dismissing Tim and assuming that she, Eva, and William would go for a walk. No! He should’ve said something. In that moment, Ivy abhorred her affliction.
“I...” William began but never finished.
Ivy pursed her lips. After weeks of silence, of accepting the way he’d treated her, because she felt she deserved it, she also believed that her penance was done.
And what was she to do now? Be the third wheel and accompany them? Interpreting the situation wasn’t difficult, even for a blind person. She could feel the tension.
“I’m sorry,” William uttered.
Ivy had reached her boiling point with him.
Maybe William sensed it, because he abruptly instructed Miriam, “Go on. I’ll catch up.”
There was an unusually long silence before Miriam moved away.
Now, Ivy had to speak her mind. “What the hell was that about? You greet me being all possessive, and you glare at Tim.” She was certain William had shot daggers at him.
He didn’t bother to deny it, spitting, “Who the hell is Tim? What are you doing with him, Ivy?” He stepped closer to Ivy, now standing right in front of her.
“That’s none of your business! You should’ve mentioned Miriam was here! I’m blind. You made me feel stupid!” She swallowed back the brick lodged in her throat.
“Oh, Ivy.” His hands covered her cheeks.
“No!” She shook her head to force him to release her and pressed her palm against his chest.
His masculine scent invaded her nostrils and a blur of memories emerged. But she pushed them down and said, “No, I don’t want your fake comfort. Don’t do this ever again. Next time, just tell me when she’s with you. And where’s your girlfriend now?” Saying that left a bad taste in her mouth.
“She’s at the end of the street with Eva.”
“Making sure she doesn’t see us?” she spat mockingly and pushed him back so there was a reasonable distance between them. “Then let’s ensure there’s nothing to see. You chose to move on with her. You chose to start a life without me. Now I’m trying to do the same, and you have no right to display any possessiveness. You should get used to seeing me with other men. You made your bed, now go lie in it.”
She swore she heard him curse under his breath.
A sense of empowerment she’d lost on the same day as her eyesight returned to her body as she walked away from him and felt his gaze burning into her back.
She kept going, rather unsteadily, because she didn’t have her cane. Tim had escorted her, so she didn’t need it. But she realized how close they must’ve been to William’s high-rise and counted her steps toward the park. When she didn’t know whether or not to turn, she asked a passing pedestrian. So, all alone, Ivy found her way deep into the park, away from the noisier area. Closer to the pond, she could still hear people murmuring and children playing, so she flopped back onto the grass.
Ivy refused to shed more tears over her ruined relationship with William. She’d apologized, groveled, and waited. Waited until he started a new life with someone else. And she was left alone. Blind.
Isn’t that enough retribution?
Still, the anguish was unbearable. The hole in Ivy’s broken heart expanded.
If the key to a good love story was a tragic ending, then
theirs was a great love story.
CHAPTER 55
William
William paced in his living room at seven a.m. the next morning with Eva lying on her stomach against his chest. She was sucking her thumb and sleeping peacefully after drinking her milk.
He hadn’t closed an eye since the encounter with Ivy the previous day. Since the second she turned on her heel and effectively shut him out, he’d been feeling more hollow than before.
For weeks, William had been existing, not living. His existence didn’t seem as devoid as it used to, only because of his Eva. But that little bundle also tied him to Ivy forever.
When William saw Ivy sauntering by him with another man yesterday, he completely forgot about Miriam. And he indeed scowled at the man. William had wanted to punch his grin off his face. Tim was infatuated with Ivy, and William hated it.
Unexpectedly, the doorbell rang.
Eva twitched but was still asleep, so he lay her down in the crib.
After throwing on pants and a dress shirt, he headed downstairs.
Who could be here this early? And why?
The elevator door opened to reveal a distraught Sean with a servant.
“I rang your apartment because Mr. Hunter has an emergency, sir.”
“It’s fine,” William commented and looked at Sean, prompting him to speak.
“Have you seen Ivy?”
“No. Um, well, I did yesterday. Why?” Alarm crawled up his spine.
“She isn’t at home. She hasn’t been home all night.”
“What?!” William instinctively neared him. “And you’re just now informing me?!”
“I’ve been searching for hours already!”
“You should’ve come to me!” Fear pricked his skin.
Where was she?
William began barking orders at once to his servant, “Go up and wake Silk. Tell him to come down immediately.”
“When did you last see her, Sean?”
“Yesterday morning.”
“I saw her in the afternoon right here in the street,” William mused. Then he told the servant right before he entered the elevator, “After you talk to Silk, take every servant and employee with you and search this area for Ivy Hunter.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’ve been running through town all night,” Sean expressed. The dark circles around his eyes proved his lack of sleep.
Since time was of the essence, William refrained from reprimanding Sean further and focused on finding Ivy. “She was with Tim yesterday, and I overheard them planning a date for last night.
“Shit! I never liked Tim. I have no idea where he lives,” Sean stated, gesturing wildly.
“Where does he teach? We’ll wait for him there.” William checked his pockets, and thankfully, the car keys were in there. “We’ll take the car.”
They headed out and raced to the school, but since it was still early, they found it empty and dark.
But after a ten minute wait in the vehicle, Tim opened the front entrance.
William and Sean exited the car and trailed him to his classroom.
The room was cloaked in the blinding morning sun, and Tim stood at the side of his desk, opening his bag.
William smashed the door open and papers fell from Tim’s hand.
“What-what are you doing here?” he asked in complete shock.
William marched forward and slammed Tim against the wall with his palm on his throat.
“Ah! What...what do you want?” His eyes became teary.
Sean came up next to them.
“Where’s Ivy?” William demanded, constricting his grip.
Every nerve in his body was coiled tightly. All he wanted was to locate her.
“What?!”
“You had a date with her last night!” Sean elaborated. “And she hasn’t been home. If you’ve hurt my sister...”
“I didn’t see her. She-she stood me up.”
“What do you mean?” William snarled.
“I went to pick her up at seven, but no one answered. After thirty minutes, I left, thinking she changed her mind maybe.” He coughed and was beet red, so William released him.
Sean and William weren’t sure whether or not to believe him, but this slip of a man seemed to be telling the truth.
William cupped Tim’s chin harshly. “If I discover that you did harm Ivy in any way, I’ll find you and skin you.”
And he and Sean left to return to the Loop.
CHAPTER 56
Ivy
Ivy felt a coldness surrounding her. She rolled over and then grasped that she wasn’t in bed.
Shit.
Silence stretched on. The air rustled past her ear.
“Hello...? Hello..? Anyone around?”
No answer.
She could smell it was nighttime. But how late was it? She’d fallen asleep in the grass, and now she had no sense of orientation. And it was dead quiet except for the wind and the occasional faint sound.
Her body trembled from the cold. The temperature had dropped. What time could it be that no one was in the park anymore?
She hugged her knees to her chest to keep warm, deliberating about whether or not to start walking. But that could be even more dangerous. She could walk straight into the pond or further into the woods. Her best choice was to stay put and wait for morning when the world awoke.
Never in her life had Ivy felt so helpless. And while she spent the night alone, outside, with unidentifiable noises scaring her, she prayed that either William or Sean would be searching for her.
CHAPTER 57
William
Two hours later, everyone was in the gambling hall: employees, servants, Silk, Sean, and Miriam.
No one had found a trace of Ivy.
“I’ve talked to many locals. No one has seen her,” Silk explained.
William’s heart sunk with each passing hour.
So far, he’d been calm, but that calmness decreased rapidly.
“Maybe she doesn’t want to be found? I don’t think this running around is helping,” Miriam piped in, setting William off.
Miriam had been irritating him constantly, simply because she wasn’t Ivy. And frankly, he was done with her.
“Get the fuck out,” he spoke evenly.
Every gaze in the room rested on him.
“What?! Why, William?” Miriam asked uneasily.
“Get out. You obviously don’t care to find the mother of my child!”
“I do—”
“Leave,” he ordered, pissed mostly at himself for being with her.
She stomped out as William informed, “Six of us are going to search the park thoroughly now.”
***
Sean and William paired up and examined every inch of the park, going far back toward the pond.
He couldn’t bear the thought of never seeing Ivy again. Of Eva never knowing her mother. William couldn’t keep denying his own feelings. There was a constant emptiness lingering in his heart. One that only Ivy could fill. No woman would ever understand him and his sins better than Ivy. They grew up in the same way, which left scars in both their souls. But William didn’t want to hold onto a grudge or anger that would keep him from being with the woman he loved anymore. The last few weeks had shown him that he could never love another. With Ivy, he could have the life he truly desired. No more balls and boring social gatherings. No more other women. No. Ivy, Eva, and he would build a life with just the three of them.
If Ivy was hurt, William didn’t know what he’d do.
Dread bled through his veins as he scanned the area.
Suddenly, Sean broke off into a run. “Look! She’s there!” He pointed near the pond where a woman with auburn red curls sat curled into a ball.
Sean shouted her name and pulled her up into an embrace when he reached her.
William sprinted forward and shoved Sean away, wrapping his arms around her. She felt so cold.
“Ivy! Are you okay?” William demanded.
“Yes! I’m so glad you found me!” She held him tightly, lips trembling.
He held her back to inspect her full-length, then crushed her within his arms again. Instinctively, he kissed the top of her head.
Sean watched their exchange with shock, and Ivy cried from relief.
“What happened?” William asked.
“I fell asleep here yesterday, and I woke up so long ago, but it was already quiet and smelled like nighttime, so I stayed here waiting for morning. I’m so cold. And I was scared by weird noises.” She huddled closer to William, who felt serenity returning to his system now that she was safe and sound.
“You’re safe now.” He caressed the back of her head and felt his own heartbeat settle down to a normal rate.
He tightened his hold on her and vowed to never let go again. “Let’s go home and get you warm.”
By ‘home’, he meant his apartment because he didn’t think he’d be able to let her out of his sight ever again.
***
After Ivy had a warm bath, she stood by the crib, where Eva was lying, fascinated with her fingers. And William could tell that she was being quiet to hear Eva’s breathing.
William had sent Julia to sleep at Silk’s apartment. He needed to talk to Ivy alone. To make amends.
Ivy had made some huge mistakes, but he’d made them too, and his errors weren’t minor ones either. And still, they were unable to stay apart. It was as if their souls were tied somehow, and kindred souls always had a way of finding one another.
When he met Ivy, he didn’t know what it meant to live for someone. He wasn’t living at all back then, but merely existing. Existing to acquire a wealth that ultimately wouldn’t have made him content. Because the thing with money is that you always seem to want more. But at some point, you have to say enough is enough.
Now, he didn’t live to be rich anymore. He would always strive to earn a lot of money, yes, but his life no longer revolved around it. Life is so fragile and can be cut short at any random moment in time. Charles’s death showed him that. Ivy’s disappearance reaffirmed it.
Sins of a Bad Boy (The Original Bad Boys Book 1) Page 36
