AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I need to tell you something.” She wrinkles her nose. “And you’re not going to like it.”
“O-kay.” A tingling sensation starts at the base of my skull and spreads.
She glances around until she spots Jackson. “I’m scared about how you’re going to react.”
“Ivy.” I knew something wasn’t right. Could damn well feel it like ants under my skin. If Jackson knows something… why hasn’t he informed me?
“Perhaps we should go backstage.” Finally she looks to me as she slides her hand into mine. “Somewhere more… private.”
“Ivy.” I growl. And that’s probably exactly what she doesn’t want from me.
“Please?”
“Okay.” I lead her through the crowded room until we can exit into the hallway to the dressing rooms. “Tell me.”
She opens her clutch, which she grabbed before we left the table, and pulls out a small white envelope. Her lips tremble. “It’s from Nicole.”
“What? Did she threaten you?” My voice rises with the heat under my skin. It was going to happen eventually. It was only a matter of time before that woman made her next move. And after Marty’s news this evening I’m not surprised that she already has. I snatch it out of Ivy’s hand and rip through the envelope. Tugging the card free, I scan the words written on it. “Leave him before it’s too late.”
“It’s not a b-big d-deal,” Ivy says. “M-more of a warning.”
The fact that she stutters over the words tells me everything I need to know.
Ivy’s gaze locks on the back of the card. I flip it over to see what she’s staring at. A QR code. I light up my phone screen and scan it. A second later a video of me hitting that reporter pops up.
“It’s the same as the last one,” she says.
“The last one? As in this isn’t the first one of these you’ve received?” My jaw starts to ache. I’m going to have to fire Jackson. “How many more have there been? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It’s the second.” Her eyebrows pull close together. “Why did you hit him?”
“I shouldn’t have.”
She twists the rings on her finger. “But you did.”
Is she afraid of me? The way Nicole wants her to be afraid of me. Where Alec is vicious, Nicole is cunning. While I was waiting for her to attack, she came at me sideways and I didn’t see it coming. Oh, but I should have.
I am done letting her have the upper hand.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Ivy
“WhythehellamI just hearing about this now?” Rogue turns on Jackson. “You should have brought this to me the moment Ivy received it.”
Jackson prepares to speak, but I beat him to it. “I asked him not to. I wanted to tell you myself.”
His eyes flare as they land on me. “This is why you were feeling sick earlier, isn’t it?”
I nod, though that’s not entirely accurate. I was sick because I thought she had when I saw Rogue’s gift.
“Christ.” He palms his forehead and drags his hand up through his hair. “I could tell something was off when we got here.”
“It doesn’t change anything.” I try to placate him. “It doesn’t affect the way I—"
“It ends now. I will not let her scare you like this.” He guides me to the side and stalks toward the far exit that will take him straight outside without having to go back through the bar.
“Rogue, don’t… please.” The heels of my boots click on the concrete as I rush to catch up to his long strides. I reach for his arm. “Don’t confront her. It’s what she wants.”
