While the atmosphere inside the Old Emerson Residence remained warm and pleasant, things were entirely different at the Emerson Mansion.

The moment Ivy realized Leo would be staying with his great-grandfather for the entire weekend, the mansion suddenly felt far too quiet.

And strangely empty.

Disheartened, she quietly finished her dinner before returning to her room.

But sleep was nowhere near her tonight.

After spending almost the entire day resting inside the room, Ivy had come to realize something she honestly didn’t know how to process.

She was far more comfortable whenever Xander wasn’t around.

And that realization alone annoyed her.

Because every single time the man appeared before her, something inside her would instantly become restless.

Her thoughts would grow messy.Her breathing uneven.And her heart—

Her stupid heart would suddenly start pounding uncontrollably for absolutely no reason.

Even now, lying alone in bed, her mind shamelessly drifted back to earlier.

To his hand around her wrist.To the warmth of his arm around her waist.To the way he had looked at her while asking if Sal was her lover.

Ivy instantly groaned and buried her face into the pillow.

"Goodness... what is wrong with me?" she mumbled in frustration.

She had met countless dangerous men before.

Men who flirted.Men who threatened.Men who underestimated her.

Yet none of them had ever affected her the way Xander somehow did so effortlessly.

And the worst part?

The man barely even tried.

Sometimes he would simply stand there looking at her with that unreadable expression, and somehow her entire body would become painfully aware of his presence.

It was ridiculous.

Absolutely ridiculous.

Ivy rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling with a deep frown.

"Maybe I hit my head when I fainted," she muttered seriously. "That has to be it."

Because there was no logical explanation for why she kept replaying every little interaction with him inside her head like some lovesick teenager.

Especially when the man himself was unbearably frustrating.

One minute he acted cold and distant like she was merely someone staying in his house temporarily.

The next minute he was staring at her as though she personally held control over his emotions.

And then there was the jealousy.

Ivy still couldn’t forget the way his face darkened at the mention of Sal.

The memory alone made her blink slowly.

Good because if he were your lover... he’d already be dead.

The words echoed inside her head again.

Ivy immediately grabbed a pillow and smacked it against her face.

"What kind of insane thing was that supposed to mean?" she groaned.

Was he threatening her?Warning her?Confessing something?

Honestly, with Xander, it was impossible to tell.

The man behaved like someone who hated emotional vulnerability yet somehow kept creating emotionally confusing situations.

And annoyingly enough...

A part of her had noticed the relief in his eyes after she denied Sal was her lover.

That was what bothered her the most.

Because it had looked genuine.

Ivy slowly lowered the pillow and sighed deeply.

"Ugh... this is bad."

She had spent years carefully controlling herself.

Trusting people had never come easily to her.

Getting attached? Even worse.

Yet now she found herself overthinking every little thing Xander said or did.

Even his concern for her health lingered in her mind longer than it should have.

No one had fussed over her like that in a very long time.

And maybe...

Maybe that was why his actions affected her so much.

The room fell silent again as Ivy stared blankly at the ceiling.

For the first time in years, her life felt strangely unstable.

As though someone had entered her carefully guarded world and disrupted everything without permission.

And the most terrifying part?

She wasn’t entirely sure she wanted him to stop.

Realizing that thought, Ivy immediately sat upright in horror.

"Nope." She pointed at herself firmly. "Absolutely not. We are not doing this."

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the empty room as though personally blaming Xander for her emotional crisis.

"That man is dangerous."

Not because he was powerful. Not because he was intimidating.

But because somehow... without her even noticing—he had started affecting her heart.

"Argh!!!"

She quickly threw the blanket aside and climbed out of bed before her thoughts could spiral any further.

Sitting alone in the room was clearly dangerous for her mental stability when after every two minutes her brain somehow circled back to Xander.

His face, voice, and stupid intense eyes. She remembered everything.

At this point, Ivy genuinely considered suing the man for emotional disturbance.

"I need a distraction," she muttered while pacing around the room.

"Ahh..." And immediately, the perfect solution appeared in her mind.

Leo’s room.

There was no point in her sneaking around just to find peace of mind because Leo wasn’t there and was sleeping with his annoying Uncle Aaron. However, spending time playing games in Leo’s room would divert her attention away from his father.

’This will work.’

She reminded herself. At the very least, it would stop her from replaying Xander’s voice inside her head every five seconds.

With that thought, Ivy quietly slipped out of her room and walked down the dimly lit hallway.

The mansion was unusually silent tonight.

Only the soft glow from the wall lamps illuminated the corridor while the distant ticking of a clock echoed faintly through the space.

Ivy walked absentmindedly, too lost in her thoughts to properly pay attention to where she was going.

This is ridiculous, she thought while rubbing her face tiredly. Why am I even affected by him this much?

Maybe it was because she had spent too much time around him recently.

"Yes. That had to be it. Nothing else."

Absolutely nothing else.

Confident in her flawless logic, Ivy nodded to herself and continued walking only to come to a sudden halt.

Blinking in confusion, Ivy slowly looked up.

"...Huh?"

This wasn’t Leo’s room. In fact, this was the complete opposite direction from Leo’s room.

Standing before her was a dark wooden door she unfortunately recognized very well.

XANDER’S ROOM

Ivy stared at it in disbelief. "How the hell did I even get here?" she whispered accusingly at herself.

She had been trying to avoid thinking about the man, yet somehow her legs had brought her directly to his room like traitors working against her.

"This is embarrassing," she muttered while immediately turning around. "Nope. We leave. Right now."

But before she could even take a proper step away—

Click.

The door suddenly opened, causing Ivy’s eyes to widen. And in the next second, a hand grabbed her wrist and yanked her inside.

Bang!

The door slammed shut loudly behind her leaving her yelp.

"Ah—!"