Drew:Now, now, no need to be vulgar. I didn’t tell her anything. Well, not much.
Reconsidering, I decided the best course of action with him was simply to ignore. I’d deal with my baby brother after I was done here.
Ivy caught my eye as I slid my phone in my back pocket. She gave me a look that I couldn’t read.
“What?”
She shook her head. “Nothing.” Looking at Addie, who’d dug some crayons out of her backpack and was now doing some more coloring kneeling in front of the coffee table, Ivy looked back to me. “How did it go?”
I nodded at the end of her sectional. “Mind if I sit?”
Ivy leaned over, sweeping some of the drawings into a pile and placing them in a long bowl on the coffee table that was already filled up with other pieces of Addie’s artwork. “Please.”
I sank into the couch. While I was a bit mesmerized by the different colors and patterns of the pillows and blankets, the damn thing was unbelievably comfortable. “Let me see. Addie, what did we do after school?”
Addie looked up from her spot kneeling at the coffee table, tilted her head to the side, and seemed to ponder that. I held back my laughter. I wasn’t sure if she was trying to be funny on purpose or she was really thinking. One thing I had learned over the course of our afternoon/evening together was that she was a bit of a ham.
“Um, Just Jake picked me up at school.” She looked off in the distance. “Then Chief and I napped on the sofa. He was real tired, Momma.”
Ivy grinned. “I bet he was. It was good of you to nap with him.”
Addie nodded rather seriously. “I know.” She went back to coloring as she talked. “Then we met Sulwe’s momma and daddy.”
Ivy nodded. “Was that fun?”
Addie nodded as she stuck her tongue out as she colored. She was cute. “Yeah. They wiv on a farm. His momma is a really good cook. We ate pasta, had a dance party, and made cookies.”
“Sounds fun, baby.” Ivy smoothed over Addie’s hair as she watched her. “Where did your tutu come from?”
It was my turn to grin. Addie had been in plain leggings with a polka-dot shirt when I picked her up from school. When she and Chief had woken up from their nap and came in the kitchen, she’d been wearing a purple tutu. She told me it was her special outfit for dinner.
“My backpack, silly.”
Ivy nodded like this all made a lot of sense. Who the hell knew? Maybe it did. “Of course, it’s your party outfit,” Ivy replied.
Addie was now completely engrossed in her drawing, which I could tell was a portrait of several people. Beyond that, no idea.
Ivy turned to face me, realizing—I’d assume—that Addie was now done with talking to the two of us. “So it went okay? Really?”
I studied her for a minute. She appeared a bit apprehensive. Thinking a bit more about the lack of support around her, I wondered if anyone had watched Addie for her before. “Of course it did. Addie’s easy, and I love spending time with her.” I watched as she visibly relaxed.
“Oh good. Thanks.” She glanced around, as if she wasn’t sure what we were doing here. “Um, do you want anything to drink?”
“Sure,” I said, watching as her eyes widened in surprised. She hadn’t expected me to want to stay. Oh, Ivy, I was absolutely finding out a bit more information about this maddening woman tonight, and a drink was a great way to start.
“Oh, um, I have a few different types of beers.” She rose to head toward what I was assuming was the kitchen.
I stood as well. “I’ll come with you.”
She appeared flustered. “No, you can stay here. I’ll bring you something.”
I glanced at Addie, then back to Ivy. “Addie’s fine here by herself, right?”
“Yep,” Addie piped up from her coloring. “Momma, can I have a snack?”
Ivy looked over at the large wall clock and back to Addie. “It’s almost bedtime. How about some cheese and crackers?”
Addie nodded and Ivy moved toward the corner she and Addie had come skidding through earlier. I followed her through a short hall, staircase opening to the second floor, and back to a large kitchen with a dining area attached. There was turquoise-blue tile covering the backsplash and counters, wood cabinets, and more plants. Of course. Ivy headed toward a cabinet and pulled out some crackers, then crossed to the fridge and took out the cheese.
