I rear my head back. “Me?”
She gives me a slow, deliberate nod of her head. “Do you, or do you not refer to my brother as ‘Wesley?’” she asks while doing air quotes with her fingers. I’m not sure where she’s going with this.
“Yes? Sometimes?” I answer, wondering what the hell that has to do with anything.
“That’s what I thought. And are you attracted to my brother?”
That surprises me. Why would she ask that? Am I that obvious? Do I lie? Will it bother her? It doesn’t matter either way, because I can’t and won’t act on it.
Honesty it is.
“Yes,” I give in, hesitantly. “But I’m aware nothing can happen. He signs the paychecks, I take care of Delilah. End of story.”
She scoffs. “Says who?”
“Well, him. And me. But mostly him.”
She laughs and shakes her head. “Oh, Wes,” she says with a long sigh. “Ivy, are you aware that nobody, I meannobody, has ever called Wes,Wesley?”
There she goes again with the damn finger quotes—she charges on.
“It is technically his full name, but everyone has always called him Wes. Yet he allows you to call him Wesley.” She sounds like a lawyer in a courtroom, and I feel like I’m on the stand.
I sit up a little straighter on instinct, and respond. “Well, he introduced himself as Wesley, so what was I supposed to think?” I ask.
Her eyes widen like saucers. She slams her fist down on the table. “Even better,” she shouts, and I jump.
Even the loud chatter from the chaotic bar around us seems to quiet for a moment, before quickly returning back to normal.
What am I missing?
“Do you know how many kids Wes beat up in school for calling him Wesley?” she asks. “Well, only a couple, because after the first two times, kids got the hint. But he hasneverliked anyone calling him Wesley. Not even Sarah.”
I know Sarah is Delilah’s mom. From what I’ve gathered from Sophie the few times she’s mentioned her, Wesley and Sarah were childhood best friends. I knowthat Wes started his business, and then very shortly after, they had a one night stand that resulted in her pregnancy.
I know Sarah passed after giving birth to Delilah due to a health complication, but I’ve never asked more about the situation. Every time Soph brought it up, she’d get this haunted look in her eyes, then change the subject immediately. I didn’t want to pry, knowing it’s a sensitive subject for their family.
Now knowing Wesley and Delilah personally, my heart hurts for them and what they lost. I can’t even imagine what that’s like. Losing the mother of your child just days after giving birth, and having to navigate becoming a new father while in mourning. It sounds like a nightmare.
It clicks now, the reason for Wes’s cool demeanor. Him and Delilah have already suffered so much. I can see why Wes is so insistent to keep boundaries drawn. They’ve already had the loss of one important figure in their life. If Wes and I crossed the line, and feelings got involved, and it didn’t work out… It’s what he’s not willing to risk, and I can understand that.
Not to mention, who knows how long he will need me. Once Delilah goes to school next year, I’ll probably be let go. The idea of that makes my stomach hurt. What did I expect? I’d be the nanny until she turned eighteen? I think I have some good momentum with my book, and if things go according to plan, then the possibilities are endless.
I arch an eyebrow. “So… me calling him Wesley means?”
“That you’re different,” she declares with a self satisfied smile.
I roll my eyes, refusing to acknowledge the funny feeling that just erupted in my stomach. “Stop, Soph. He’s made it clear it can't happen. I’m respecting that,” I say, picking at the chipped wood of the table. “Plus, is that something you’d even be okay with?”
Sophie rolls her eyes. “Why wouldn’t I?”
I don’t get to respond because two drinks plunk down onto the tabletop, and we both look up to see Maverick delivering them.
“Whatcha ladies gabbin’ about?” he asks, leaning both hands on the back of the chair beside me.
“How Ivy andWesleyare absolutely gonna happen,” Sophie answers her twin brother.
“Oh yeah,” he says, chuckling. “He’s so gone.”
