"Right, Ss?"


    "Huh?" Ss broke out of his thoughts and turned to his brother. "Sorry, I didn''t get that," he said, reaching for his coffee.


    His mind had been elsewhere, upied with Ivy''s behavior this morning. Why was she acting this way? He couldn''t help but think maybe it had to do with his attitude yesterday.


    He should have spoken to her about Dn''s message instead of chosing to ignore it. Of course, she had every right to be upset.


    "I was saying it''d be nice if Ivy met Uncle Mike and Theresa before the wedding," Thomas said. "You know, to put her at ease."


    Ss nodded, grateful for Thomas''s suggestion. "Sure," he replied.


    "You''ll have interviews scheduled once the marriage hits full speed," Wade chimed in. "Are you prepared for that?"


    "Not yet." Ss shook his head. "We''ll figure it out when the timees."


    "Alright then," Wade said with a shrug.


    "How are you holding up?" Thomas asked, concern evident in his tone. "I mean, with Ivy. Is it strange living with a woman?"


    "You still haven''t told us how you two met," Wade added.


    "It''s a long story," Ss replied, not wanting to dive into details. He wasn''t about to admit he had slept with Ivy before marrying her. He knew Thomas would lecture him endlessly about theplications-especially with Mason Hunter involved.


    His thoughts drifted to that night, to the memory of her giving him her body to explore. He would do anything to have her again.


    His body reacted to the mere thought of her breasts, and he adjusted.


    Thomas and Wade exchanged a knowing look before Wade said, "Alright then.”


    A moment of silence passed before Thomas spoke again. “Dn called mest night."


    Ss stiffened, angry suddenly. "Why? What did he want?"


    "He just called to say hello," Thomas said with a shrug. "And... he asked me to tell you he''s sorry."


    "He''s sorry?" Ss scoffed at the lie. He knew Dn was far from sorry, especially after his messagest night-the message that had kept him up all night.


    "He imed he realized his mistake," Thomas said, taking a bite of his toast.


    "I doubt it," Ss muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose.


    "What the hell!" Wade suddenly eximed.


    Ss''s heart flipped. "What happened?"


    Wade paused, staring at his phone, looking surprised. "An article just dropped iming Ivy was in a rtionship with you while she was still married to Mason Hunter."


    "That bastard!" Thomas exploded. "It''s him! He''s behind this!"


    "We can''t jump into conclusions," Wade said in a formal tone. "Let''s get the facts first."


    Ss leaned back in his chair, his mind racing with questions.


    "Oh, it''s him," Thomas snapped, mming his fork onto his silver te with a thud. "Who else would release that? He''s trying to divert the news. He''s trying to smear Ivy''s name so this marriage wouldn''t work."


    Ss had seen Thomas lose his temper many times, and it was never a good sight.


    "Well, no publicity is bad publicity," Wade said, already standing. "We just need to spin this in our favor."


    +28


    Thomas stood as well, tossing his napkin onto his te. “We were supposed to be celebrating. This news iss barely two hours old."


    "At least now we know he''s actively working against us. He''s working really hard


    to ruin our work," Wade said. "We''ll just have to work harder."


    Just then, Rosie entered, curiosity etched on her face. "What''s going on? Are we leaving already?"


    "Yup," Wade replied. "There''s been alle


    "A terrible one," Thomas added. "Mason


    Munter just released false information."


    "Mason Hunter?" Rosie asked, frowning. "I heard him talking to Ivy some moments ago."


    Ss sat up, rmed. "What?"


    "Nobody has time for your jokes, love," Thomas said softly, although he was frowning.


    "I''m not joking," Rosie said firmly. "I overheard them."


    Thomas turned to Ss, his hazel eyes zing with anger. "Fix this." His order


    was short, but Ss knew from Thomas''s tone what he


    meant.


    Ss stormed out of the dining room, anger and confusion twisting inside him. Ivy had spoken to Mason-directly defying the rufes he''d set. Why would she do that? What was her game?


    He didn''t bother knocking as he barged into her room, pushing the door open. She was standing by the window, and when she turned, her face lit up in surprise.


    "What is it? What happened?" she asked in a soft voice.


    He wasn''t falling for the gentle tone-not this time. "Why didn''t you follow my rules after I specificallyid them out?"


    She raised an eyebrow. "What rule?"


    He marched up to her, anger in each stride. "Mason Hunter. I told you not to


    speak to him."


    "I didn''t call him. He called me," she replied, her tone was annoyingly calm.


    She didn''t deny it, which only fueled his anger. "I gave you clear rules, Ivy! Why can''t you follow them? Why didn''t you tell me?"


    Ivy bit her lips. "I wanted to, but... you were busy with your family."


    Ss grabbed her wrist, his grip was firm. Anger and jealousy simmering within him. "What did he say? What are you nning?"


    "Nothing!" she cried, struggling to free herself. "You''re hurting me, Ss."


    He loosened his grip but didn''t let her go. "Was yesterday nned too? Did you invite him to Whitney Restaurant just so he could see you?"


    Her eyes shed with indignation. "What? No! He called to demand I call off the marriage. He threatened me, and then I saw the news."


    Ss released her, his brows furrowed. "Why didn''t youe to me?" "Come to you and say what?" she said, her voice breaking. "That the man who cheated on me and impregnated my best friend is now publicly humiliating me?" Her shoulders slumped as she moved to sit on the bed.


    Part of him wanted to believe her. Another part of him wasn''t buying the act.


    "You should have told me he contacted you. That was a clear rule," he said, his voice lower now but still firm.


    "Do whatever you want, Ss. I''m honestly-"


    The door swung open, cutting her off. Rosie stepped in, her gaze shifting from


    Ss to Ivy, before settling on Ss again.


    "Don''t believe a word she says, Ss. I overheard her talking to Mason. She was making ns with him."


    Ss turned back to Ivy, his anger reigniting. "Is this true?"


    11:52 AM


    Ivy didn''t respond.


    "Answer me!" he barked. "What ns were you making?"


    “Nothing!” Ivy snapped, her green eyes zing. “I told you this yesterday—give me a chance to say my piece."


    "Are you defending yourself, Ivy?" Rosie asked. "Are you hiding something?"


    Ss''s stomach twisted at Rosie''s implication. What had she overheard? And why wasn''t Ivy objecting?


    "Say something!" he demanded, his voice desperate now. He was waiting for Ivy -expecting her to say something, anything that implied he wasn''t stupid for making her his wife, despite his brother''s disapproval.


    Instead Ivy just stopped there, fury in her eyes, nothing on her lips. Her phone rang, and before she could reach it Rosie got there first, snatching it up.


    Rosie''s eyes widened, holding the phone away from Ivy. "It''s Mason."


    Before Ss could even react, Rosie smashed the phone against the floor, shattering it into pieces.