Chapter 75 Seventy Five

Chapter 75 Seventy Five
IVY POV

The drive was quiet at first, the city lights streaking past the car windows. I fiddled with the seatbelt, trying to act casual, while Ronan’s hand rested lazily near mine on the console. Every once in a while, his fingers would brush mine, and I’d catch myself shivering despite my best efforts.

“So…” he started, voice teasing, “you still mad at me for showing up at your office like a psycho?”

I shot him a glare that I knew was pathetic in the dark. “Mad? No. Annoyed, maybe. Infuriated… yes. But mad? Not really.”

He smirked, the corner of his mouth tugging up in that infuriating way. “Good. Because I plan on annoying you a lot tonight.”

I rolled my eyes, pretending to look out the window, but I was already laughing under my breath. “You’re ridiculous.”

“Ridiculous is my middle name,” he said with mock seriousness. “Well, actually it’s… I’m not telling you. Can’t ruin the mystery.”

By the time we pulled up to the theater, I realized something. The parking lot was… empty. Completely. Not a single car around.

I blinked. “Uh… Ronan? Did you rent the whole place?”

He grinned like a mischievous child. “Yep. All for us. You’re welcome.”

I blinked again, a mix of shock and disbelief. “You’re insane.”

“Only for you,” he leaned closer, voice soft, teasing, “and I know you love it.”

I snorted, trying to keep my composure. “I do not.”

“Uh-huh,” he said, his eyes sparkling, “sure. That’s why you’re smiling like a dork right now.”

I groaned, covering my face with my hands, though I couldn’t hide the laugh that escaped anyway. “Fine. Maybe a little. But only because it’s kind of… cool. In a ridiculous, over-the-top way.”

He laughed, brushing a stray strand of hair from my face. “That’s my Ivy. Admit it… you love that I’m impossible.”

“Impossible? You’re more than impossible,” I muttered, shaking my head, “you’re like… a walking disaster.”

“And you,” he countered, leaning closer again, “are the only one who is crazily my comfort zone”

I groaned, leaning back in my seat, half exasperated, half smiling. This was going to be one very, very interesting movie night.

I followed him inside, still trying to wrap my head around the fact that the entire theater was ours. Not a soul in sight. The lights were dimmed just enough for a cozy glow, the giant screen looming in front of us like it had been waiting.

“You really didn’t have to do all this,” I muttered, brushing past him to grab a seat.

He plopped down beside me with that smug grin of his. “Oh, I know. But where’s the fun in being subtle?”

I rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t stop the laugh that slipped out. “You’re a clown.”

“This clown is, charming, and completely yours tonight,” he whispered, leaning a little too close for comfort. The heat from his body brushed against mine, making me squirm slightly.

I glanced at him, half exasperated, half… something else. “Completely mine, huh? That’s a bold claim, Mr. Hales.”

He winked, nudging me playfully. “I make bold claims, Ivy. It’s kind of my thing. And I intend to prove it tonight.”

I groaned, falling back into the seat, trying not to let my heartbeat betray me. He was sitting so close, and every time his shoulder brushed mine, I felt a spark that was probably illegal.

“So… what movie are we watching?” I asked, trying to distract myself from how impossibly distracting he was.

He smirked, leaning back and spreading his arms like he owned the plac… which, technically, he did for the night. “Something fun, something emotional. We’ll laugh, we’ll cry… mostly at you screaming during the scary parts.”

I shot him a side glance, half suspicious, half amused. “I will not scream. And you’re just trying to scare me.”

“Oh, I don’t try,” he said, his voice dropping an octave, low and teasing, “I succeed.”

I groaned dramatically, but I couldn’t help the little laugh that slipped past my lips. Somehow, I was already regretting nothing. This insane, over-the-top, completely private movie night with Ronan Hales was going to be… memorable.

And maybe, just maybe, I was already enjoying it far more than I should.

I sank into the plush seat, still trying to process that we were alone in a whole theater. Ronan stretched his legs out, arms draped casually across the back of the chairs, looking way too comfortable for someone who’d single-handedly ruined my self-control the night before.

“You know,” I said, nudging him lightly with my elbow, “most people rent the place for friends, popcorn, maybe a cute date. Not… whatever this is.”

He smirked, leaning toward me, eyes sparkling with mischief. “I’m not ‘most people,’ Ivy. And this… this is exactly what you deserve.”

I rolled my eyes but couldn’t hide the smile tugging at my lips. “Deserve? Really? I’m not sure watching a movie with a man who could literally give me a heart attack counts as ‘deserve.’”

He leaned closer, the heat from his body brushing mine again. “Oh, come on. Admit it… you’re excited. You love that it’s just us.”

I huffed, trying to act annoyed, though my stomach betrayed me with a little flutter. “I’m not excited. I’m not. It’s… it’s fine. Totally fine.”

His grin widened. “Sure, fine,” he teased, resting his hand lightly on the armrest near mine. “Watch the movie, and if you survive my expert horror-movie jump scares, maybe I’ll let you thank me properly.”

I groaned, half laughing. “Expert jump scares? I thought you were a lawyer, not a sadistic horror director.”

“Lawyer by day, terrifying date planner by night,” he said with mock seriousness, leaning back like he’d just delivered the world’s greatest line.

I caught my breath, trying to ignore the way his hand inching closer made my pulse race. “You’re impossible, you know that?”

“And you love it,” he murmured, that infuriating smirk playing on his lips.

I opened my mouth to argue, but the lights dimmed, and the giant screen lit up, forcing me to focus on the movie. Still… I couldn’t deny it.

I did love it.

And maybe I hated that I did.