And my dad but let’s not bring that up. He ruined everything last time.
Wow, look at you being mature. 10/10 dipshit.
“Yeah?”
Was it me, or did her eyes lighten in relief? I couldn’t be sure. It was like my Ivy-manual had expired where I remembered most of her tells but not all. Some were out of date. Like the wrinkle between her brows was curiosity, that I knew for sure, but avoiding my gaze was unclear.
She sipped her chai, letting out a quiet little hum of contentedness that I adored. It was the cutest damn sound. “How are they?”
“They’re good. Bria is aiming to be partner at her firm, Ally is teaching second graders up north, and Diana is about to become a mom.”
“What! That’s so exciting. Diana as a mom… wow, that’s not something I can picture easily.” Ivy grinned. “How along far is she?”
“Six months.” I gritted my teeth. “The baby daddy is being a dick about everything, and it’s pissing me off. My sisters and mom ensure they’ll be there to help her, but the dude is the reason she’s in this position. He’s refusing to be a partner in this.”
Ivy’s brow wrinkle grew as she frowned hard. “That has to be really tough. It is such a gift though that she has all of you to help.”
“He should be doing more.” My voice came out clipped, short.
“I don’t disagree with you, but if he doesn’t want to be a father or step up and Diana has the support she needs, she’ll bealright.” Ivy tilted her head. “This is upsetting you more than normal.”
I barked out a crude laugh. “How can you tell?”
“Your sister will be okay. She is badass. She once tracked down that drunk driver to get their info after they hit Ally that one fourth of July. She also saved those kids from drowning at the lakeandcarried your ass back from the quad accident with a broken arm. Diana is tougher than most and will be a great mom.”
Fuck. Per usual, Ivy’s sticking to logic had everything making sense. She was the brains of the operation, me the looks. Not saying she wasn’t cute, she was, but her words reassured me in a way that my family’s couldn’t. She was correct. The heavy weight that was a constant in my gut lightened, the anger about my sister’s baby daddy evaporating piece by piece. “You’re right.”
“While I’d like to revel in this moment of pure joy, it’s not the time.” She winked, the playful little action catching me off guard.
When did Ivy wink like that? It was cute as fuck.
“You care deeply about your sister, so of course you’re going to be mad that she’s not getting the support you think she should.”
I gripped the back of my neck, the words stumbling out of me before I could stop them. “Probably has something to do with the lingering issues with my dad too.”
“Bingo.” Ivy nudged her knee against mine. It was the fourth time she’d done that, and it felt huge. Ivy didn’t touch people, and usually it was me instigating it. Her making the effort eased my soul that maybe we would be okay. We could return to what we used to be. I could go back to having that grounding presence in my life.
“I swear, I wanted to get coffee to talk about you and find out about the last few years. I didn’t want to be a therapyappointment.” I flashed her a sheepish grin, theope, my badsmile I’d perfected.
She pointed her finger at me. “Don’t give me those puppy eyes. That shit doesn’t work on me. But don’t apologize. I told you. I’d rather this be real, and if real leads us to talking about your parental issues, then I’ll bring tissues.”
“You little shit.” I laughed. “Come on, tell me about your issues now to balance it out. That’s only fair.”
“Mm, no. I like this. Tell me what else you’re mad about and why. Don’t leave out a thing.”
I dragged my hand over my jaw, taking my time to study her as I thought about little irritations I had. She leaned closer to me, like she couldn’t wait to hear what I had to say, and for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why her attention felt so much better than anyone else’s.
“People who drive in the left lane and don’t get over. People who leave a second or two on the microwave. The person who sits in front of me in my lecture hall who wiggles his left leg the entire fucking class.” I tapped my chin, pretending to think hard. “There’s this referee who hates me for some reason. I’ve never done a thing to him, but every time I see him, he glares at me, and I have to be on the best behavior. I swear he’s gaslighting me, but I know I’m not crazy.”
“God, that was… better than I expected.” She wiped under her eyes, and her entire face was lined from laughing. “You never miss with that question.”
“I always have a list brewing of minor annoyances.”
It was an old gig we used to do. We’d compare our small annoyances lists to see who could come up with more ridiculous things that irritated us. “It’s your turn, Ivy Lee. What are you mad about? Don’t leave out anything.”
Her eyes freaking twinkled. “I get so pissed when I hang my towel up but it slides right off the hook for no reason. Ugh.It drives me crazy. Slow sidewalk walkers.” She cringed. “They drive me bonkers. I want to tackle them to the ground to get them out of the way. And flies. Oh my god. The sound of that buzz? The high-pitched whirl when they get near your ear? Fury. I feel fury.”
“Oh yes, the towel fall!” I slammed the table. “Are they ineffective hooks? Why does that happen? It makes me so mad every time.”
