"You're mad at me."
I focused on the game on my phone, my jaw tightening.
Did he not realize how dangerous it was for him to accept Tony's invitation for dinner?
"Ivy?" he called.
Tony could have killed him!
"Talk to me," his voice was soft.
I could have lost him. The mere thought ripped out my heart.
I heard him come closer but stayed glued to my phone.
"Ivy, please."
I dropped my phone and stared at him. His body blocked out the sunrays, his worried gaze on my face.
"You wanna talk?" I stood up. "Fine, let's talk."
"You have no right to show up at my doorstep unannounced. Do you know how suffocating it is to have you in the same room with-," I paused and inhaled deeply.
His face fell. "I texted, I called, I tried to reach out to you."
"Damon, if someone screens your calls and texts, it means one thing," I paused.
"They don't wanna talk to you!"
"Oh," he took a step back.
My heart raced in my chest, even more when I saw the devastation on his face. I couldn't let him get hurt because of me. Tony had set a trap and he'd caught Damon deeply in it. It made me realize just how dangerous Tony was.
Tony knew Damon had feelings for me, that mere fact already put him in danger.
Tony had set a deadline to kill Damon. I was running out of time. I had to make him stop having feelings for me, that way we can put some distance between us and stop Tony's plan of Damon taking over the West.
"Damon, you needed someone that night, so did I. That's all that happened."
I had to protect him.
"I don't love you. I never did. This-," I gestured at the both of us. "Isn't real. None of it is."
Even if that meant him hating me.
"Sure, at first there was the initial attraction but now that I've had sex with you, you bore me."
Even if it meant pushing him away.
He staggered back and I looked away, not daring to look him in the eyes for fear of what I might see there.
"I bore you?" he asked.
I gripped my phone tightly in my hand, my breath heavy. I had lied hundreds of times, but not one hurt as much as the word that came out.
"Yes."
"I see."
"So, please stop with the big confessions of love," I paused. "It's disgusting."
No. It's a lie.
There was a pause, and then he nodded. "Sure. You got it."
He grabbed a file and walked to the door. He paused, his hand on the doorknob.
"Thanks for being honest, and sorry for being a bore."
Don't go.
He shut the door behind him and my legs gave way as I crumbled to the floor. I felt the walls closing in on me, and the liquid filling my heart. Sweat dripped down my forehead, as my pulse raced.
"I can't-," I held my chest painfully.
"I can't b-breathe."
My phone rang and I reached for it desperately. Tara's face popped on the screen.
"Mia, what's wrong?"
I clutched my chest tightly, my lungs felt like fire as I tried to breathe.
"I-I-," I couldn't get the words out.
"You're having a panic attack. Breathe, Mia."
She inhaled deeply, and exhaled. I copied her and slowly felt my chest getting lighter.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
I got up slowly, holding my desk for support and nodded. "I'm fine."
"What happened? You're not one to have a panic attack," she said.
She was right, I'd aways been in control and had the upper hand in my missions but Damon was different.
I didn't realize it until it was too late that he'd slowly stripped me of the control I had over my feelings, my missions, and my body. It was too dangerous to stay with him any longer than I had to. I had to abort, immediately.
"Did something happen with Damon?" she asked.
I ran my fingers through my hair. "I told him I had no feelings for him."
"Oh," she looked surprised.
"What? You're the one who told me to cut ties with him," I sat down.
She leaned closer, her face filling the screen. "Does that mean you're sacrificing him?"
"No, of course not," I blew a hot breath. "I'll find a way to protect him—from afar."
"Yeah, about that," she scratched her head.
I raised my eyebrows warily. "What?"
"I found out who paid Elliot to kill Damon," she said.
I sprung up from the chair. "Who's it?"
Tara held out a picture and I stared at the face on it.
I folded my fists in anger as I looked at the familiar face. "Niall?"
"Yup. Man, he must really hate Damon's guts," Tara put the picture away.
"After Elliot failed, he contacted the Raven mercenaries to take Damon out," she stared at her tab.
"You know them, Mia. These are no amateurs. They will kill Damon."
I'd come across one of the mercenaries before on a mission. He'd been hired to kill a drug lord before he spilt any secrets. My mission had been to squeeze the information out of the drug lord before killing him.
I'd barely won the fight and escaped, he was that good. If Niall hired him, then Damon was even in more danger than I thought.
"Elliot failed the first time. It's no wonder he hired professionals to finish the job," I said.
"What do you plan to do?"
"I'll kill Niall. If their employer is dead, they'll leave Damon alone," I paced.
How dare he order a hit on Damon? The bastard.
"Yes, and risk Tony finding out you've betrayed him. Now, guess who's dead," she rolled her eyes.
"I don't care what happens to me, as long as Damon's safe."
Tara paused. "Tony would have Damon killed just to spite you, you know that. And then what?"
I paused. That was true. Tony wouldn't hesitate to kill Damon if he found out I killed Niall to keep him safe.
"And what about me? I'm guessing you don't care what happens to me as long as your Damon is safe," her tone was bitter.
I turned to her. "You know that's not true."
She sighed and looked away. "If Tony finds out I'm helping you-."
"He won't," I brought the phone to my face.
"I'll keep you safe, Tara. I promise you."
Her eyes searched mine for a few moments, wondering if I meant it.
"Whatever," she sniffed, looking away.
I smiled. She knew I would do anything to keep her safe.
"So, it was Niall who sent the car from the parking lot and the chase?" I asked.
"Yeah."
I gasped. "What about the pictures? Did you find out who took them?"
She shook her head. "Not yet."
"If Tony finds those pictures..."
"I'm doing everything I can, but there's almost nothing to go on with."
I nodded. "Okay, thanks, Tara."
"Remember," she paused. "Alan wants Damon to take over the West, so does Tony. This ups the stakes, Mia."
"I agree. Both Niall and Tony wants him dead. This puts him in more danger than before."
"If you truly want to keep him safe, it's not something you can do from afar," she pointed out.
I buried my head in my hands. Mia was right. The Raven mercenaries were deadlier than any other assassins I'd come across with. I had to stay near Damon at all times, the only problem was that I'd made him hate me.
The door opened and I cut the call quicky. Damon entered without so much as a glance towards me.
Ouch.
He sat behind the desk and loosened his tie. I followed his every movement, wondering just how much I'd screwed it up.
"You don't have to come with me tonight," he broke the silence.
"Where are you going?" I asked.
"The bar," he turned to his computer.
It was a Friday night, just like the night I approached him in the bar. But he had not been there in a while.
"I'm going with you," I couldn't let him go alone.
He paused and glanced at me. "That would not be needed, Ms. Wells."
"It's part of my job to always be by your side, I'm your bodyguard," I insisted.
He was pushing me out, and even though it was what I wanted, a piece of my heart was shattered.
He grabbed his jacket and wore it. "Not anymore."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
He stood up, his eyes on me. They were cold and distant.
"You're fired, Ms. Wells."