Chapter 13
Aunt May’s house had always been the perfect hideout for Ivy and Mason when they were dating. They spent hours there, since her father never wanted to see them together. Patrick had never liked Mason and he made no effort to hide it.
Aunt May, however, was the first person to accept Mason, which was why Ivy wasn’t entirely surprised to know he’d found her here,
“What are you doing here?” Ivy demanded, standing up abruptly.
“Get out of my house,” May ordered, gesturing at the door.
“Can’t a man come see his ex–wife and ex–in law?” Mason asked, a smirk tugging at his lips.
Ivy didn’t like the look on his face. “No, he can’t Leave Mason,” she said firmly.
Instead of turning towards the door, Mason took a seat on Aunt May’s couch.
“You imbecile!” May yelled, her voice sharp with anger.
“Easy now, Tiger,” Mason chuckled, crossing his legs nonchalantly. “I just came to see your niece.”
“What do you want?” Ivy asked, a hint of annoyance in her voice.
“First, I’d like to say I don’t appreciate you hurting my fiancée,” Mason said, wagging a finger at her.
Ivy’s brow arched. “Hurting your fiancéel”
“Yes. Cheryl told all the nasty things you said to her. I don’t like it,” Mason said with a frown.
Jealousy rose in Ivy’s chest at the possessive tone Mason used for Cheryl–a tone he once reserved for her. “You should know by now that your fiancée is a liar,” she shot back, her voice icy.
“You’re engaged to Cheryl?” May asked, standing up from her seat. “You bastard““.
“I won’t have you calling me or Cheryl names,” Mason said in his usual calm tone that normally drove Ivy crazy. “I understand you might be sad and angry, but don’t take it out on her. She has done nothing wrong.”
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Anger surged in Ivy’s chest but she tamed it. She wasn’t going to let Mason control her emotions. “Get out, Mason. I don’t want to talk to you anymore,”
A sly smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “I know you’re upset, Ivy. I can see why you’d humiliate your best friend in public.” He emphasized the last two words.
“She stopped being my best friend the moment she opened her legs for you!” Ivy snapped.
“It’s not her fault, Ivy. She-”
“It’s yours, then, right?” May interrupted. “It’s your fault that you couldn’t keep your dick in your pants and you destroyed your family?”
A flash of anger crossed Mason’s face as he turned to May. “Actually, no. It’s your niece’s fault for ruining our family. If she’d been the wife she was supposed to be, I wouldn’t be needing other women.
“So you admit that there were other women?” Ivy chimed in, not bothering to conceal her disgust.
“It’s your fault that they existed! I would never have been with any of them if it wasn’t for you!” Mason retorted.
“You’re so pathetic,” May spat.
“Oh shut up, May. Mason barked, “You’re ope to talk. When was the last time you had a relationship? The Stone Age?”
May gasped, and Ivy, fueled by anger, walked over and slapped Mason hard across the face–so hard that her palm ached.
“You have no right to insult my aunt! I’ve had enough of you. Now leave!” Ivy demanded, her voice trembling with tury
Mason touched his check, releasing an ugly laugh. “I’ll let that slide–this time” He rose to his feet. “But consider this a warning. Ivy. IE Cheryl complains about you again, I’ll deal with you” His voice was stern
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10:16 AM
Chapter 13
And what would you do?” Ivy matched his tone. “You should tell Cheryl to stay away from me. She’s lucky I was a mess yesterday. Next
time, she won’t be.”
“Oh, by mess, you mean your lie? The fake black card you flaunted?” Mason sneered
A blush crept up Ivy’s cheeks, but she forced herself to remain composed. Mason was not going to see her lose control again.
“Pretending to know Silas Stone?” Mason continued, his voice harsh with malice. “I knew you were a liar. I just didn’t know you’d go this far. Attention seeker!”
“Leave my house before I call the police!” May shrilled.
“Oh I’m leaving.” Mason said. “I just came to say my piece. And for hitting me,” he turned to Ivy, fury in his eyes. “My offer has dropped to half a million, Take it, or I’ll withdraw it entirely.”
“Get out!” May screamed.
Mason straightened his jacket, scoffed, and left the h house.
Once he was gone, Ivy collapsed into her aunt’s arms. “I’m so sorry, Aunt May,” she whispered.
Joh, it’s not your fault, my sweet girl,” May soothed, stroking her back.
Ivy was really sad. May had endured so much–from losing her husband, to losing one of her children, and then the estrangement of her other child, Rita, who hadn’t spoken to her in over five years now.
May had always been open about her struggles and dislikes about certain things, which was how Mason knew so much.
That bastard.
“He doesn’t know you’re married to Mr. Stone, does he? May asked.
“No, he doesn’t,” Ivy answered, straightening up.
“I can’t wait to see his face when he finds out,” May said with a laugh.
“Me too.”
“Oh Ivy, I’m so sorry about Cheryl,” May added, patting Ivy’s hand.
Ivy sighed. “Thank you.”
“I never thought she’d betray you like this. She was like a sister to you.”
She was,” Ivy admitted, her mind flashing with memories of Cheryl. They had done everything together, knew everything about each
other.
When Cheryl had lost her parents, Ivy had been there for her. Cheryl had even been her bridesmaid, and the fact she settled for Mason filled Ivy with both sadness and anger.
You know, I was ready to focus on her pregnancy, Ivy said, her voice filled with regret. “I was going to support her through it because I thought she didn’t know who the father was–she never talked about it.”
“I still can’t believe Mason is the father of Cheryl’s baby,” May said, her voice tinged with disbelief.
“Me too. Apparently, they’ve been together even before the divorce was finalized,” Ivy said bitterly..
It hurt talking and thinking about it. When Mason started to change, Cheryl was the first person Ivy confided in And her so–called best friend had consoled her everytime she cried and vented about Mason
The betrayal stung, and she wasn’t sure she would heal anytime soon. They were the two people she’d loved the most, and they had hurt her without care.
May kissed Ivy’s forehead. “I hope you don’t make it easy for either of them. Take your revenge. You deserve it”
“I won’t,” Ivy said, in a firm tone.
“Good. Let me make you something to eat,” May said, standing up and heading to the kitchen.
Chapter 13
“Let me help. Ivy offered, rising to her feet.
As May made her way to the kitchen, Ivy couldn’t shake her aunt’s words. She had taken enough from Mason and Cheryl Now, It was time for her to fight back.
She searched her bag, found her phone, and dialed Silas’s number.
He answered almost immediately
“Hey, Silas,” she said. “How soon can we go public about our wedding? I’m ready now.”