Chapter 12

Meanwhile, Damon wandered aimlessly through the streets of Havenridge, crushing an empty can in his hand until it crackled.

He'd come to the Capital but had no idea where to even start looking for Ivy.

Where she was, who her Arranged Bond was with — he knew none of it.

He'd barely managed to get Helena's address out of one of Ivy's friends. The moment Helena learned who he was, her expression had changed instantly.

She'd let him in for tea out of courtesy, but no matter how he asked, she insisted she didn't know where Ivy was or who she was marrying. In the end, she'd simply asked him to leave.

Damon had never been treated like that in his life, especially not by Ivy's own aunt. It cut deep, but all he could do was leave and keep searching with no direction.

The last drop of his drink went down, and his phone suddenly rang.

Damon's heart leaped. He unlocked it instinctively, but the name on the screen was Sienna's.

He felt a flash of annoyance and wanted to decline, but his finger slipped and he answered.

Finally getting through to him, Sienna perked up, then turned pitiful, her voice cracking. "Damon, where have you been these past few days? You never pick up when I call."

"I was just too worried that time, I didn't mean to pry. I already uninstalled the tracking app. I promise I won't ask about anything you don't want to tell me."

"Damon, can you please stop being mad at me? I'm all alone in Thornfield and I'm so scared. Without you here, nobody wants to hang out with me."

Before, hearing her talk like this would've made Damon's heart ache, and he'd have dropped everything to rush to her side.

But now, faced with Sienna's distress, all he could see in his mind was Ivy's tear-filled face. His voice softened without him realizing — though the softness wasn't for Sienna. "Then just stay on your own for now. I probably won't be back anytime soon. Take care of yourself."

He was about to hang up.

"Wait!" Sienna stopped him. "You still haven't found Miss Pemberton? Is she still upset about me? If that's it, I can go explain things to her, as many times as it takes until she's not angry anymore."

Upset?

Damon didn't know.

For a split second, he even wondered — if Ivy saw him with Sienna, would she feel threatened, get jealous like she used to?

If so, he could promise Ivy he'd never see Sienna again. They'd go back to the way things were — together, married, maybe even with children of their own someday.

But the thought lasted only a moment before he shoved it out of his head.

His tone toward Sienna grew more distant. "That won't be necessary. I'll handle things with Ivy myself."

With that, Damon hung up immediately and set all of Sienna's contacts to silent.

Sienna stared at her phone in disbelief. A moment later, she let out a shriek, found a photo of Ivy, grabbed a knife, and stabbed it into Ivy's face over and over. When she was done, she stared at the shredded photo and a strange smile spread across her face.

She murmured, "Damon, as long as I'm here, you two will never get a chance to make up. I will never let Ivy forgive you."

Ivy knew nothing about any of this.

Since arriving in Havenridge, aside from going out with Rhys, she'd been busy every day — trying on wedding gowns, trying on dresses, trying on jewelry, and going over the guest list.

She'd done all of this before, not long ago.

But back then, her heart had been full of dread and uncertainty.

Every gown fitting, she'd been afraid Sienna would feel unhappy about it again, and Damon would hand over her gown to be altered to Sienna's measurements, promising her over and over that he'd get her a better one.

But now, watching Rhys discuss details earnestly with the designer, she felt a calm she'd never known before.

Catching her gaze, Rhys looked up, smiled at her, then went back to talking through adjustments with the designer. Some things Ivy hadn't even mentioned yet, but he'd already guessed what she was thinking.

When the designer left with the list of changes, Ivy couldn't help herself. She walked over and kissed the corner of Rhys's mouth.

Rhys froze. Overwhelming joy crashed over him.

His hands were actually trembling as he cupped Ivy's face and gently returned her kiss.

Damon saw it all through the glass, and his eyes nearly split open with rage.

He'd spent days camped outside Helena's cottage, hoping to catch Ivy when she came to visit, so he could tell her everything he'd been feeling.

But day after day, Ivy never showed.

In the end, Helena took pity on him, worried he'd collapse at her doorstep, and figuring he and Ivy needed some kind of closure. So she told him who Ivy's Arranged Bond was with.

It had taken Damon considerable effort after that to find out the Davenport heir had been taking his fiancee to gown fittings. He'd rushed over, only to find his Ivy wearing a wedding gown for another man.

A shop attendant noticed Damon standing outside and went out to ask if he needed any help.

Ivy's eyes followed the movement. The smile dropped from her face, and her brows drew together.