Suspecting Alrigo

Suspecting Alrigo
Ivery Clark POV 

My heart slammed against my ribs so hard I was certain he could feel it vibrating through his chest.

“A-Alrigo…how did you get in here?!" I choked out, my voice cracking in a desperate, panic-stricken whisper.

My hands flew up to grab at his forearms, but it was like trying to move solid iron.

​Alrigo instead of taking a step back, he leaned in closer, shifting his massive frame to press me harder against the wooden doors of the wardrobe. 

“From the window..” he purred softly, his mouth so close his breath warm against the shell of my ear.

I hissed, ​"Alrigo, you're crazy! Mom is downstairs!” If she hears anything—"

​"So what?" Alrigo murmured against my lips. He gripped my jaw and brushed his lips against mine in a slow, unhurried kiss that stole every coherent thought from my mind.

My breath caught.

"Alrigo..." I breathed against his lips, my voice barely more than a helpless whisper.

Heat rushed to my cheeks as I instinctively clutched the front of his shirt, my fingers tightening in the fabric. 

My heart pounded so loudly I was convinced my mother could hear it through the floorboards.

This man was impossible.

"What's this?" His eyes drifted to the half-open wardrobe. He reached for it before I could stop him.

Alrigo pulled out a pair of tiny silk shorts dangling lazily from his fingertips—complete with a pattern of cute, fluffy white bunnies.

​"Interesting..." he murmured, a slow, wicked smirk tugging at his lips.

My face exploded into a scorching, violent blush.

​"Don't touch that!" I gasped, lunging forward to snatch them from his grip.

​Alrigo chuckled, stepping back smoothly and effortlessly raising the shorts high above his head—completely out of my reach.

"I wasn't expecting the fierce Ms. Ivery to sleep in bunny rabbits."

"They're comfortable!"

"I'm sure they are.”

Alrigo laughed and strolled through my room with infuriating ease, a slow grin spreading across his face as he looked around, his eyes locking on my eccentric posters. “Your room is... interesting too, ma bella.”

Panic surging through me, I launched myself toward him, jumping up to cover his eyes with my hands.

​”Don't look!” I squeaked, my face practically on fire. "Close your eyes!”

At 6ft4’, he merely stood his ground like a marble statue while I, hopelessly short, flailed in the air, my fingers barely brushing the shadow of his sharp jawline.

Alrigo laughed, looking down at my red-hot face with dark, glittering eyes. "You're going to have to reach a little higher than that, little rabbit.”

“Don't call me that!" I snapped in a harsh whisper, my face burning so hot I was certain it was radiating light.

​Alrigo's grin only widened, his strong arm tightening around my waist, keeping me firmly anchored against his chest.

​"Ivery? Are you done packing up there?"
​My mother’s voice echoed from downstairs. 

My heart instantly stopped, my eyes going wide with pure, unadulterated panic. 

Alrigo leaned down until his lips brushed the shell of my ear, his hand sliding down to squeeze my waist just enough to draw a muffled gasp from my throat.

​"Answer her, ma bella," he purred, his voice barely a breath against my skin, "before she decides to open the door and meet her guest.”

“I-I'll be down in a few minutes, Mom! There's a lot to pack!” I called out, my voice cracking slightly as I strained to keep it even.

"Oh! Do you need any help, sweetheart?" Mom's voice floated up from the bottom of the stairs.

​Panic surged through my veins like ice water. My eyes darted to the bedroom door, half-expecting her to start walking up.

​"No!" I blurted out a little too loudly, before forcing my voice into a desperate, steady rhythm. "No, Mom, I'm fine! It's..it's almost done! Just putting the last few things away!"

​"Alright, sweetheart! Don't take too long, there's a black car already outside! Your that… handsome friend must be waiting outside!” Her voice drifted away toward the kitchen.

“Handsome friend? Who?” ​Alrigo’s voice dropped an octave, the wicked amusement instantly vanishing into something dark, sharp, and razor-cold.

“Uh s-she thinks, one of our neighbor boys is going to drop me. She might have thought I might have the help." I blurted out, my voice high and tight as I spun in his grip, my hands slapping desperately against his broad chest.

​"Neighbor boys," he repeated smoothly, his voice a low, silk-wrapped threat. ​"Looks like you've been enjoying your life too much here, ma bella." 

My breath hitched, my heart hammering like a trapped bird against my ribs. 

“It's not what you're thinking.” 

“What am I thinking?" Alrigo countered. 

I opened my mouth. But nothing came out.

His smirk deepened as he took a slow step closer.

"Go on." His voice was maddeningly calm. "Enlighten me."

"I..."

"You seemed awfully eager to explain yourself.” Alrigo said, his heavy hands locking around my waist as he pulled me down with him onto the edge of the mattress.

​"Alrigo—"

​"You were with a boy in the backyard, weren't you? Not a girl but a boy….Who's he?" he murmured, his voice dropping into a dark, razor-sharp rumble.

What…? Panic spiked straight through my chest, making my breath come in short, ragged gasps.

​"There's no boy. Let go!" I panicked, my hands frantically pushing against his rock-hard chest as I squirmed in his lap. “I need to pack my bags! D-Didn’t you say we are leaving? Let's just go!”

"No. I don't want to go anymore.” The corner of his mouth curved into a dangerous smile. “Let's stay tonight.”

What…?

His dark gray eyes narrowed down at me, flickering with a cold, unyielding jealousy that made the air in the room feel suffocating.

“I'm in the mood to see your handsome boy…or boys this morning, you see.” 

​"You can't be serious! Alrigo, please, let's just get out of here before mom feels something is suspicious!" I begged, my voice cracking under the weight of sheer panic. 

​"Oh so you're worried about her being suspicious?" He let out a soft, breathy laugh. 

His fingers tightened around my throat just enough to keep my face inches from his. “When I'm the one who's suspicious, Ivery.”

The temperature in the room seemed to plummet. The wild, unhinged edge in his demeanor settled into something far more calculated.

​"You know what the most fascinating thing about a liar is?" he whispered, his voice dropping into a dark, smooth murmur right beside my ear. "It’s never just the lie itself. It’s the sheer arrogance of thinking you're clever enough to pull it off.”

Fuck he's scaring me…

“You should know, I clearly despise liars, Ivery. Not because they deceive me… I despise them because they waste my time. They try to rewrite reality right in front of my eyes and expect me to play along." His thumb smoothed slowly over my skin, feeling my pulse hammer wildly against his touch. 

I'm going to die today…I'm going to die today…

"Your heart is practically pounding through your skin right now, ma bella. Your eyes won't hold mine for more than three seconds. You're calculating. Searching for the next story. Isn't  it?”

My mouth went completely dry. The heavy, calculating weight of his gaze pinned me to the mattress, every instinct in my body screaming at me to keep my tongue still.
​
He was reacting like this over the mere, casual mention of a neighbor boy. God...
What if I told him Elias was actually the one who was with me?

He would practically bury me here only…or lock me in a windowless room for the rest of my life.

He doesn't trust me yet….he doesn't trust me at all! How could I bring up Elias now?

Think something, Ivery!

“You're not talking...” Alrigo said, his voice dangerously composed, and utterly devoid of warmth. “Fine, let's ask your mother instead.”

“"Okay!" I blurted out. "Okay, I admit it!”