“You look amazing,” Lilith says when I walk into the kitchen. “I love that suit.”
“Thank you,” I point at her, “I love your outfit.” She looks like a supermodel in a pair of high waisted black pants and a short sleeve white cashmere sweater. “You’ve come a long way from the girl I met in ripped jeans and chucks almost four years ago.”
“She’s still in here, just has to gloss up from time to time.” She slides a travel mug of perfect coffee in front of me. “Do you want to use one of our drivers? I’m staying in the building all day, so I won’t need mine.”
“Oh, no. You guys are letting me stay here all summer for free. I don’t want to-”
“If you say the word impose, I’m going to slap you,” Lilith snaps.
“Why’s Ivy getting slapped?” Con asks from the living room.
“She’s refusing to use one of our drivers for the day, even though I don’t need to leave the building.”
“Take the car,” Con says from behind Lilith telling me with his eyes that it’ll be work better for the appointment after work. “In fact, I’ll walk you down to the garage. You heading out now?”
“Yeah,” I grab my purse and a banana.
Con opens the door and follows me down to the elevator.
“It’s kind of surreal to be standing here with you like this, about to help you pick out an engagement ring for Lilith.” I smile, thinking about how uncomfortable I was around him at first. “You used to intimidate the shit out of me.”
He smirks, “I know.”
“And now I know you’re just a big softie inside that scowly exterior.”
“I can honestly say no one has ever described me as a softie,” he stabs a finger at the basement button on the elevator. “I’d rather not ever hear it again.”
“Just a big old teddy bear,” I tease. “Oh! I know, a teddy bear version of those Russian nesting dolls.”
“I miss the version of you that was intimidated by me,” he glares, but it has zero effect on me.
I’ve been through hell the past three years, on my own for the most part. My own mother sabotaged my relationship with Levi by secretly putting a camera in my bedroom and catching us together. Dad flipped and brought me home to finish high school at a private school in Hartford. He also forbade me from having contact with Levi, at least while I finished school. By the time that summer rolled around, I was neck deep in therapy and training. I spent all my time doing either of those things while everyone else was enjoying their summer on luxury vacations and partying.
I am ten times stronger and more self-aware than I ever was before. I know my worth and that my aspirations are more important than anyone else’s expectations for me. I’m living life for me, not to fulfill anyone else’s desires. Dad was heartbroken by decision to end my swimming career when I graduate from Yale next spring, but I know he’ll eventually come around. I just have to keep focusing on my goals and aspirations.
There’s a small office off the bank of elevators where the drivers and some of the Volkov family’s personal security are set up during the day. Connor opens the door and guides me in.
“This is Ivy Bane, she’s living with Lilith and myself this summer. She gets a driver and protection just like we do.”
“No. I don’t need that.”
“Saul, drive her down to Marsh Financial.” Con completely ignores my protest. “I’ll come get you, and we can run to the jeweler together,” he says as he turns to me. “Have a good first day.” He turns on his heel and steps back onto the elevator.
I smile awkwardly and follow the man who introduces himself as Saul to me. He opens the back door of a black sedan for me. We make conversation on the thirty-minute drive down to lower Manhattan.
“Thank you, Saul,” I tell him as he helps me from the car. “Have a nice day.”
“Good luck on your first day, Miss Bane.”
The street in front of the building that houses all the financial advisors and executive offices for Marsh Bank and Financial Co. is bustling with activity. Men with messenger bags and briefcases walk past me intent on getting to work. The stock exchange is only a few blocks over, and I’m hoping to be able to check it out at some point this summer. I push open the door and walk to the security desk Frank told me to check in at.
“Hi, I’m Ivy Bane. Here to see Mr. Marsh,” I tell the man sitting behind the desk.
He nods and types something on his computer before picking up the phone and calling Frank’s secretary. “Take this badge, it’ll work on any elevator, and go up to the fifty-eighth floor. Taylor will meet you there and take you to his office,” he says as he hands me a plastic badge with the bank’s logo on it.
I hit the up button and let myself think about the one thing I’ve been avoiding since Frank offered the internship a month ago. Levi is probably somewhere here in this building right now. I haven’t seen him since I left him in tears on the floor of my closet. I haven’t spoken to him since that night, either. I don’t know what to expect.
I fight the urge to fidget as the elevator climbs. It stops on the fifth floor where the building cafe is, and several men get on. They all give polite nods or smiles, but one leers a little too long. I roll my eyes when he finally turns around, especially when I notice his wedding band. Gross. They get off on the forty-first floor, and I’m left to climb the rest of the way alone with my anxious thoughts of Levi.
The doors part, and I walk into the reception area with my shoulders back and chin up, ready for whatever is going to come at me. The man at the desk looks a few years older than me and smiles warmly when I walk up to his desk.
“Hi, I’m Ivy Bane.” I return his smile. “I’m here to see Frank. Mr. Marsh,” I correct myself not knowing how familiar I should be around other employees.
“Hello,” he stands and extends his hand for a handshake. “I’m Taylor. Follow me.”
We make small talk on the walk over to Frank’s office. He tells me he just graduated from NYU, and I tell him I’m at Yale. He walks me to Frank’s door, bypassing Frank’s personal assistant with a quick introduction, and then leaves me standing there. I have a slight moment of panic thinking about Levi possibly being in there with him.
I raise my hand to knock right as the door swings open, and I’m looking up at my former stepfather. His smile is instantaneous and warm, his eyes crinkling at the corners with affection.
“Ivy,” he steps aside and ushers me into his office, closing the door quietly behind him. “Come here,” he opens his arms for a hug, and I step into them.
“Thanks for waiting until the door was closed for this,” I squeeze him back.
“Well, I personally don’t care what anyone thinks of my former stepdaughter having an internship with me, but I’m sure you do.” He releases me. “Why were you just standing there?”
“I was about to knock,” I deflect.
“Yeah, after staring at the grain of the door for a few minutes.” He sits down behind his desk and pulls out a stack of papers. “Were you worried about seeing Levi?”
Wow, way to cut to the chase, Frank.
“No, I’m not worried.”
“Good,” he smirks and it’s easy to see where Levi got his devilish grin from, “because you two will be sharing an office.”
Thank fuck for my game face because I lock that shit down tight as my stomach drops to my feet.
“Not a problem,” I lie.
“Listen,” he leans forward, “I’m still not sure what the entire story between you two was, but he hasn’t been the same since the day you left. He’s sadder and angry. Dark. I don’t know how he’s going to react to you being here.”
That makes two of us.
“He doesn’t know I’m interning with you?”
“No, he does. He just avoids talking about you with me.” He hands me the papers. “Paperwork for HR and payroll. You can fill it over on the table.” He points to the corner of his office where a small round table sits. “He’s out of to
wn this week, by the way, so you can relax and get the hang of everything without worrying about him.”
“Thanks,” I say as I get up, “but I’m really not concerned. We were close friends for so long, I’m sure once the initial discomfort wears off, we’ll be back to a semi-normal state.”
“How was your first day?” Con asks as I climb into the back of the SUV sitting out front at the end of the day.
“Good, mostly paperwork, tours, and introductions.” I reply giving Saul a little smile in the mirror. “It was nice to spend time with Frank.”
“You two have gotten closer since everything went down, haven’t you?”
“Yeah, we have.” I decide that now is as good a time as any to dig into what Frank said about Levi. It’s troubled me all day. “Can I ask you something?”
His eyes rise to mine from his phone. “Yes. I might not answer it though.”
I nod and take a deep breath. “Frank said that Levi’s been different since I left.”
“Yes.”
“How bad? How long?”
“He’s fucked his way through the female population of Harvard but never lets anyone in, never gets attached. If it weren’t for Lilith, he’d probably hate women altogether.” He taps his fingers on his knee. “He’s cynical and darker, faster to snap.”
“We’re sharing an office,” I say absentmindedly as I ponder this new information.
I’m jarred out of my thoughts by Con’s laughter. It’s startling to hear him laugh like this, even Saul is surprised.
“Frank is legendary,” Con chuckles again. “Epic move.”
We pull up to the jeweler on Con’s side of the street, so he slides out first and takes my hand to pull me out like the gentleman he’s not. We walk into a nondescript building and walk up to the second floor. Con knocks on the door, and a security guard opens it. They talk in a language I don’t understand, sounds Russian. The guard walks us back to an office where a middle age balding man sits with a handful of rings out on the table. We both sit down, and the man talks with Con some and asks about Victor before launching into a sales pitch for each ring.
Immediately my eyes land on a cushion cut solitaire ring. I look over at Con and see he’s looking at it, too. Our eyes meet, and when I nod, he starts asking questions.
“Are your diamonds ethically sourced?” I ask bringing their conversation to a halt. When Con glares at me, I hold my hands up and say, “I’m only asking because you know it’ll be important to her.
“They’re not ethically sourced, but they weren’t pulled from a mine by a four-year-old, either,” the man answers with an attitude.
I smile and slide back in my chair. My work as the best friend is done here.
18
LEVI
Punishment.
It’s what I’ve been thinking about non-stop since Dad told me Ivy was interning with him this summer. All the ways I can make her hurt the way I did when she walked away from me. All the ways I can make her bleed like I did for months. That’s a lie, it wasn’t just months. I’m still bleeding.
I bottled up all that pain and let it age within me like a bottle of top-shelf scotch. Now I’m ready to force straight shots of it down her perfect, pretty, little throat. I’m not going to feel one drop of remorse while I watch it burn inside her.
I take a drink of my bourbon as I look down on the city from Griff’s living room window. Knowing I’ll see her tomorrow, that she’s in the same city as me, has electricity surging through my veins. She’ll be close enough to touch. Close enough to hurt.
“Lev,” Griff joins me by the window, “what are you plotting?”
“All the ways I can punish Ivy.” I take another drink.
“Lev…” Griff shakes his head. “Maybe you should sit down and talk about things before you take a deep dive into waters you can’t get out of. You still love her.”
I’m well aware that I still love her. She is mine. She always will be, but I can’t forget the feeling inside me, not just in my heart but also my soul when she left. How the fissures she left in her wake filled with leaden hurt, which grew into a toxic anger.
Once those feelings have been exorcised, I have no doubt we’ll end up together again. I’ve been through enough pussy in the past three years to know that there is no one close to Ivy for me. Even the smart, driven women I would take on actual dates never did it for me. Ivy is my perfect match in every way. I’m just so angry.
“I know.” I drain the rest of my drink, rattling the spherical ice cube as I continue to stare out into the city below. “I can’t just pick up where we left things though. She never reached out once.”
“Neither did you.” He takes my glass over to the bar and fills it back up. “She’s been through a lot. It’s not like she ghosted you for no reason.”
“Doesn’t change the fact that it fucking hurt.” I take the glass back from him. Time to change the direction of this conversation. “How about you? What are your plans now that you’ve been back at NNC for a week?”
“The usual. Making sure we stay the number one source for news. I’m working with several newspapers to bring podcasts of their content to the regions they cover. I’ll probably be traveling some.” He sits down on the couch. “Con picked out a ring for Lilith. He wants us all to go on a trip in a few weeks to Greece. He’s rented a yacht big enough for us and is planning on proposing then. He’s even flying Zion out to surprise her.”
“Hell yeah, I’m in.” I’m not dumb to hope that Ivy won’t be invited. “So, it’ll be us,” I point back and forth between us, “Ivy, and Zion?”
“And Claire.” He frowns as he says her name.
“Oh, shit. Baby V is finally coming on a trip with us? That’ll be fun.” Con will have to split his time between being a possessive dick over Hoodrat and a protective big brother. His head might explode. “Why the weird face about Claire?”
“Just changes the dynamic a bit, you know?”
“No. Not really. She’s always been around. If anyone changes the dynamic, it’s Ivy.”
“You’re the only one who hasn’t been around Ivy in three years. The rest of us have kept in touch.”
“Why are you up her ass?” Now I’m getting pissed. I know they’ve all kept in touch with her, but he needs to step back and remember loyalty.
“I’m not. I’m just saying that she’s still as much a part of our lives as she ever was. This thing between you two will need to be sorted before the trip. Don’t fuck up the trip because you’re bitter and holding onto hurt,” he says evenly.
“I’m not going to mess up my best friend and my cousin’s engagement.” I stand up. “I’m going home.”
I let the door slam behind me. Fucking asshole. I pound the elevator call button with my fist. When I get down to the lobby, I think about ordering an Uber but decide to walk instead. It’s a nice night. The sun has just dipped below the horizon. The building my Dad and I live in is only about ten blocks from where Griff lives. A walk should help me calm down.
I stew in my anger for the first few blocks. I feel like I should be the one Griff stands behind, but he’s talking like he knows intimate details of Ivy’s life. He shouldn’t know more than me about what’s going on in her life. Am I jealous that he knows more about her now than I do?
Yes. I am.
When I get back to our penthouse, I find Dad stretched across one of the couches in the media room watching a Red Sox game. I walk in and grab a handful of popcorn from the bowl beside him. The Sox are up six to four at the top of the eighth against the Orioles.
“We gonna win?” I ask as I plop down on the other couch.
“We should, the Os suck this year,” he says before taking a drink from the bottle of Sam Adams next to him. Yeah, my dad, owner and CEO of a billion-dollar bank and financial company drinks Sam Adams.
“What time are you going in tomorrow morning?” I ask.
“I have an 8 a.m. meeting with several of the VPs so I’ll be leaving early.”
He looks over at me and frowns. “You look like shit.”
“Yeah,” fixating on the woman who broke your heart will do that, “I’m tired. I walked home from Griff’s.”
“Why?”
“Just needed to clear my head.”
“Ivy?”
“Among other things,” I answer dryly. There’s also the ever-present cloud hanging over my head. I changed my major from business to history without telling him at the beginning of last year. I haven’t even told him I’m not planning on taking over at the bank when he retires.
“I know you have issues to work out with her but leave those at the door at work. She kicked ass this week, and I would happily offer her a job when she graduates next year. She’s even impressed Bennett, and you know he’s never happy with anyone.”
That’s fucking true. He’s a crotchety old man who hates everything and anything; breathe wrong in his presence, and you’ll hear about it in a strongly worded email.
“I will.” I grab another handful of popcorn. “I’m actually getting a little pissed how little faith my friends and family have in me to keep myself under control.”
“Normally I wouldn’t worry, but this is Ivy. You and I both know she’s different, and you’ve been harboring hurt and longing for three years. It’s going to take a toll on your control.”
I barely suppress a derisive snort. Hurt, yes. Longing, probably. Anger, one hundred percent yes.
“I’ll be fine.” I stand up and stretch. “I’m going to bed. See you at the office tomorrow.”
“Night, son.”
I came into the office extra early this morning, so I could be here first. Is it a power move to be sitting here behind a desk when she walks in? Yes. Do I care that I’m clearly playing games? No.
I honestly don’t know how I will react when she walks through the door. Will I cave immediately and become a big teddy bear for her again? Will my need to punish her grow more intense? I’m considering which one of those possibilities would be best when the door swings open.
Relentless (Titans of Founder's Ridge Book 2) Page 15