“She sure didn’t.” She beamed, feeding a kitten with a little smirk. “His mom was obsessed with the sister goddesses in Greek mythology and named Callum after Calliope, which is hilarious because it means beautiful voiced, often a master of poetry and arts. His three sisters made him perform all the time growing up. I think there are even videos of it somewhere, but Calliope over there missed the mark.”
Lo opened her mouth, shaking her head back and forth in disbelief. “This is the best day of my life. Do the guys know?”
“No, and they won’t.” I narrowed my eyes at Ivy.
“I don’t know. I’m around them all the time. It could just… slip out by accident. I have to entertain them when they’re in pain and I’m helping with injuries.”
“Ivy, what do you do on Tuesdays?”
Ivy tilted her head. “Um, I have my internship.”
“I have weekly girls chat every week, and I want you to attend. You would fit right in. Callum comes to every other one, but we can plan it so he’s not there so we can get the scoop on him.”
“No,” I said on reflex. I shook my head, a flash of high school coming back to me. Girls would use Ivy to get to me all the time. It killed her every time someone got close to her, where she thought she had a new friend, only for them to use her. After the third time, she stopped trying to make friends because the risk of the hurt was too much.
It’s Lo? What are you doing? She has no reason to use her.
Lorelei frowned, but before I could retract or explain my statement, Ivy’s shoulders slumped, her face falling.
“Wait, no.” I pinched my nose, my stomach dropping. “I meant you can’t dish stories on me.”
“It’s… I have a lot of homework and stuff that I do on Tuesdays anyway. It’s probably for the best.” She stood, holding two of the kittens still. “Will you please make sure they are secure when you’re done?” she asked, not looking at me.
“Sure, but?—”
“I’ll walk the dogs today.” She kept her head down, shoulders turned in on herself. She got to the door, stopped, and turned around to look at Lorelei. “It was nice meeting you.”
“You too, Ivy. I hope we can hang again.”
Ivy didn’t respond. She left, letting the door slam with a bang.
Not even a second passed before Lorelei pointed an aggressive finger at me. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
I lifted my hands, my mind already planning something that night as a way to distract myself from this event. That was what my life had been the last three years—ways to escape the feelings I had. Whether they were about my cheating, asshole father or my future or the hole in my chest since losing Ivy. All I needed was to distract instead of cope. It had worked for me for three years, so why wouldn’t it now?
Being around others, doing things, actively thinking about something else helped with the chest-aching throb that started five minutes ago.
I had a burrito for breakfast, but that couldn’t be it.
“What?”
“You brought me here, a place Ivy clearly has been, and she looked hurt, Callum.” Lo stood and snuggled two of the kittens. “Why can’t she hang out with me? You barked at me when I suggested it.”
I gripped the back of my neck. “Yeah, that’s on me.”
“No fucking shit. Now explain why you’re acting like this.” She studied me. “Was all this fun and flirting, playboy go-with-the-flow thing actually just a way to hide hurt?”
“Don’t…no. I’m me. I’m the clown, the goofball. I make sure others feel good about themselves—” My face prickled at her insinuation. Lo knew too much.
“So you don’t focus on yourself. I see through it now. Holy shit.” She tapped her temple, like she was a detective on a crime show.
I hated being analyzed like this. My sisters and mom did this all the time. I was fine with myself, loved myself actually. Why did we have to unpack why things were this way? We couldn’t goback to change anything until time travel was legal. (I refused to believe there wasn’t a possibility right now). “Lo,” I said calmly. “Don’t make something out of nothing. Ivy and I were close once but aren’t now.”
“Clearly. The girl looked on the verge of tears.”
Make her cry like everyone else in her life.
Make her feel less than, her biggest insecurity in her life.
