A Poisoned Invitation

**Ivery Clark POV** 

The room was still. Only the ragged sound of our breaths filled the thick, heated air.

Alrigo's body was hot against my skin, his lips brushing against the valley of my breast.

My chest rose and fell with ragged breaths, feeling the weight of his gaze as it swept over me, devouring every inch like a man starved.

“You’re mine, Ivery…” he murmured, his voice a deep rasp, almost reverent. “Do you understand..?” 

His palm slid along my waist, rough fingertips tracing the delicate curve of my ribs, up to cup my breast. 

His thumb swept over the sensitive nub, making me arch against him, a soft gasp spilling from my lips. 

Oh god. The contact was maddeningly gentle, like he wanted to savor every single moment.

His mouth followed next, sucking my breast, his tongue flicking against my skin, teasing. Every touch sent sharp shivers through me, and my fingers tangled in his hair, tugging him closer, wordlessly begging for more.

Alrigo’s hand slid down my thigh, hitching my leg up around his waist, pressing our bodies flush together. 

I could feel him, hard and insistent, poking at my entrance. The friction made my pulse stutter, a strangled sound catching in my throat.

I gasped, my hands threading through his hair, pulling him closer like I could tether him to me.

“Alrigo…”

“Say you’re mine, Ivery.” he demanded, rolling his hips against mine, a slow, delicious grind that made the tension coil low in my belly, making me more wet. “Say no one will ever touch you but me.”

“I’m yours,” I whispered, my voice raw and trembling. 

His hand slid between us, teasing, testing — finding the place that made my hips jerk, my voice break into a gasp. His fingers moved with practiced ease, circling, stroking, until I was trembling beneath him, a flush blooming high on my cheeks.

“Look at me,” he demanded, his voice hoarse, his breath ragged.

I did. 

“You’ll stay mine,” he swore, kissing my lips. “I won’t let you go. I can’t. You’re the only thing keeping the darkness from swallowing me whole.”

I pressed my forehead to his, our tears mixing where our skin touched.

“Then don’t let go.”
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I woke to the gentle warmth of morning sunlight spilling through the curtains, its soft glow dancing lazily against the walls. A rare kind of peace wrapped itself around me — the kind that made my chest feel light, my mind unusually quiet.

For a moment, everything felt… safe.

A small smile tugged at my lips as I stirred beneath the covers, my body sore in the kind of way that only came from his touch. The memory of last night lingered in my skin, a warmth I couldn’t quite shake, nor did I want to.

I turned over, instinctively reaching for the familiar presence beside me.

But my hand met nothing.

Frowning, I opened my eyes fully and looked to my side.

The bed was empty. The sheets slightly rumpled, his scent still clinging to the pillows. But no Alrigo.

The soft bubble of contentment I’d woken with deflated quietly.

I sat up, pushing my hair back, telling myself it was nothing. He probably had business. Probably left early. That was what men like him did, wasn’t it? 

I padded over to the bathroom, freshened up, I eft the bedroom in search of him, my steps light on the floor as I made my way downstairs. 

A part of me, foolish, hopeless,  hoped to find him in the kitchen, perhaps brooding over coffee or barking orders at someone.

But what I found instead made my heart falter.

The front room was bathed in soft light, and there he was.

Alrigo.

His tall frame stiff with tension, face carved from stone, anger crackling in the air around him like a gathering storm.

And beside him, laughing softly at something he didn’t seem to care about, was her.

Alrigo's fiancé.

Perfectly polished, brunette hair cascading over her shoulder, her manicured hand brushing his arm with a familiarity that made my stomach twist.

I stopped, every trace of warmth I’d carried from sleep draining from my body.

Her gaze landed on me, sharp and cold, a flicker of something predatory sparking in her eyes.

And Alrigo — God, he didn’t even look surprised to see me there. For a heartbeat, no one spoke.

Then her lips curled in a smirk.
“Oh,” she purred, feigning mild surprise, “you’re still here.”

The words felt like a slap.

“I suppose,” she murmured, tilting her head in mock thought, “some people just don’t know when they’ve overstayed their welcome.”

I held her gaze, unwilling to give her the satisfaction of a reaction, but something in my chest tensed.

But then Alrigo’s voice cut through the silence, rough and full of impatience. “Enough.”

His sharp tone made both Natalie and me freeze. 

“It's you who weren’t invited here in the first place. Get out.” His words were so blunt, they hung in the air between us like an invisible hand, forcing her back.

Natalie, the woman who had been his fiancée, looked taken aback, her lips parting slightly as if the words stung more than she was willing to admit.

But she quickly masked it with that practiced smile of hers, “Oh, Alrigo, don’t be like that. I’m just here to check on you, to make sure everything’s alright. You’re such a stubborn man, you know that? How can you treat your fiancé like that?”

“You're not my fiancé.” Alrigo sneered at her. 

“You really are something else,” she said, her voice a little softer now, as if hurt. “I'm here because your mother sent me here since she won't come here because of the fight. But she told me to deliver the message for you.”

Alrigo’s eyebrows furrowed. “What message?”

Her eyes sparkled with a mix of satisfaction and something darker. “There’s a family dinner tonight,” she said, her tone sweet, “and your father want you to be there.”

Alrigo’s lips pressed into a thin line, his mood darkening even further. “I’ll see,” he muttered, clearly uninterested.

But Natalie wasn’t finished.

“You know Uncle Valerie King wouldn’t take no for an answer. She crossed her arms, giving him a look that dared him to refuse. “After all, it’s family.”

Alrigo’s annoyance was palpable now, but he didn’t want to argue. “Fine.”

Her smile grew, clearly pleased by his compliance, but she didn’t let it end there.

“And,” she added casually, as if it were an afterthought, “She is invited too. The girl over there. Your father wants to see her too.” 

The words hit like a bomb.

Alrigo’s eyes snapped to mine, his expression unreadable, his annoyance shifting into something deeper. “What?”