Poison Ivy Ch. 10 Pt. 02

When the real Trevino walked through that door, one of two things would happen. He'd either see what Hickson had done to her and would turn away from her in disgust, or he would see what had happened and would forgive her anyway, as he'd done when he'd found her at the Factory.

Trevino had known about Maverick, and had understood that it hadn't been her choice to leave with him seven years ago. But there was so much he still didn't know, and so much he had already accepted. Everyone had a breaking point. There was always some threshold for how much damage one person could accept in another, and she was terrified that this new, fresh wound made by Hickson would push Trevino over that threshold. That she'd lose him.

She hugged Eva tighter to herself as she watched Hunter barrel into Ivy, scooping her up and devouring her like she was more precious than air, more vital than the breath in his lungs. Her eyes burned. If not for all her broken parts, she might have hoped for that kind of happiness one day.

Trevino might accept her, as bruised and broken as she was, but he would never be able to love her like Hunter loved Ivy. How could he? She was a small, broken thing, and despite what her brutalized mind had imagined him saying, small, broken things aren't beautiful, and they can't be loved or cherished.

She tore her eyes from the happy reunion and lowered her gaze to Eva, feeling as though she had intruded on a private moment. Heat rushed to her cheeks as a prickling awareness skittered over her skin. She looked up and froze.

Trevino stood in the kitchen doorway, his chest heaving, his eyes hard and dark as he scanned her body for a tense moment that stretched for ages before he brought his gaze up to hers. Cold fury blazed in those glittering onyx depths. There was none of the softness she'd always seen when he watched her. No sign of the warmth he always seemed to have for her. She held his gaze for a moment longer, watching as his eyes just continued to grow darker, and colder, and harder.

So that was it, then. He'd seen her ruined and defiled, again, and she was deemed unworthy. It was too much for him. She understood, truly, she did. But that didn't stop her heart from breaking. Her understanding couldn't hold back the physical pain she felt as his angry eyes continued to slice into her.

Cody was at her side instantly, pulling Eva from her arms and wrapping his own around her shoulders. Her little brother towered over her, glaring daggers at the only other man she'd ever loved, holding her up and helping her stand strong in the face of Trevino's rejection.

She couldn't watch as he walked out of her life. Curling herself into Cody's body, the enormity of the past 24 hours finally caught up to her, and she shook with silent sobs.

She felt Cody's arm fall from her shoulders as a warm hand grasped her elbow and gently pulled her away. Another familiar pair of arms wrapped around her, and Trevino's unique scent, like spice and rain and cedarwood, flooded her senses. She reared back, struggling to pull away from him, but he wouldn't allow the distance, just pressed her close to a body that painfully smelled and felt like home. "Shhh," he soothed, rocking her gently from side to side while he waited for her to still, stroking a hand up and down her back.

"I told you, Stella meus," he said when she had calmed enough to stop fighting him. "I told you you'd survive. You are so much stronger than you know."

Her eyes snapped up to his, finding all the softness and warmth she'd needed in the hard, cold man holding her close. Soft, just for her. Warmth, only for her.

"That was real?" she whispered brokenly. Keeping one arm wrapped around her, he wiped the tears from her cheeks and brushed the hair from her face, tucking it behind her ear. "Of course it was real, my star," he said softly.

A mix between a laugh and a sob escaped her as he continued to touch her, running his fingertips over her nose, across her lips, stroking her cheek and forehead, gently feeling her bruised neck. "How? How were you here with me?"

His head dipped down, and he pressed his mouth to hers in a slow, soft kiss. "I am always with you, my star," he whispered. Threading his fingers through her hair, he cradled the back of her head as he retraced the same path his fingers had taken with his lips. "My soul has been right here since the boat house," he murmured, touching two fingers to the place above her heart. "I lost you for a time, but I never left you."

He held her after that for a long, long while. Touching her. Kissing her.

Cherishing her.

Loving her, for the small, broken thing she was.

......................................

"So, we all chipped in and got you guys a Welcome Home gift," Ivy said, a mischievous smile playing on her lips. She sat cross-legged up against the couch, with Hunter stretched out in front of her, his head propped up on a closed fist as he watched her. Trevino was spread out on the other end of the couch, cuddling with Aella and Eva as she sat curled up between his legs.

Trevino. Cuddling. The fucking universe was coming apart at the seams.

He smiled, trying to focus on what Ivy was telling him when all he wanted to do was bury himself deep inside of her, as if he hadn't just spent the last two hours doing precisely that.

A brief conversation following their passionate homecoming had led to the decision that Trevino, Aella, Cody and Eva would accompany them to his home for the time being. A bit of a nomad, Trevino needed time to secure a place for his newfound family, and Aella and Ivy needed to be together for a while as they all recovered.

Fowler was already on his way back to Crystal and the kids. The rest of them would leave early the next morning, and he'd arranged for contractors to come fix up Fowler's vacation home after the destruction that had occurred as a result of their stay. He owed Fowler, and the burly fucker wouldn't let him forget it, either.

"Did you hear me?" Ivy asked, patting his cheek. "Hello in there!"

He captured her wrist before she could yank it back, pressing a kiss to her palm and nibbling at her fingers as she laughed, and Hunter could die happy listening to the sound of Ivy happy. Ivy safe. Ivy healthy and whole and full of life.

"Yes, I heard you," he said, unable to keep a straight face as he watched her, memorizing the way her delicate eyebrows arched as she watched him right back, the way her hands moved through the air in front of her in smooth, circular movements when she spoke. "Welcome home gift. Chipped in. See?"

She rolled her eyes, and slowly got to her feet, slapping his hands away when he shot up to support her. She'd been through a lot while he'd been gone, running around in circles looking for Ivy's fuckface of a father who—

Wait.

"Want to see?" she asked innocently, linking her fingers behind her as she rocked back on her heels. He grinned, nodding. "Yes, Ivy. I cannot wait to see."

Trevino appeared beside him silently, and the two followed Ivy as she led them toward the room the sniper had shared with Aella, Cody and Eva.

"Remember, this is from all of us," she said, enunciating the shared nature of the gift and winking at Trevino. "Make it good, scary dude." The sniper's lips lifted in a smirk, and then a full-faced smile.

It was like he didn't even know the fucking guy anymore.

Ivy grasped the handle and pushed the door open.

"Oh fuck yes."

Hunter grinned and stepped into the room with Trevino, waiting until Ivy had pulled the door closed before he made a move.

It was going to be a long fucking night.

A very good, very long fucking night.

...................

Epilogue

Four years later

"Oh. My. God." Ivy groaned, rubbing a frustrated hand across her face as Calista shrieked out a high-pitched giggle, entirely too pleased with herself. Hunter scooped up his daughter, giddy with laughter, and swung her around playfully.

"You can't truly be upset with her, Ivy. She's your daughter, through and through."

Ivy looked down at the tipped gallon of blue paint as if surveying a crime scene, tracing Cali's literal path, marked with tiny navy footprints and hand-shaped smudges across the wall. The man had a point.

This was totally something she would do.

"Is it pretty, daddy?" Cali's little voice asked. God, that voice. It slayed her, every single day. She would never get tired of hearing it.

"It's beautiful, baby," he said, covering Cali's face with yucky-daddy-kisses. Ivy rolled her eyes. It was impossible to stay upset with Cali, especially when she was doing that whole infectious laughter thing. She couldn't help but chuckle a little, watching as Hunter spun her around in the air, giving his daughter wings.

"Cali! Cali!" Another little voice chirped, and in the next moment, Eva raced into the kitchen, sliding across the smooth, hardwood floor in her frilly pink socks, and collided with the (thankfully blue-paint-less) wall beside Ivy when she couldn't stop herself fast enough. She fell back, landing hard on her butt. "Oooow," she moaned, setting Cali off on another bout of adorable giggles. "Eva fell?" she asked, squirming in Hunter's hold until he put her own.

"Yeah, I fell," Eva said, scowling at her beloved pink socks, the cause of so many of her tumbles. Ivy shook her head and smiled. For the daughter of two of the most graceful, statuesque people she knew, Eva sure was a clumsy little punk. And make no mistake, the pink-sock-loving, little blonde clutz was Trevino's daughter. People who so much as hinted otherwise tended to disappear, quite suddenly and quite permanently. "Eva, will you take Cali to the bathroom?" She guided her daughter over to Eva, who immediately took her hand. "You both need to get washed up, dinner will be ready soon."

"Sure! Um... You didn't cook it, did you aunt Ivy?"

She narrowed her eyes at the little punk as Hunter tried, unsuccessfully, to hold in his laughter. "No, dearest niece of mine, I did not," she growled, shooting a warning glance over her shoulder. "Uncle Hunter cooked tonight."

"Oh! Good. I mean... I just know he likes to cook, but you cook good too, but with different stuff, and sometimes you burn things --"

Hunter made a choked sound behind her. "All right, yeah, yeah, I get it. Get going, you stinky little creatures," she said, shooing them away with her fingers curled into fake claws, tickling Cali's back as they screeched and ran hand in hand. Hunter wrapped his arms around her from behind, pressing a kiss to her temple as they watched Eva lead Cali down the hallway.

"Just Eva tonight?" he asked, purring softly until she melted back into him. "Mmmm," she hummed, nodding. "Cody refused to give up his night with the twins. I had to arm wrestle him for Eva." She grinned. Ace's little brother was hopelessly in love with his two nieces and nephew, and never missed a chance to have them over whenever she and Trev needed a night to themselves. He was just as in love with Cali and the other kiddos of their little family. He and Aaron, his Omega fiancé, were eagerly awaiting the final paperwork to go through for the adoption of Luna, their two-year-old foster daughter, and the pair regularly hosted 'Movie Nights' for the dozen-ish kids that made up their tribe. Ivy still hadn't worked out how they managed to keep all those kids entertained without losing all their hair within a matter of hours, but she admired them for it.

"Will you be around tomorrow?" she asked, spinning around in Hunter's arms to face him. He'd resumed his position in the army following the mysterious disappearance of Vice President Hickson and the scathing expose that was sent out by an anonymous whistleblower. The situation in Torrin still weighed heavily on Hunter's conscious, and he'd spent the last few years working as a delegate on an international committee to ease tensions between the two countries. The job was ideal, as most of the time, he was able to stay in Lostra.

"I can be," he said, lifting Ivy up onto the counter and pressing himself between her legs. It was quite a feat, considering her belly now extended well past her toes. Their second daughter was due any day now.

"Good, I could use your help at the shelter," she murmured, bending her neck to give Hunter better access as he nipped and licked his way from her collarbone to the back of her ear. "Nik is working on the designs for the new kitchen, she'll be out until the afternoon."

The shelter wasn't so much a shelter as it was a sanctuary. It had taken a lot of time and energy to set up, and it had been Hunter's compromise to Ivy's lofty ambitions. Located on their vast estate, the central, three story building was surrounded by several smaller individual housing units, and acted as a temporary home, hospital and school for domestic abuse victims, Torrin refugees, runaway teens and, unsurprisingly, resistant Omegas who, like Ivy and Aella, were unhappy with the lack of freewill and choice in the current system. Hunter liked being close by in case anything happened, and he, Trevino, Fowler, Pyle and Reggie had fronted the funds to get the shelter up and running.

Ivy worked mostly in the shelter's medical center and supervised three other Omega women who had demonstrated a penchant for healthcare. Aella served primarily as a rape advocate, both at the shelter and in the local community, but she also took on other positions as needed. Trevino, unsurprisingly, refused to leave her side when she was called to a hospital or medical center off shelter grounds, but he stayed far enough away to let her do her job, and he was getting better at not terrifying the entire staff into clearing the whole building for Aella and the victim.

Strangely, whenever the perpetrator's identity was known and disclosed to Aella, they always seemed to disappear before the police were able to detain and question them. Even more perplexing was the fact that their bodies usually turned up a few days later in various states of dismemberment.

Nik, the third owner and founder, developed life-skills classes and hired instructors who taught shelter residents about financial management, cooking, resume writing and self-care, along with a dozen or so other miscellaneous classes. She was amazing at what she did, and she was always coming up with new ideas for different classes. In the past, they'd taught gardening, swimming, hunting, house renovations, self-defense, bowling, and archery, just to name a few.

Crystal, Fowler's wife, managed the childcare center. She'd been thrilled when Ivy had approached her about the position, and she'd eagerly dove into the project. Now, they had a thriving program that offered babysitters or childcare services 24/7, so parents who worked any shift, even evening or night shifts, had somewhere safe they could take their kids while they went to work or took classes at the local community college.

The newest addition to Crystal's thriving childcare facility was near and dear to Ivy and Hunter's hearts. With a grant from the city, and additional funding from more of the affluent families around town, Crystal had hired three new teachers to build and run a disability-inclusive primary school. The project was in its beginning stages, but so far, nearly 250 kids between the ages of 5 and 14 had enrolled for the upcoming school year. Cali wouldn't be old enough to go until the following year, but she'd been instrumental in some of Crystal's decisions about the project, and Cali never missed an opportunity to stop by "her school" to see how things were going.

And, as it turned out, she wouldn't even be the first blind student at the school, as Crystal had enrolled three visually impaired students for the incoming class. Not all of the kids planning on coming next year had disabilities, but the parents in the local community had been overjoyed to learn about the different programs the new school would offer, and the three teachers Crystal had hired had been put to task by welcoming pupils with a wide variety of conditions and disabilities that otherwise may have been a barrier to achieving a quality education.

Ivy and Hunter both jumped at the loud THUMP, followed by many little thumps, coming from down the hall. Ivy tensed, ready to waddle her pregnant ass down to the bathroom as fast as she could to check on Cali and Eva, when a chorus of high-pitched squealing laughter reached their ears and both parents relaxed. Laughing softly, Hunter leaned down to slant his lips over hers, cupping the back of her head to draw her closer.

"Would you have done it any differently?" he asked softly, nuzzling into her neck.

"With the shelter?" she asked, distracted by the warm palm of his wandering hand.

"With anything," he murmured, pulling back slightly to level that storm-cloud gaze on her.

She thought about that for a minute. She remembered what a rocky start they'd had, and the awful circumstances that had brought about the amazing group of people she now shared her days with.

Life still wasn't perfect. Perfect didn't really happen. Happily Ever After really just meant Happily Until Someone Uses the Last Piece of Toilet Paper and Doesn't Replace It. There were still moments she wanted to scratch Hunter's eyes out for being too overbearing or overprotective. There were still infuriating incidents that had nothing to do with Hunter, and everything to do with how Omegas were treated by society as a whole. It was unbelievably frustrating to be in the middle of a business meeting with someone as one of the shelter's owners and managers, just for them to lose their shit when they realized she was really a *gasp* unaccompanied Omega, and have them demand to talk to her Alpha. It was always fun to tell them Hunter would be happy to oblige. And by oblige, she meant kick-their-fucking-asses-all-the-way-off-the-property-and-warn-them-never-to-come-back-under-threat-of-bodily-harm. The Alphas in her life tried their best to set aside decade's worth of prejudiced thinking, and it was only with their help that Ivy, Aella, and the rest of the Omegas at the shelter were able to live a life filled with purpose and fulfillment. But the rest of the world still had a long way to go.

Even in this imperfect life, and during those frustrating, infuriating moments, she was still surrounded by love. Overwhelmed by it. Protected by it. She no longer woke up in a cold sweat, dreading what kind of life she had doomed Cali to. There was no chance in hell she or Hunter would ever allow her to be taken away from them. And she would pay a fucking fortune to watch what happened to the first person who tried to take Eva away from Trevino and Aella. It would most definitely be the last person who would ever try again, she was 100% sure of that.

So, if she'd had the choice to go back, would she have done it any differently?

"No," she said finally, leaning into him. "I wouldn't have changed a single fucking thing."