Wrong Flirt, Right Trouble: His Uncle Pulls Me Close

Xavier Mercer dropped Ivy Sherwood off at home, and she sat alone in the living room, lost in a daze for a long time.

She was still reeling from Caleb Blackwood’s words. She... had an engagement with Quentin Blackwood.

...

After two days of torment, Charlie Rhodes was completely drained. Drugged and locked away, he was left to burn through a drug-induced frenzy that nearly killed him.

’Ivy Sherwood. Quentin Blackwood. I won’t forget this!’

’I’ve already got one foot in the grave anyway, so what’s there to be afraid of?’

’You only live once, and you shouldn’t leave any regrets. If he didn’t get to have Ivy Sherwood, *that* would be the real regret.’

After Quentin Blackwood had crushed his testicles and broken both his legs, he was tossed back into his hotel like a broken dog. Quentin had threatened him, warning that if he ever had any ideas about Ivy Sherwood again, it wouldn’t be so simple next time. He would take Charlie Rhodes’s life.

Charlie Rhodes simply couldn’t swallow this humiliation. He called Ruby Sterling.

Ruby Sterling had been extremely anxious for the past two days. ”Godfather, I haven’t been able to reach you at all. What on earth is going on?”

”It’s nothing. I’ve been busy with other things,” Charlie Rhodes said, his voice hoarse from screaming for the past two days.

Ivy Sherwood had already forced a large dose of the drug on him. Then, just when he had finally made it through the effects, Quentin Blackwood had forced even more on him.

He was now in a state of total collapse.

Charlie Rhodes got straight to the point. ”Ruby, are you short on cash recently?”

”Godfather, I am a bit tight on cash.”

”How much do you want?”

Ruby Sterling was taken aback. ’Why is Godfather being so generous this time?’

Usually, getting money from Charlie Rhodes wasn’t so simple. She’d have to let him have his way with her first. But now, he was offering money outright.

Ruby Sterling quickly said, ”Godfather, look at my daughter, Thea. She’s in such a terrible state because of what Godmother did to her. She doesn’t even dare to leave the house now. I have to support her, and my company has gone under... I’m not asking for much. If I could get five hundred million...”

Ruby Sterling was cautiously testing the waters, unsure how much Charlie Rhodes would give her. At this point, she would have been satisfied with any amount.

However, Charlie Rhodes said directly, ”I’ll give you one billion.”

Ruby Sterling was stunned by this unexpected windfall. ”Godfather, are you serious?”

”Of course. You’re my good daughter, after all. And Thea was truly wronged in this matter. I should give her some compensation.”

”That’s wonderful! Thank you, Godfather!” Ruby Sterling was overjoyed.

’With this much money, she could live the rest of her life carefree and alone.’

But she hadn’t been happy for long before Charlie Rhodes said, ”But I have one condition. I want Ivy Sherwood.”

Ruby Sterling, of course, knew what he meant by ”want.” ’But Godfather is actually interested in Ivy Sherwood?’

”Godfather, you mean that ugly hag?”

”Ugly hag?” Charlie Rhodes scoffed. ’Ivy Sherwood is anything but ugly.’

’It seemed even Ruby Sterling didn’t know the truth. The ”ugly hag” they spoke of was actually a peerless beauty.’

”You don’t need to worry about that. I don’t care what method you use. As long as I get Ivy Sherwood, I’ll have the money transferred to you immediately.”

Although Ruby Sterling didn’t know why Charlie Rhodes had set his sights on Ivy Sherwood, she agreed. ”Alright, I’ll make the arrangements right away.”

’It’s just Ivy Sherwood, how hard could it be? But now that she thought about it, she hadn’t seen Ivy Sherwood in a long time.’

...

Late at night, Ivy Sherwood lay in bed, drowsily drifting off to sleep.

She didn’t know that the man outside her door had already paced back and forth hundreds of times.

Quentin Blackwood was right outside Ivy Sherwood’s door, but he didn’t dare go in.

’Ivy Sherwood definitely doesn’t want to talk to me right now. But I don’t know how she’s doing. Was I too rough last time? Has her body recovered?’

’There were so many things he wanted to say to her, but he didn’t know how to begin, because Ivy Sherwood simply wouldn’t listen.’

The biggest regret of Quentin Blackwood’s life was pushing Ivy Sherwood away.

He had underestimated his love and possessiveness for her. Or perhaps he just hadn’t been thinking straight at the time, which was why he had said such cruel things to her.

These past few days, every time Quentin thought back to that moment, a sharp pain would twist in his heart, so agonizing it consumed his entire being.

His heart belonged to Ivy Sherwood. Every time he saw her, he wished he could become her shadow, following her to every corner of the world. Wherever Ivy went, he would go. In her presence, his gaze could never stray elsewhere. She was the center of his world, and she was his very heart.

After pacing for who knows how many laps, Quentin Blackwood raised his hand to glance at his wristwatch. It was already two in the morning.

It was still the watch Ivy Sherwood had bought for him. He had never been able to bring himself to take it off.

’At this hour, Ivy should be asleep.’

’He missed her too much. He would just go in for a look. Just one look.’

Quentin Blackwood made up his mind. He placed his hand on the lock. He had set up the password and facial recognition before, so the door opened for him quickly.

The apartment was dark and silent. Quentin Blackwood tiptoed inside. Even without any light, he could find Ivy Sherwood’s room.

With a gentle twist of the knob, Ivy Sherwood’s bedroom door opened.

The curtains were parted, allowing the moonlight to stream in. There was a lump on the bed where Ivy Sherwood’s head peeked out, her hair fanning out like a waterfall.

He walked over to her side. Just being next to her made him feel at peace. His restless heart seemed to grow still.

’Quentin didn’t intend to do anything. He just wanted to look at Ivy. Just one glance would be enough.’

He really missed her so much. He missed her like crazy.

It had only been two days since he’d last seen her, but to Quentin, it felt like two centuries.

His gaze was glued to her, unable to look away. He wished time would stop at this very moment, allowing him to stay here and watch over her for the rest of his life.

Perhaps Quentin Blackwood’s gaze was too intense, because Ivy Sherwood, deep in sleep, felt as if something was staring at her.

And then, Ivy woke up. She groggily opened her eyes, only to see what looked like a shadow beside her.

”Who’s there?” Ivy was instantly wide awake.

’Did a burglar break into my apartment?!’

Quentin hadn’t expected her to wake up. ’If Ivy sees me now, she’ll definitely be furious.’

Quentin wanted to hide, but Ivy was already getting out of bed.

In her haste, Ivy tripped over something.

”Ah!” she cried out, pitching forward. If she fell, she could be badly hurt.

Quentin, who had been about to leave, rushed to catch her. ”Careful.”

The man’s embrace was as firm as ever, his heartbeat steady and strong. Ivy froze for a moment, her long lashes fluttering as she tried to distinguish dream from reality.

”Quentin Blackwood!” Ivy cried out his name.

Quentin let out a long sigh of relief. ”It’s me.”

”How did you get in my apartment? Get out!” Ivy couldn’t believe the man was so shameless as to sneak into her home in the middle of the night.

’She had thought that Quentin Blackwood had already left Lustre these past two days.’