Ivy’s Point Of View
"Whenever anyone makes you sad, don’t ever hesitate to come to me. You must know that these shoulders of mine are always there for you. I am here for you... my little precious flower. I will never allow anyone to hurt you!"
Precious flower? That’s so much more endearing than a ’possum. I nod. I can tell by his tone that he is serious. "Thank you," I respond gently.
He inclines his head to the side as if he expected me to say something more.
"I was hoping you would say, ’Thank you, sweetheart,’ or whatever nickname you pick for me. But I understand I haven’t earned that name yet. I promise, Ivy, that I will work hard to please you and be deserving of that name."
Oh, wow. This man seems set on going all out to please wretched, poor me. If only he knew I was not good at returning the favor. I will need to do a bit more romance studying before tonight.
If I give him the best night, then he can tell that stupid Chase how great the sex was and how I blew him away. Is Grant a kiss and tell kind of guy?
I nod and manage to squeeze his hand reassuringly.
"I can’t wait," I release him excitedly, and I see him smile even with his eyes. He stands up with my hand still in his.
"Can I get a hug?" he asks, and I nod before standing. I have to stand on my tippy toes to embrace his neck. He pulls me closer to him and bends slightly to make my reach less strained.
I can feel his soft breath kissing the skin on my neck, and my breath catches. Like seriously, how am I having these butterflies for yet another man just after thinking I had fallen for Chase and had sworn I could never fall again?
"I hope you keep smiling, my little flower. Just know that I’ve got you, and you’ve got me. Tonight, I plan to spark magic into your existence. All I ask is for your permission to blow you away and make you scream my name, without the prefix. Please."
"You have my permission," I reply, wanting to add ’possum’ to the end of it. My permission, my heroic ’possum’ has a ring to it... I think.
I feel my body awaken to the prospect of tonight. His words carry both a promise and a threat... yet either way, I can’t wait for our night together.
Nervous anticipation fills me as I wait for Grant to arrive. Unlike last night with Chase, there’s no dinner. There’ll be no walk in the garden or anything romantic. He’s just coming to my room. To fuck me.
It isn’t my choice for it to be this way, but Willa informed me that this is the way it’s going to be this time. Earlier, when she was getting me ready, she’d said, "Alpha Grant sent a message earlier, while you were napping, that he’d be here around seven. He said for his ’little flower’ to be ready for him."
Little flower... that is his nickname for me. I like it. I think it’s a little old-fashioned, but nothing else about the broad-shouldered, muscular man screams traditional.
Now, I am sitting on the edge of the bed, wearing a light pink negligee under a matching silk robe, waiting for a knock on my door. My heart is beating out of my chest.
Candlelight is all that illuminates my room—that and a few stray rays of moonlight that have made their way around the curtains. The old flowers had been replaced earlier in the day, so I can smell their sweet floral scent. I also smell like a flower garden, thanks to a second soak in the tub after my nap.
I am refreshed, but the nervousness is making me feel a bit ill.
I try to concentrate on how Grant made me feel earlier in the day. He was so sweet. Maybe Chase wasn’t so happy with my performance last night—I don’t know, I still don’t know who to believe—but I have a chance to please Grant.
So I need to calm the hell down.
A loud knock on the door makes my heart stop. Before I can get the words, "Come in," out of my mouth, the door creaks open, and I see Grant’s familiar face staring in at me, his hair a bit disheveled. A crooked smile crosses his face. "Hi there, little flower," he says. "Can I come in?"
"Of course." I not only find my voice, but I also get to my feet and step around the edge of the bed.
He is wearing a long black robe—and I think that’s all.
I guess he didn’t see the need to bother with pants, even in the hallway. In his hand, he is holding a velvety blue box.
I come to a stop in front of him and can’t help but smile. I have to tip my head back to look at him; he’s so tall. "This is for you."
He hands me the box, and I take it, but I don’t know what to say. I’m shocked. I stare at it for a few moments before I ask, "Wh-what is it?"
"Open it," he says, chuckling deeply.
"Okay." I open the box to reveal a necklace. The chain is bright gold, and on the end of it dangles a golden encasement with a red flower in the center.
"It’s a little flower," he explains.
"I see that," I tell him. "It’s beautiful."
"Do you like it? I mean, really like it?" I can see hope in his eyes.
"I love it!" I tell him. "It’s the most beautiful gift anyone has ever given me." I don’t bother to tell him it’s the only gift anyone has ever given me.
"Really?" His smile widens. "I made a special trip into the village to find it—well, something I thought worthy of your beauty."
I feel my cheeks flushing. I don’t think anyone has ever complimented me like that either.
I tip my head up toward him to thank him again, but I don’t get the words out because his mouth crashes down on mine. It takes my breath away, and I almost drop the box.
With his tongue still tangled around mine, Grant takes the box from my hands and slowly walks me backward, placing it down on the chest at the base of my bed.
Then, his hands are on me, and he is pulling the tie around my robe so that it comes undone. His large hands are on my shoulders, pushing the smooth fabric down my arms to the floor.
When he finally pulls away from me so that I can take a breath, my lungs are burning. He is so much more intense than Chase...
Grant grins at me and scoops me up, lifting me at my ribcage. I almost shriek in fear, but then he plops me down on the mattress and lets me go.
Using my elbows, I scoot back a bit, noticing the negligee I am wearing is so short; he can see my lacy, thin panties.
I guess it doesn’t matter. He’ll be seeing a lot more than that in a moment.
Standing across from me, he unties his own belt and quickly takes off his robe, tossing it across the room.
I was right. He isn’t wearing anything underneath it.