Chapter 8: And He's Here

CHAPTER 8:

Ivy's POV

I ran through the forest as if my life depended on it. Branches whipped at my arms and face, but I didn’t stop. Something was behind me, I didn’t know what it was, though I only knew I had to get away.

My shoes slipped on the slippery forest floor, but I pushed harder. My chest burned and my legs shook, but I kept going.

A sound echoed somewhere far back, and I was sure it was a crack of wood or a growl, or maybe it was only the wind? I couldn’t tell.

I stumbled over a root and almost fell, and my heart pounded so hard it hurt. I turned my head, trying to see through the dark, but there was nothing and only silence now.

I froze and listened. The forest was still, way too still and even the breeze had stopped.

Maybe I had imagined everything, maybe it was just my nerves. I stood there, gasping and waiting for something to move, but nothing did.

I let out a shaky sigh.

“You’re losing it, Ivy,” I whispered to myself.

I turned around, ready to walk back toward the city, but then I slammed right into a figure standing behind me.

It was a man, tall with broad shoulders and the outline of a face I couldn’t see and my stomach lurched.

Before I could scream, the world around me dissolved.

I shot up in bed with a cry and cold sweat clinging to my skin. My sheets were twisted around me, and the room was dark with only a thin line of moonlight slipping through the curtains.

I pressed a hand to my chest where my heart was racing so fast I thought it might burst.

“It was just a dream,” I whispered. “Just a dream.”

I sat there for a moment, trying to calm down with my hands still shaking.

I finally swung my legs out of bed and crossed to the little table, and poured water into a glass. My fingers rattled against the cup as I drank.

I went to the window and pushed it open with relief as the cold night air rushed in soothingly.

I watched the forest outside as it lay at the edge of the city and stretched farther than I could see, and then I heard it. It was a long, low howl, far away but clear enough to reach me.

It felt like it was calling me, like it wanted me to come closer.

Before I realized it, I was leaning on the window frame, and my hand rested on the ledge as if I might climb out.

I blinked and pulled back quickly.

“No,” I said out loud. “What are you doing?”

Frustration rose, and I slammed the window shut and stepped away while my heart kept thudding.

I crawled back into bed and pulled the blanket over me, lying there staring at the ceiling with thoughts spinning. Everything had started after last night, after meeting him, Damian Blackthorn…

I could still see his face in my mind and the way he had looked at me like he knew me, and the way his touch had felt like fire, warm and strangely calming.

I shook my head and pressed my eyes shut.

“Get a grip, Ivy,” I muttered.

Sleep came in pieces, but somehow, I finally dozed off.

The alarm rang just after six, and I groaned and dragged myself out of bed. My body felt heavy, as if I hadn’t slept at all.

I showered quickly and dressed in jeans and a sweater, and then I brushed my hair and tied it back, then grabbed my bag.

I slipped out of my small apartment, carefully not to wake Mr. Jenkins. I didn't have his money yet and wasn't keen on hearing his fussing.

I locked the door and tiptoed past his unit. The floor creaked, but no door opened, and I let out a breath of relief and hurried outside.

A cab waited near the corner, and I waved it down and climbed in.

I told the driver to drop me off at the college, and he nodded and pulled into the street.

My mind kept replaying the night at the gala, and the more I thought about it, the more I found the whole experience rather strange.

Why couldn’t I forget it?

The cab finally stopped at the campus gates, and I paid and stepped out.

Students crossed the courtyard, talking, laughing and hurrying to classes. I headed toward my usual spot under the tree near the library, where I'll wait for her.

I scanned the crowd, looking for Maya. She was the only friend I had here and the only one who made this place less lonely.

I spotted her at last, and she waved with her ponytail bouncing as she hurried over.

“Hey,” she said, out of breath. “You’re early.”

“Couldn’t sleep,” I said.

She eyed me.

“You look like you’ve been through something.”

“Maybe I have.” I tried to smile, but it felt weak.

We walked toward our classroom together, and Maya kept giving me sideways looks.

“Alright,” she said finally. “Spill. What’s going on?”

I hesitated at the command. I wasn’t sure I wanted to tell her, but the words came out anyway.

“I met someone last night, at the gala,” I said quietly.

Maya’s eyebrows shot up.

“At the gala? When you were working?”

“Yes.”

“Who?”

I bit my lip.

“Damian Blackthorn.”

Maya stopped so fast I almost bumped into her.

“Oh my gosh,” she said. “You’ve got to be kidding!”

I shook my head.

“I wish I were.”

She stared at me with wide eyes.

“Damian Blackthorn? As in the Damian Blackthorn? The billionaire CEO of Blackthorn Enterprises?”

“Yes,” I said. “That one.”

She squealed and clutched my arm.

“Ivy! You met him? What happened? Did you talk? Did he… oh my God!”

I rolled my eyes even though a tiny smile tugged at my lips.

“Cool it, Maya. You’re drooling over his name and he’s not even here.”

Maya’s grin grew even wider, and then she froze as her gaze shifted past me and her mouth dropped open.

“He’s here!” she whispered.