It’s almost midnight and someone is still up. I should’ve called. I don’t want to play twenty questions after the night I just had with Sterling.

Sterling. The way held me and kissed me…it was incredible.

I’ve never felt that spark with Dean, not the way I do with Sterling. I walk in the back door and see my dad sitting at the kitchen table with a glass of whiskey.

“Where have you been, young lady?” I lock the door behind me.

“I’ve been out with Sterling. Why are you still up, Dad?” He stands and walks over to me, eyeing my disheveled appearance.

“You’re my little girl, Ivie. I’m worried about you.” He drops a kiss on my head. He never drinks, only when he’s very worried about a trial. “Sipping on a good whiskey lights the fire in me I need to see the truth” is what he always says.

“I’m just glad you’re home safe. I’m about to turn in. Goodnight, pumpkin.” I walk down the hall to my room. “Goodnight, Dad.”

My phone buzzes. Thinking maybe it’s Sterling, I hastily pull it out of my pocket. It’s a text from a blocked number. I’m watching you. You’ll pay, and there’s nothing your daddy can do about it. I almost drop my phone as I realize this is a threat, probably from Dean’s attacker.

Tomorrow, I’ll go to Sterling’s and show him this message. I can’t alarm my parents if this could be a prank, especially Dad. With him being a judge, he’s always worried about me and Mom.

For now, I tread through the house to my room, throw on my pajamas and fall into my pillows. It’s time to get some much-needed sleep. Worry and stress will have to wait until tomorrow.

 

 

Ivie says she needs to talk to me, so she’s coming over. I’m a little nervous, because I have no clue what it’s about. Does she regret last night? Or is it something else entirely? I guess I’ll find out soon enough.

I walk out toward the stables to check on Wrigley and finish my chores when I see Ivie’s car bouncing down the gravel drive. Brigg…whatever this is about, just keep your cool. She comes to a stop and gets out of her car, and I meet her halfway.

“Hey. Thanks for letting me come over and talk.” I pull her close and grin.

“Anything for you, darlin’.” She smiles back, and damned if my heart doesn’t skip a beat.

“What I need to talk to you about is serious. I don’t know who else I can trust.” Her eyes shift in worry.

“I was on my way to the stables. We can talk in there and have a little more privacy.”

“Okay.” We walk into the stables, and I pull up a couple bales of hay so we have a place to sit.

“What’s this all about?”

She looks at me and asks, “Have you gotten any strange messages?” I stare at her with concern.

“No, I haven’t. Why? Have you?” Ivie nervously pulls out her phone, taps in her code and shows me the message. Fear thunders through my chest.

“I have no idea who this came from— whether it’s real or a prank. Honestly, I don’t know what to do about it.”

“Ivie, you need to take this to the cops. Whether this is real or not, you can’t take any chances with all that’s happened. Whoever attacked Dean could’ve sent this message.” She avoids my gaze.

“That’s what I’ve been thinking too.” Ivie nervously rubs her arms like a cold wind just blew through her. “I’ve felt uneasy the last couple days, like someone’s watching me.” My fear turns to anger as I imagine someone stalking her. “Do you want me to go to the cops with you? I don’t mind.”

She gets up and looks at me. “I’ll let you know. I may wait and see if I get another message. It could still be just a prank, someone trying to freak out the judge’s daughter.” I stand and meet her gaze.

“Ivie, listen, you can’t be playing around with something like this. I wouldn’t be taking this lightly after what just happened to Dean. I’m not taking it lightly at all.”

“I appreciate your concern, Brigg, but I’m a big girl. I think I can take care of myself. I just wanted to tell someone, and my first thought was you. I needed to say it out loud, I guess. I better be going, anyway. I want to go check on Dean before I go back home. My dad’s been a little overprotective lately.”

I grab her by the arm as she tries to walk past me and pull her down onto my lap, straddling me. I brush a kiss over her forehead. “Promise me you’ll be careful, Ivie.” She looks at me with those mesmerizing green eyes and I feel almost lightheaded.

“I will, Sterling. Don’t worry.” I kiss her, with no intention of stopping. She finally pulls back to look at me, desire burning in her eyes, matching mine.

“I really do have to go.” She kisses me once more and gets up and heads toward the door.

“I don’t know what we’re doing, Sterling. I want to be with you, but I know I shouldn’t. I’m Dean’s girlfriend, and you’re his best friend. I feel guilty for wanting you and being with you.” I walk over to her and tilt her chin up to me. “Ivie, I know. I’ve had feelings for you for a long time. I just never acted on them because I was scared and then because of Dean. I feel guilty, too. What are you saying?” She searches my eyes.

“I don’t know. This is complicated now, and I know it’s my fault. I crossed the line with you. I don’t regret it. But I also don’t know what it means.” I nod.

“I understand, Ivie. I won’t do or say anything you don’t want me to. I would never hurt you.” She smiles sadly.

“I know, Sterling. Just give me time. That’s all I know to say.” I kiss her one more time because the way she’s talking, I don’t know if I’ll get to again. I lean my forehead down to hers.

“I have to go.” She walks back to her car and throws me a slight glance over her shoulder before getting in and driving away. She’s too brave for her own good; she must get that from her dad. I have a bad feeling about this. Something isn’t right, and whoever is sending those messages and making her feel watched is surely involved in Dean’s attack, someone who means business.

Ivie’s playing with fire by not going to the police. Speaking of fire, I’m going to need a lot of cold showers with this fire Ivie’s started inside me. I watch as she pulls out of my drive, worry filling my gut. I pull out my phone and call the police department. “This is Sterling Brigg. I need to talk to Detective Trudeau.” While I wait on hold, I head back to the house and my truck.

“Sterling? This is Trudeau.”

“Can we meet and talk, Detective? I know you’ve been wanting to talk to me more about the night Dean was attacked.”

He replies, “Of course. Do you want to come to the police department?” I take a deep breath.

“Yes, I can be there in ten minutes.” I can hear him clicking on a keyboard.

“Okay, Brigg, I’ll see you then.” I hang up and hop in the cab of the truck. I won’t mention anything Ivie said—yet—but I want to be close to this investigation. I’m hoping Trudeau sees me as an asset, not a bother.

 

 

When I walk into Dean’s hospital room, his mom’s sitting in the chair close to the window. She’s exhausted. She smiles at me and then closes her eyes, resting since she knows I’m here. I sit in the chair closest to the door, leaving Dean’s left side to me. There’s some bruising there, too, from the right side. He looks a little more purple instead of black and blue today.

I brush back his black hair that falls over his forehead and grab his hand. I sit there for a few minutes, looking at him, feeling the weight of guilt in my chest. I gave into my feelings for Sterling. Dean will never understand. He’ll never forgive me. What am I going to do?

Suddenly I feel his fingers twitch in my hand. “Dean?” I gasp.

I hear a mumbled “V?” I jump up and kiss his forehead as tears spring to my eyes. He reaches up and brushes them away with his right hand.

“Mrs. Warren!” I sputter. She hops up, a little dazed, but then realizes Dean’s awake. She rushes out the door to call the doctor in. I get him the cup of water from the bedside table and hold the straw up to his lips as he takes a couple of deep pulls. When he leans back against the pillows, his eyes are more clear and he seems to know where he is.

“Dean, you scared us to death. Do you know what happened to you?” I stare at him with uncertainty.

He tries to shake his head then winces and mutters, “I know I was hit. I got a message from a blocked number to go outside. There’s something I need to see. No one was out there. The next thing I know, someone hits me from behind, and before I could turn around, I was hit again.” I shudder at his story, realizing that the text message I received seems more likely than ever to be from his assailant.

“The important thing is you’re okay. We can figure all this out later.” He nods. Just then his mom and Dr. Smith comes in the room. “I’m going to let them see you now. I’ll check in on you later, okay?” He grabs my hand.

“Ivie, I love you.” My heart cracks. I smile tightly. “I love you, too.” He smiles as I walk out the door.

I love Dean, but he hasn’t been the same around me in months. Before this happened, I was thinking about breaking it off with him. He’s my first love. I’ll always love him. But he’s barely even kissed me or held my hand for months now. Deep down I’ve wondered if he’s gone behind my back with someone else. Is that what pushed me into Sterling’s arms? Being vulnerable, combined with being shown no real affection from Dean in so long? It’s more complicated than that though. I have feelings for Sterling, it wasn’t just all of this. I want him. I feel something more with him.

I pull into the drive at home and dread going in. Dad’s really being overprotective these days. Mom’s almost too quiet. As I walk up to the house, my phone rings. Blocked number. I look around outside as I start to feel a chill.

“Hello?” It takes a beat or two, then I hear, “You better stay away from Sterling. I’ll get him next, just like your precious playboy, Dean. He may have picked you, but is he faithful? Oh, the things I know about your life. I’m going to make you pay for being the chosen one.” The line goes dead.

I couldn’t tell if that was a man or woman. The voice was mechanical, some kind of filter to hide their voice, I guess. I hear the rustle of leaves at the edge of the fence and start to walk that way when I hear the back door open and my dad steps out on the deck.

“Ivie, what are you doing, honey? You better come inside. It’s getting chilly out here. Your mom brought home your favorite pizza.” I glance back at the tree line and back to him.

“Okay. I’ll be right there.” Dad goes back in and closes the door behind him. I look back toward the fence and again have an eerie sensation someone’s out there. My eyes can’t quite make out anything definitive in the twilight. I walk up to the deck and look back once more.

Whoever is calling and texting is following me. I can’t take any chances that Sterling might be hurt, or that they might try to hurt Dean again. I’ll have to find an excuse not to see him or talk to him anymore. I knew better than to get involved with him. Obviously, Dean’s been up to something, if blocked caller is suggesting he’s cheating on me, meaning I was right about needing to break things off and feeling like I was losing him. That doesn’t make me feel any better.

I close the back door behind me and step into the warm smell of mozzarella cheese and tomato sauce. I have a bad feeling there are worse things in store.

After dinner, I shut the door to my bedroom and fall into my bed. What am I going to do? How am I going to break it off with Sterling before he gets hurt…or worse? I can’t let him get caught up in whatever craziness this is.

My phone rings. I look at the caller ID and the display reads Sterling. “I’m sorry, Sterling. I do have feelings for you. I’m falling hard for you, just like I knew I would. Maybe I’m not falling, I think I already have, and that’s why I can’t talk to you,” I whisper to my phone. I hit the ignore button and I feel tears sting my eyes.

This is going to be hard. I get back up and kick off my clothes and shoes, then slide into a pair of shorts and a T-shirt and snap my hair back in a ponytail. I hit the lights and pull up the covers. Outside I hear the wind kick up. Another storm is coming, in more ways than one.

Now I know that whoever this creep is, he or she wasn’t out to just get Dean. Dean’s lying in a hospital bed because someone wants to hurt me. I must know this person. But who? Who would do this? What have I done to make someone hate me so badly that they want to hurt me by going after people I care about? A new sense of guilt runs over me as I try to calm my mind and go to sleep.

I see her light turn off. I know you feel me watching you. Little miss perfect Ivie Davis. You aren’t going to get what you want forever. Daddy’s little angel. Mama’s beauty queen. Popular with both the girls and the guys. I’ll make you pay, Ivie. You’ll pay for your sins and your daddy’s, too. I won’t ever let you be happy or sleep easy, you can count on that. Dean’s just the tip of the iceberg for you. I head back down her drive toward where I hid my car. I’ll get my revenge. Her and her ‘untouchable’ daddy, Rhett Davis. I smile as I reach my rig. I get in and turn on the heat, turning my twin beams toward town. This will make for an exciting game. A game to destroy Rhett Davis’s reputation, and of course all things Ivie Davis, the chosen one…

 

Four weeks later…

 

“Great. This is just great.” I’ve visited with Dean enough to let him know I care, but I’ve been keeping my distance since he’s been home. I’ve been doing all I can to avoid Sterling. It’s been hard running to my car after school before he can reach me, coming up with excuse after excuse, lie after lie, as to why I can’t see him or talk.

And there’s been no new messages or calls, so maybe it was a hoax. Some creep just trying to scare me. Someone taking advantage of my situation. My life. I close my eyes and take a deep breath as I pace in the bathroom connected to my room. “I can’t believe this. How long does it take a stupid stick to turn, anyway?” I mutter.

The last week, I’ve been so drained. Now my period is late. This is what I get for being so irresponsible and giving into my emotions. I haven’t told anyone but Sterling about the messages, and he only knows about the first one. I sure haven’t told anyone about what happened between me and Sterling, not even Lucy.

The timer I set goes off. I feel the color drain from my face. Positive. I’m pregnant, with Sterling Brigg’s baby. I feel my knees give as I sit down on the bathroom rug. I stare at the stick as if I can change the results. I know this baby belongs to Sterling, because I haven’t been with Dean in months. He was always too busy, but it was just as well. Sometimes I just didn’t want him to touch me.

I could tell he was keeping secrets from me, maybe even straight up lying to me. This is the second test I’ve taken, so it must be true. I need to tell Sterling. This affects him, too. Damn it, I have to tell Dean. This’ll be the end for us. Ready or not, probably the end for Sterling and Dean too. This is a double-edged sword of betrayal toward Dean.

I close my eyes at the thought of becoming a statistic, of being single and pregnant, and although I’m legally an adult since I’m eighteen, I’m still in high school. The disappointment from my parents… I look in the mirror and brace myself, my heart, for what’s to come.

I wrap both tests carefully and place them in a bag before putting them in my trash. I don’t need Mom finding this out before I’m ready to tell her. I let out a deep breath and close my eyes.

I have to call Sterling and meet with him. I can’t tell him over the phone. This affects him the most, so I’ll tell him first. He’s probably going to hate me, because I haven’t talked to him in weeks, now I’m going to pop up and say, “Hey, how you been? By the way, I’m having your baby. You want to grab dinner?” This is a disaster. Here goes nothing. I punch out Sterling’s number. After the second ring, “Hello.”

“Sterling, I was wondering if I could meet you somewhere. We need to talk.”

“You got that right. Why have you been avoiding me? And don’t act like you haven’t. We both know different.” I pinch the bridge of my nose and squeeze my eyes shut.

“Sterling, just meet me at the outlook. I promise I’ll explain everything there, okay?” He pauses and blows out a frustrated breath.

“Okay, Ivie. I’ll see you there in about fifteen minutes.” He hangs up. More great news, he’s angry with me. I can hear it in his voice. I’m beginning to think I’m in a lose-lose situation. I take one more look at myself in the bathroom.

“You can do this,” I tell my reflection. I swipe on some lip balm and dust a little powder on my face, then run a brush through my hair, my long and wavy brown locks spilling over my shoulder. That’ll have to do. I put on my coat, grab my purse and keys, and head for the door.