Page 32 of Writing On The Wall
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I retort, brushing the hair out of my face. Toby chuckles quietly as he drives away, and I open the visor to check my appearance. And possibly to catch one more glimpse of the shirtless wonder leaning against his truck bed with a cheeky grin on his face.
Toby’s shoulder’s begin to shake as he snickers louder this time. “It all makes so much sense now. Your grump has a thing for you.”
“He doesnot.”
I may sound like a whiny teenager, but I will deny Toby’s claim until my last breath. Ethan can barely stand to be around me. From what I’ve heard from Ember, he’s a serial dater and an adventurer at heart, a free spirit that roams wherever the wind takes him. He’s destined for big things. Besides the fact that we literally argue every time we’re in the same room, Iwouldn’t open myself up to someone who can’t commit and would eventually leave.
Leave the way my parents did, when they chose international aid over helping their own son and dumped Ross’s problems on me. Leave the way Ross has left me in the lurch too many times to count.
No. Tolerance is the best that Ethan and I can hope for.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
ETHAN
I can fix a lot of things. But I’m beginning to suspect I’ve stumbled upon a problem I can’t solve. The more I learn about Ivy, the more I want to know. It’s incredibly inconvenient since I’ve already set us up to push each other’s buttons at every opportunity. The fact that she has a boyfriend is even more problematic. Therefore, any interest in her would be wrong on multiple levels.
All that aside, I don’t understand her relationship with Toby. Maybe one of them isn’t into PDA, but Ivy’s the kind of woman you wouldn’t be able to keep your hands off of. She’s the kind of woman who makes you bare your teeth when you find another man in her home instead of just smiling and shaking his hand.
There isn’t much I can do but try to avoid being an ass, I suppose, and possibly a friend.
I’m afraid that won’t be enough to satisfy my fascination with Ivy, though. In the short time I’ve known her, I’ve already changed so much of my routine. My Saturdays belong to Ivynow. Without her asking, here I am, parked across the street from her house, ready to do her bidding.
But before venturing back into the dragon’s lair, I need to call Colton for some intel. I want to understand what she’s dealing with, because the more I know about Ivy’s struggles, the better I can navigate our situation and hopefully avoid angering the dragon at every turn.
Yeah, I could ask her directly, but I’m ninety-nine percent certain that would be like throwing a cat in a bathtub then attempting to hug it. I value my face too much for that.
I don’t consider asking Colton about her to be an intrusion, seeing as I only want to understand her better.
Ember would admittedly be a better resource in this case, but she’d get suspicious if I showed too much interest in her best friend, and that wouldn’t end well. While everyone claimsI’mthe family gossip, Ember and my mom have become their own rumor-mill headquarters.
My eyes are drawn to the front door of Ivy’s house while I wait for my brother to answer the phone.
“What’s wrong?” he says, a tinge of alarm in his voice.
“Real friendly greeting there, Colt.”
“It’s Saturday,” he reminds me.
“And he’s learning the days of the week too? Such a clever boy.”
“You never call on a Saturday, smartass.”
“And now you appreciate when I do,” I reply.
“So, you’re not actually dying or calling from a jail cell?”
“Who says I’d waste my one call on you?” I squint, trying to see if Ivy is moving about inside. I’ve hit a new low—this is definitely entering creep territory.
“Come on,” Colton scoffs. “I know you’re not calling our parents in this hypothetical scenario. Would you really want Mom to show up with a casserole for your cellmates?”
“Fair enough. So, um, is Ember with you?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Has she ever said anything about Ivy having some kind of learning difficulty?”
“Not that I know of. What’s this about?”