IVY
Ikept checking my phone, watching the little dots appear and disappear as Eric typed. Each message felt like oxygen after holding my breath too long.
I'm safe.
Relief flooded through me so fast I almost felt dizzy. My fingers flew across the screen.
Thank god.
Around me, the other women were getting their own updates. Elena's shoulders relaxed as she read something from Jackson. Meredith's phone buzzed, and Sofia glanced at hers with a small smile.
Then Meredith's phone rang, and she stepped away to answer it. We all went still, watching her face for clues. When she hung up, she looked at each of us in turn.
"It's done. The Malatesta presence in Ironstone is gone. They're not a threat anymore."
The words should've brought complete relief, but instead I felt something complicated twist in my chest. Gone. That probably meant dead. Probably meant Eric and the others had done things I didn't want to picture too closely.
"I don't want to know the details," Elena said quietly, echoing my thoughts exactly.
"Me neither." I wrapped my arms around myself. "I'll just focus on the part where we're safe now."
Meredith nodded, understanding in her green eyes. "That's fair. And you are safe. All of us are."
My phone buzzed again.
Where are you?
Meredith's estate. Putting together baby furniture with the girls
Safe?
Very. Security everywhere. Pretty sure I saw someone in the bushes with a sniper rifle
Good
I almost laughed at that response. Of course Eric's version of good involved armed guards and hidden snipers.
That's your idea of good?
My idea of good is you breathing. Everything else is negotiable
My chest went tight. I stared at those words, reading them twice, then three times. Eric had spent the day hunting down people who'd tried to kidnap me, and this was what he cameback with. Not promises he couldn't keep or reassurances that rang hollow. Just brutal honesty about his priorities.
I'm glad you're okay
Me too
"Come on," Sofia said, pulling me from my thoughts. "Let's go downstairs. Get some hot drinks and prep something for the boys when they get back. They'll be hungry."
In the kitchen, Meredith started the coffee while Elena rummaged through the pantry. Sofia bounced Marcello on her hip, making soft sounds at him.
"What do you think, sweet boy? Should we make pasta? Something hearty for your daddy and uncles?" She looked up at us. "They're going to be starving. And probably running on pure adrenaline. They'll need some carbs."
I found myself reaching for mugs, grateful for something to do with my hands. "Pasta sounds perfect. Comfort food."
"Exactly." Sofia shifted Marcello to her other arm. "Ivy, can you hold him while I get ingredients together? He's being fussy."
Before I could protest, she was transferring the baby into my arms. Marcello blinked up at me with serious dark eyes, then made a small sound that might've been approval.
