Undressed By His Arrogance-Chapter 226: Get Your Shit Together

By the time she reached the guest room, she was tired. Bone tired.

Her thoughts drifted to Winn. To the stupid inheritance. To her lies. To the way her entire family tree seemed to be held together with secrets and duct tape.

Now she just had to figure out how the hell she would apologize to her brother—how to finally tell him that she had been one of the instruments in destroying his life.

She knew one thing: her relationship with her brother, as she knew it, would come to an abrupt end. Winn adored her, trusted her—even when he was angry, even when he was spiraling, even when he pushed her away, she was still his safe place.

Or at least he thought she was. Sylvia lay flat on her back. But it was time. She had held on to her part in all of this for too long—her silence, her tiny manipulations. At least she was doing something good by keeping Elizabeth safe.

That thought was her only thread of redemption, the only thing preventing her from drowning in guilt. She pressed a hand to her chest, breathing out shakily. Her brother might never look at her the same way again.

But maybe, just maybe, freeing him from the burden of unanswered questions was the one thing she could still give him.

*****

Ivy got to work at Everest the next morning, exhausted but determined to keep herself upright. She forced herself to walk with straight shoulders, pretending she hadn’t spent half the night crying into her pillow.

She just needed to make a quick stop before heading to the site. The elevator dinged softly as she stepped inside. "Get your shit together," she whispered to herself.

She decided she might need to travel to the Netherlands soon to give the investors an update on how the project was going. She had never been out of the country before. Maybe this would help her clear her head of the madness that was Winn Kane.

Winn Kane. Just thinking his name made her stomach twist. She clenched her eyes shut, leaning back against the elevator wall. She hadn’t been able to sleep at all. First was her usual nightmare—the same one.

Next was the dead look on Winn’s face as she shot that man. A corpse-like stillness in his eyes that terrified her more than any enemy. He didn’t even flinch at the gunshot. Didn’t breathe.

And what did he mean by "everyone would pay"? Did that include Sharona too? Ivy swallowed hard.

The elevator opened into the admin office floor. Someone greeted her, she nodded back without hearing the name. She reached her office, closed the door, and finally let her back hit the wood.

Her fingers trembled against her desk. She pulled out her laptop, tried to focus but her mind kept drifting back to Winn holding her face after the gunshot.

Ivy pressed a hand to her trembling lips.

She needed space.

She needed air.

Her secretary knocked lightly before gliding in. She was carrying a huge bouquet of lilies and blush roses—large, dramatic, expensive.

"If that is from Mr. Kane, please dump it in the trash and every other subsequent ones from him."

"No, this one is from a Eugene Rothschild, ma’am."

"Eugene?"

"Yes ma’am." The secretary’s eyes lit with curiosity—Rothschild was not a small name.

"Oh. Okay." Ivy swallowed, trying to steady her face. "Would you put it in a vase, please? Thank you."

Ivy watched her arrange the flowers. Why was Eugene sending her flowers?

"And," she added, clearing her throat, "send a text to Trish Whyte. Tell her to meet with me this Friday at the reserved Commissioned booth."

"Yes, ma’am."

"Do I have any appointments today?" Ivy asked.

"No, ma’am."

"Alright." Ivy inhaled deeply. "We will need to take a trip to the Netherlands next week. Prepare for that."

"I will be spending the rest of my day at the mall site. Handle any and all business in the meantime."

"Yes ma’am."

"And the files Mike sent," Ivy continued. "I need you to sit on it for now."

"For how long, ma’am?"

"I’ll let you know when to send them to the press."

"About that, ma’am... I have a bit of worry. "That information will harm House of Kane also, and in doing so... throw a bad light on Everest. Are you sure that is the decision you want to make?"

She wasn’t wrong. Anything that damaged Sharona Kane risked splashing filth on the entire Kane name—including Winn and also spill to the Everests who had just entered into partnership with House of Kane.

It was a mess. Everything was a mess.

"You’re right, of course," she muttered, rubbing her temples. "Fine. I’ll think of what to do about it."

"Okay, ma’am." With a respectful bow of her head, the secretary slipped out, closing the door softly behind her.

Then her phone beeped.

She inhaled sharply and reached for it.

Eugene: Got the flowers?

Me: Yes, I did. Quite thoughtful, thank you.

A long pause.

Then—

Eugene: Can I take you to lunch?

Her eyebrows shot up. Direct. Bold. She typed quickly.

Me: I have a full day. Will be at the mall site.

She didn’t expect him to accept that as a decline.

She should have known better.

Eugene: I’ll pick you up there. Don’t say no.

Ivy let out a long, shaky exhale and dropped her phone on the desk.

She pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a headache crawling up her forehead. Her heart felt oddly tight—annoyed, flustered, flattered, guilty.

"Maybe it’s time," she muttered to herself.

Time to move on.

Time to build a life that wasn’t tied to Winn Kane. A life not tethered to a man who could make her feel both worshipped and destroyed in the same breath.

She’d had only two serious relationships in her life.

First was Steve.

And then Winn.

Winn was a storm.

He was the only man she’d ever loved in a way that terrified her.

(And we made it to 100 power stone. Can we do 200?)