PROLOGUE
In my bloodline, mistakes were not forgiven.
If a human found out, we killed the human…
and punished our own for being careless.
But Nicholas's bloodline did not believe in consequences.
Not for themselves.
They didn't hide.
They didn't fix anything.
If a human saw too much…
the human suffered for it.
Not them
(Our second female lead SERAPHINA and our official male lead NICHOLAS .appears later in the story, and that is when the twists and turns begins for ivy..
Choosing between obsessions and love..)
IVY'S POV
Argghhh!
I couldn't believe this was happening.
Darius had my wrists pinned above my head against the cold tiled wall of the third-floor girls' restroom at Lincoln Prep college.
The last bell had rung twenty minutes ago.
The hallway outside was dead quiet, but every tiny sound.
The slow drip of a faucet, the faint wail of a distant siren from the New York streets made my stomach twist tighter.
Fear.
Excitement.
Something dangerously close to both.
He leaned in, his lips brushing just beneath my ear. His voice slid low and smooth, like warm honey poured over something hard and unyielding.
"Come a little closer… I want to feel you near me."
I swallowed, my breath catching. Then, slower, softer, almost deliberate.
"I want to kiss you, Ivy. Very… very slowly."
His free hand moved to my throat, fingers light, thumb grazing the sensitive skin beneath my jaw.
The touch made something inside me shiver awake. I squeezed my eyes shut, my pulse thundering so loudly I could hear it in my ears.
This isn't me. This isn't supposed to be me.
I was twenty. The vampire among humans and the unwanted daughter in a house that never felt like mine.
And yet… right now, pressed against him like this.
I felt seen.
"You good, baby?" he murmured, easing back just enough to look at me, even though his body still kept me pinned. "Tell me you want this."
My breath came out uneven.
"I… I've never done this before." My voice trembled despite me trying to steady it. "I'm a virgin."
For a split second, something shifted in his eyes. Not hesitation. Something darker.
My chest tightened but not enough to pull away.
Because underneath it, there was something else. A need.
"But… I want this," I whispered, heat flooding my face.
Darius tilted his head, a slow, knowing smirk forming.
"That's my girl," he murmured. "You make it really hard for me to behave."
My stomach flipped.
He kissed me. Softly at first, almost careful like he was testing me, learning me. His lips moved slowly against mine, drawing me in, giving me time to feel everything. I melted before I could stop myself, my body reacting faster than my thoughts.
So this is what it feels like…
His thumb kept tracing lazy circles against my throat, grounding and dizzying at the same time. The kiss deepened, grew warmer, heavier, and a soft sound slipped out of me before I could stop it. I barely recognized it as mine.
He released my wrists, pulling me closer instead, like I belonged there.
"I want to take my time with you," he breathed against my ear.
My body responded before my mind could catch up.
When his hands moved under my skirt, when he pulled my panties down just enough, my heart started racing again but I didn't stop him. I didn't want to.
When he pushed into me, slow but firm, the sensation hit all at once.
Too much.
I gasped as my fingers dug into his arms, the stretch burned in a way I hadn't expected.
This hurts, why does it hurt this much?
"Easy, baby," he murmured, voice softer now, almost coaxing. "You feel so damn good… so tight. You have no idea what you do to me."
I bit down on my lip, trying to steady myself, trying to breathe through it. Don't pull away. Don't ruin this.
Slowly—gradually—the sharp edge dulled. The pain didn't disappear, but it shifted, blending into something warmer, deeper. Something that made my legs weaken in a completely different way. My body… it's changing.
A soft moan slipped out. Then another. Each one louder than the last. The sound echoed off the tiles, and that should have scared me, but instead, it made everything feel more intense. More dangerous. More real.
His hand came up to cover my mouth lightly, his eyes locked onto mine.
"That's it," he whispered, voice rougher now. "Let me show you how much I want you."
My thoughts blurred. Everything narrowed down to sensation to him, to the pressure, to the way my body was reacting without asking permission.
And when it hit. It was sudden.
Overwhelming. My whole body tensed, then broke apart in a rush that made me cry out against his hand, my fingers tightening helplessly against him.
For a moment, I wasn't in control of anything.
And that terrified me.
But it also, My God. It felt good.
Darius groaned low, finishing right after, his grip tightening like he didn't want to let go.
For a few seconds, neither of us moved.
Then reality crept back in.
Too fast. Too cold.
He helped me fix my uniform, smoothing things over like nothing had happened. Like this was normal. Casual.
"You were perfect," he said, pressing a quick kiss to my forehead, that same smirk already back in place. "Can't stop thinking about you."
Perfect.
The word settled deep in my chest, I didn't know if I did this because I liked him, but it felt good to be seen by a human, the most wanted guy in college.
Daruis slipped out first, checking the hallway before disappearing.
And just like that, I was alone.
I stood there for a moment, legs unsteady, a lingering warmth between my thighs. He had chosen me?
For the first time in years, I didn't feel like my father's unwanted mistake. I touched my lips gently
The subway ride home felt… strange.
Like I wasn't fully inside my body. voices blending together, but none of it really touched me. My mind kept drifting back.
To him.
To the way he looked at me.
To how easily everything had happened.
I should feel embarrassed. I should feel stupid. But instead… there was this quiet warmth sitting deep in my chest, spreading slowly.
If Father knew, he would most definitely kill me that was sure.
The thought came, sharp and clear.
But even then… I didn't feel scared enough to stop smiling.
Because for the very first time in my life, I felt wanted.
The moment I stepped inside the house, it all disappeared. Just like that.
Father was already there, standing in the foyer like he'd been waiting.
His eyes locked onto me immediately, cold and hard.
I didn't even get the chance to speak.
The slap came fast. Too fast. My head snapped to the side as pain burst across my cheek, and I stumbled back, hitting the marble floor. My bag slipped from my hand, scattering slightly beside me.
For a second, I just stayed there. Everything ringing.
"Late!" His voice wasn't loud. That made it worse.
"You think you can come in whenever you want?"
I pushed myself up a little, my cheek burning, my vision still slightly blurred.
"I'm sorry," I said quietly.
He let out a short, dry laugh.
"I keep you here for appearances, do you understand?" He asked, adjusting his sleeve like nothing had happened.
My chest tightened.
"People would talk," he continued. "And I don't tolerate that kind of attention."
His gaze sharpened.
"But don't ever think you act against my orders"
The same words. The same tone. The same weight. Only this time… they didn't sink in the same way.
*****
The rest of the evening blurred into routine. I scrubbed dishes until my hands pruned and cracked.
Mopped the endless marble floors while cold water numbed my fingers.
Layla's voice cut through the air. "Clean this up properly!"
followed by the deliberate sprinkle of water across the tiles I'd just finished.
I knelt again without a word, rag in hand.
Marcus watched from the doorway but said nothing dramatic.
Every time the ache in my cheek flared or my thighs twinged with remembered stretch, my mind drifted back to Darius.
To the way his eyes had stayed on mine even when I wanted to look away. To the low groan he couldn't quite hide.
I collapsed onto the bed still in my uniform, body heavy, mind replaying the press of cold tiles against warm skin until sleep dragged me under.
*****
The next morning I took extra time with my hair, smoothing it into soft waves that framed my face.
I touched more gloss on my lips.
He'll notice, and the idea made my stomach flutter in a way that felt almost giddy.
Campus buzzed with the usual morning chaos until I neared the lockers.
And then I heard whispers.
"…you heard about the bathroom thing yesterday?"
"…someone recorded it…"
"…nah, it's actually crazy…"
My steps slowed.
A strange feeling crept into my stomach. Not yet fear. But close.
A group had gathered near the lockers, laughing too loudly, too openly.
Sasha stood in the middle, holding her phone up.
"Play it again," she said.
The audio started. Muffled at first, then horribly clear: my own breathless gasps, the soft, broken moans I hadn't been able to stop. The wet sounds. My voice cracking on that final cry.
Heat flooded my face. Nausea churned.
"That's her," someone whispered, loud enough. "The quiet one? No way."
More laughter rippled outward. Phones came out.
I couldn't breathe properly.
My eyes moved frantically through the hallway. Looking for him.
But Darius wasn't there.
And somehow, that hurt more than the laughter.
My phone buzzed in my pocket. The sound made me flinch. Slowly, I pulled it out, my fingers unsteady.
A video.
My stomach twisted.