The Kiss that Sparked it All

Chapter 1936

For years, Ivy had endured a lot under the thumb of her family, always trying to be understanding and patient. But their greed seemed to know no bounds.

She couldn’t stand another day of it.

Glancing at Clara, who she ignored, Ivy confronted her biased and cold-hearted parents. “How much do you want?” she demanded. “Name your price, and I’ll repay you, with interest, for your so-called upbringing.”

Tessa and Finn exchanged a look before Tessa held up three fingers. “Three million,” she said crisply. “Come up that, and we’ll consider your debt paid. You won’t hear from us again regarding family matters.”

with

Three million was a steep demand.

Ivy had always lived frugally; there was no way she’d spent anywhere near that much!

their demand, and without paying up, there was no

where would she find three million now? There was only one person she could think

Give me

room, Ivy retreated to her old, small bedroom and dialed Balfour’s number.

felt like an eternity

came Balfour’s detached, distant

her pride, Ivy said, “Um… Mr. Howard, could you lend me three million? Just for a while?”

solution Ivy could come up with; she had no idea how else to raise

other end. “Three million? Ivy,

now she was asking

It’s not what it looks like, Mr. Howard. I really need it urgently. I’ll pay you back as soon as I can,” Ivy stammered, her voice