Luke picked up the thread. “The same summer that happened was the last time you saw Ivy. So that means something happened that y’all had not gotten over. So spill.”
“You’re right, but we don’t know what happened on her end.” Emily spoke before Gil could tell them to drop it. “She and Gil were ridiculously in love. It was kind of gross but mostly sweet. I was thrilled. When Ivy and her mom left to go back to Oregon, Ivy and Gil were going to do the long-distance relationship thing and wait to see where he went to play ball before they made any decisions about the future.”
Zane and Luke wore matching expressions of surprise and sympathy.
“Why didn’t you tell us?” Zane’s question was more of a demand than a real question, and it scraped Gil’s nerves raw.
Gil pointed at Zane. “Youcannot talk to me about keeping my relationships to myself. Unless you’re prepared to tell us what’s going on with Tess?”
Luke smirked. “He’s got you there.”
Gil turned his attention to Luke. “And you danced around Faith for years. If she hadn’t been assigned to your case, you never would have pulled the trigger.”
It was Zane’s turn to smirk.
“How about all three of you hush?” Emily stood and leaned over the table, shooting her death glare at each man in turn. “Hermom stole jewelry that had been handed down for four generations. The diamond ring that Gil was supposed to someday give his bride. The diamond earrings and necklace that I should have worn at my own wedding. And two bracelets—one sapphire, one ruby—that Mom intended to hand down to her grandchildren. They were insured, but their real value was that they were family heirlooms. They were some of the first pieces Ivy’s mom sold. We haven’t seen them since.”
She paused and looked at him, a question in her eyes. He knew what she was asking, and he gave in with a nod. “Gil” —Emily pointed to him—“was so in love with Ivy that even if she had personally stolen all of it, I’m not sure he would have cared. Unfortunately, Ivy cared. Ivy cared a lot. She cut off all communication. She changed her cell phone number. Gil wrote to her. I wrote to her. Mom wrote to her. She refused to write back. We were seniors in high school in Tennessee. Ivy was in college in California and refused to communicate.”
Gil braced for what was coming.
“Then Gil got hurt. Everything just ... stopped. He was so sad. So withdrawn. It was terrifying. Then Mom and Dad told us we had to stop trying to communicate with Ivy until after her mom’s trial. They were sure that when it was over, Ivy would reach out. She never did.”
“That ... doesn’t make sense.” Luke was shaking his head. “Ivy Collins is smart, put together, and not a criminal. Why wouldn’t she—”
“She’s ashamed.” Zane spoke with certainty. “And shame does weird things to people. It can make it impossible for them to see the truth, to see love, to see a way out. She was young and obviously couldn’t talk to her mom about it. She may not have told Wade what she was doing, so he wouldn’t have known totry to talk some sense into her. Sounds like she was alone and floundering.”
“Gil, have you talked to Ivy about it?” Luke asked.
“Yeah. In our spare time this weekend.” His sarcasm was off the charts, but no one called him on it.
Zane ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, man. I didn’t know. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”
“Actually, I’m glad you did,” Luke said. “Gil might never have explained.” He gave Zane a pointed look. “Maybe we could all learn something from this experience and be more open.”
Zane glared at Luke but didn’t say anything further.
Gil caught Emily’s eye, and she gave him a look that said “you’d better forgive him or I’m going to be ticked” combined with “don’t be mad at me” for good measure. He rubbed both hands through the hair at his temples. “Zane, don’t worry about it. You would have known eventually. I was just hoping to talk to Ivy first.”
“When do you plan to do that?” Luke asked.
“Maybe when she’s recovered. Maybe when she offers the information first. Maybe never.”
He could tell no one liked his answer. He really didn’t care.
“Can I ask one more question?” Luke gave him a dangerous grin.
“No.”
“I’ll ask Emily. She’ll tell me.”
“Maybe.” Emily waggled her eyebrows. “Depends on what you ask.”
“Why does Gil call her Buttercup?”
Gil relaxed. Emily chuckled. “Do you want to tell it?”
“Fine. Emily was named after Emily Starr, and I was named after Gilbert Blythe, both fictional characters created by L. M. Montgomery. Ivy said she wished she had a literary name, but weall agreed that Ivy suited her. She wouldn’t let up about it, so we tossed around names for months. Some of them were okay. Some of them were ridiculous. Buttercup, fromThe Princess Bride, was my favorite, so that’s what I called her. She didn’t love it at first, but it grew on her.”
