Undressed By His Arrogance-Chapter 325: What’s That Medicine For?

Two birds. One stone.

He would get paid. And he would finally crush that pest of a woman who had dared to stand over him, who had dared to strip him of dignity

The thought of her made his jaw tighten. The humiliation still burned, eating at him in the quiet hours of the night.

*****

Ivy stood in front of the mirror and barely recognized herself.

Her bedroom buzzed with noise and warmth. Trish, Anna and Irene.

Her eyes flicked to Anna, who was reaching into her bag. And then she saw a small, unassuming bottle of medication.

"Anna, what’s that medicine for?" Ivy asked.

Anna looked up. She gave a soft, reassuring smile. "Oh, my blood pressure. I don’t know when we’ll be back, it’s better I take it now," she said.

Ivy turned sharply to Trish, her eyes wide. "Blood pressure?"

"Oh my God!" Trish exclaimed.

"Anna, don’t take that!" Ivy shouted.

"What? What? What’s going on? It’s just my usual medication," Anna asked, eyes wide with confusion.

Then Trish sank into the chair dissolving into serious explanation. She described the strange packages Morgana would send.

"I’ve been using this for years," Anna said softly. "You’re saying Tom and his mistress are doing something to me?"

"We don’t know what it is he is doing. But we need to speak with your doctor immediately," Irene said.

"Just go get married, Ivy. Let’s not put this off for much longer. We can handle this later."

"If this is what puts Tom away for good, then we have to do this now, Anna," she said. "I want my baby back home, and he is standing in the way of me having a complete family."

Anna exhaled, a long, trembling sigh. Even now, even after everything, Tom still had some invisible tether pulling at her, some shadow of control. "Okay. Fine." Anna nodded.

"I’ll call Winn." Ivy said, urgency creeping into her voice, and she grabbed her phone from the dresser, her fingers brushing the sleek surface. She tapped the screen, swiping into the video call, and a few heartbeats later, his face appeared.

"Hey beautiful." Winn was impeccably dressed in his suit. Behind him, she caught a glimpse of Sam’s cane resting against the wall but for the moment, all Ivy could see was Winn, and all she could feel was that familiar pull of need and trust.

Ivy smiled, letting her eyes linger on his jawline, the way his lips curved, the way his eyes seemed to pierce straight into her. "Hi," she said.

"You aren’t ready yet?" Winn’s brow lifted.

Ivy hesitated, biting her lip, a small, playful smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. "Uh... there has been some kind of delay."

She glanced back at Anna, who stood quietly, watching her.

"No! No! no! Whatever you are about to say, don’t...please don’t say it. I am marrying you today, you crazy woman."

Ivy felt the familiar shiver curl along her spine just hearing it, that raw, possessive edge that always made her pulse thrum faster.

Ivy held up the small canister containing Anna’s medication, her fingers tight around it. "I will meet you at the court. I have a small mystery to solve."

"That’s mum’s medicine. What’s going on?"

"I think Tom has been poisoning her."

"Lord have mercy. Does this ever end? James mentioned the same to me. I didn’t understand. What is happening?" Winn’s face twisted. She could see him running one hand through his hair.

"That’s what I am going to find out. We just need to speak with your mum’s doctor real quick, and I will come right back and marry you, okay?"

"Babe! No... Ivy!"

Ivy lunged for the end call button. Her lips curved in a wicked grin. She wanted to tell him to stop whining.

On the other end of the call, Winn cursed, a deep, throaty sound as soon as the screen went blank. "God fucking dammit!" His frustration spilled into the room. "I’m beginning to think your granddaughter doesn’t want to marry me! Fuck it! We gotta go." He said to Sam and Evans.

"What’s going on?" Evans asked.

"She thinks Tom has been poisoning my mother and is now going all Nancy Drew on our fucking wedding day!" Winn barked, pacing the room.

"Sounds like her," Sam said dryly, rising to his feet, the sort of calm, collected energy that balanced Winn’s flare-ups.

"I’m going to get her. I’m going to spank her..." Winn muttered, muttering the words under his breath.

"Hey!" Sam and Evans yelled in unison, shaking their heads.

"What? She is going to be my wife!" Winn countered, hands gesturing wildly.

"Yeah...we don’t have to hear about it," Evans snapped, crossing his arms.

"Oh, come on! Let’s go," Winn said finally, exasperation giving way to determination.

"Hold on. How about this? I will go get the bride, and I will get someone else to handle this other situation. You just get to the courthouse." Evans said.

Winn dipped his hands into his pockets. "You are going to call Tim, aren’t you?" he asked.

"Yup!" Evans said, turning on his heel and striding out before another argument could erupt. The echo of his footsteps seemed to reverberate, leaving Winn alone with Sam in his bedroom.

"Come on. Let’s get you married," Sam said, motioning toward the door.

"Yeah...if my bride actually shows up. Jesus..." Winn muttered.

"Quit whining," Sam said, rolling his eyes.

******

Meanwhile, Tom stood in front of Morgana’s house, shoulders slumped, pride shattered into jagged pieces at his feet.

"Morgana, please listen to me," he said.

"Tom... I’m done with you. I told you touching my kids was not part of the deal. It’s over." There was fire in her eyes, a simmering storm of fury. Her lips pressed into a hard line.

"Morgana, I can fix this. I just need you to hear me out. I can get us everything and more. We will go somewhere else. My plan is perfect, sweetie. Come on. Let’s go somewhere else, we will start all over again."