"I didn’t know," Ivy said quickly, her voice cracking as she blinked back the tears threatening to fall. "I never thought she’d twist things like that. I never—"
"Stop," Stefan cut in, his tone flat and final. There was no softness in it—only a steel edge that made Ivy flinch. "You shouldn’t be here."
Her lips parted, stunned. "What?"
"You heard ," he said, arms folded tightly across his chest. "I told you the last ti—explicitly—that I didn’t want to see you again. That wasn’t a request, Ivy. It was an order. I don’t want to see you anywhere close to or my house!"
A coldness she hadn’t expected settled in her chest. She swallowed hard, her pride wounded but not enough to back down. "I’m not leaving."
She was going to do it her mom’s way. She’d said they were still married whether Stefan liked it or not. Her na was on their marriage certificate and as long as it remained so, they were legally married.
His brow arched sharply. "Excuse ?" He never would’ve thought Ivy could be so bold as to say that to him. What was it she was planning? Eliana had been right.
"I said I’m not going anywhere." She held her ground even though her knees felt weak. The storm in Stefan’s grey eyes was almost unbearable to look at, but she did. "I belong here. This is my house too. I’m married to you, Stefan."
He scoffed—low and bitter. "Married," he repeated, the word like poison in his mouth. "Right. The marriage you walked out on without a second thought leaving your sister to go through with it. Don’t play that card with , Ivy. It’s expired."
"I know I hurt you," she said, her voice cracking again. "I know I made mistakes but I ca back because I—"
"Don’t," he snapped, voice rising slightly. "Don’t stand there and try to spin this into so emotional revelation. You’re only here because your sches fell apart. Because you realized too late that soone else stepped into the life you abandoned."
"That’s not true!" she cried, shaking her head. "It’s not about jealousy, or regret. I just want a chance to explain—"
"You’ve had your chance!" Stefan exploded, his voice thundering through the silence. "And you wasted every damn one of them."
Ivy recoiled, stunned at the fury radiating off him. For a long mont, she said nothing, just stared at the man she once thought would never look at her with such hate.
Then, slowly, Stefan stepped closer, towering over her.
"You need to leave," he said again, quieter this ti, but every bit as dangerous. "Before I do sothing we’ll both regret."
Her heart pounded. A small part of her wanted to take a step back, to retreat, to escape the storm she had clearly walked into—but the other part, the stubborn part, held her ground.
"Do whatever you want, Stefan," she said, chin high even as her voice trembled. "Yell, break sothing, threaten . I’m not going anywhere. I have every right to be in this house. We are still married, rember?"
The pause that followed was heavy and suffocating. Stefan’s lips pressed into a tight line. He stared at her, like she’d just handed him the last piece of a puzzle he’d been struggling to solve.
And then... he nodded slowly, sothing cruel and calculating flashing in his gaze.
"Thank you for reminding ," he said, his voice so eerily calm it chilled her to the bone.
"What?"
"For reminding of the path I need to follow," he said, already turning toward the door.
Ivy blinked. "What does that even an?" she asked but he didn’t answer.
"Stefan," she called again, taking a step forward. "Where are you going? I’m your wife and we belong together!" she said but Stefan didn’t respond or stop, he just picked up his brief case and his coat and continued to the door.
Her chest tightened as she stood frozen in place, her lips parted in silent disbelief at his silence. Before she could find her voice to say any other thing, Stefan had already opened the door and stepped out, slamming it shut behind him with finality.
Silence fell again, thick and consuming. Ivy stood alone in the center of the living room, her mind racing, her heart aching.
That flicker of rage in his eyes earlier—it hadn’t just been about Eliana. It had been about Ruby. And their child. What did he even an when he said "For reminding of the path I need to follow"?
Her breath caught, her throat constricting. Her hazel eyes darted to the door, as if willing it to open again, hoping he’d co back... hoping there was still a sliver of the man she once loved left behind in this house. But no. That man was gone. And in his place was soone fierce, focused, and unrelenting. A man driven by betrayal... and love for another woman.
Her knees finally gave way, and she sank onto the edge of the couch. Her hand trembled as it brushed through her hair. Her eyes burned, but she refused to cry—not again, not for Eliana, not even for Stefan. She’d done enough of that.
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But there was one thing she couldn’t push aside. Eliana.
The venom in her words. The smug way she’d warned Stefan about her. The backstabbing, the betrayal—the calculated timing of it all.
Ivy’s jaw tightened as she stood abruptly, brushing invisible dust off her dress. Whatever Stefan had gone to do, she couldn’t control it. But what she could control... was Eliana.
That girl had crossed the wrong person. And she was going to deal with her—fast and without rcy.
Ivy reached for her phone, her fingers trembling slightly as she found her mother’s contact. Regina. She could always count on her mother to fix things. And Eliana had crossed a line—one Ivy couldn’t ignore. She needed to deal with her.
Her finger hovered over the call button for a second, then she pressed it. The phone rang twice before Regina’s calm voice filled her ear.
"Ivy?"
"I need your help, mom," she said, barely containing her annoyance.
"Ivy, what’s going on? You sound... upset." Regina’s tone was laced with concern, though Ivy could hear the underlying calculation that always accompanied her mother’s words.
"I need soone to take care of soone," Ivy said, her voice quiet but sharp with intent.
Regina paused. "Take care of soone?" she repeated slowly, as if trying to decipher the code in her daughter’s tone.
Ivy gritted her teeth, her eyes narrowing. "Soone who decided to betray . Eliana."
There was a long silence on the other end of the line. Then, Regina sighed—a deep, almost imperceptible sound that spoke volus. Though she wanted to ask what Eliana had done to Ivy but she didn’t think it was neccessay.
"I see. I’ll handle it. I’ll send you the contact details right after this call, but Ivy—be careful. Don’t let your emotions get the best of you. You need to keep your head in this—on getting Stefan’s heart back."
"I know," Ivy said, her voice steady. "It’s all related. She betrayed and I want to make sure she regrets it. I’m not letting it slide, mom."
"Good," Regina replied. "I’ll make sure the person I send is... discreet. And efficient. You don’t need to worry."
Having had that out of the way, Ivy’s mind shifted for a mont, focusing on sothing else. "What about Ruby? Have you gotten any news on her?"
Regina’s voice turned cold. "Yes, I found out she’s in Florittle. But as for exactly where... I don’t know. It’s not easy to track her when she’s being so careful."
Ivy’s brow furrowed. Florittle. The na of the city rang in her ears, but she had no ti to waste on the details now. There was sothing else on her mind. Sothing much more pressing.
"You need to hurry up and get to her before Stefan does," Ivy said, her voice low and urgent. "Otherwise, everything we’ve been working for... everything... will be for nothing."
Regina didn’t respond right away, but Ivy could almost hear the wheels turning in her mother’s head. Finally, Regina spoke. "I’ll handle it. Don’t worry about Ruby. I’ll send soone out there as soon as I can. Just... stay focused on Eliana and winning Stefan back. That’s your priority right."
Ivy’s jaw tightened, but she could feel the determination rising inside her. "I will. Thank you, mom for the help."
Without another word, she hung up the phone, her mind already spinning. She stood for a mont, staring blankly at the space in front of her, as if trying to gather all the pieces of her shattered life and make them fit again.
Then, the phone buzzed with a new ssage. Ivy didn’t need anyone to tell her it was the contact her mom had promised to send.
Ivy glanced down at the screen, a smile curling on her lips as she read the na of the person Regina had sent. The smile deepened, her anger turning into sothing colder, more calculated.
"Now," Ivy murmured to herself, "Eliana is going to receive her reward for betrayal."
Her fingers moved quickly, tapping out a ssage of her own. It was ti to make sure Eliana understood exactly what happens when you cross Ivy Quinn.
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