Bonus Epilogue
Ivy
The Good I’ll Do - Zach Bryan
“ M otherfucker!”
There’s been a torrent of noise coming from next door for the last hour, and I have had enough. I don’t know who the fuck thinks it’s cool to wake up the entire neighborhood at 8 am, but they’re about to get an earful. That particular house had been on the market for over a year of blissful silence, until 2 weeks ago when the sold sign appeared out front.
I walk up the cobblestone steps of the adorable 2 story home that looks like it belongs in a fairytale. I raise my fist to knock on the door but before it can make contact, a tall dark-haired man appears where the door used to be. His piercing brown eyes skate over my body and a not entirely unpleasant chill crawls up my spine. His full lips are outlined by a neatly cropped beard that I’d love to feel between my thighs. What the hell was that?
There’s something familiar about him but I can’t quite place it. He has broad shou lders, his light green henley hugging the contours of his chest in the most delicious way. His sleeves are rolled up, a tattoo peeking out beneath the fabric on his right forearm, though I can’t quite make out its shape.
“Can I help you?” His voice breaks me out of my shameless perusal.
“Yeah, actually. You can. I have a 4-year-old and you’re being really loud.”
“And you just… what? left your 4-year-old alone to come yell at me?”
“No, I live next door and I brought the damn baby monitor with me. See.” I turn my phone in his direction so he can see the sleeping child in her bed.
“Seems like the noise isn’t really bothering her,” he grunts. He leans his shoulder on the door frame, crossing his arms over his chest, giving me a mouthwatering view of his muscled forearms.
I can’t even lie. Rylin could sleep through an earthquake, but I’m not above using my 4-year-old to garner sympathy. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be working, and I’ll have to resort to other tactics… like honesty.
“Look, I don’t mean to be rude. I had a long night. My kid’s dad is kind of a douche and I didn’t get much sleep. Can you try to keep it down? Please?”
“Yeah. Sure.” He grumbles out the words as he steps back, closing the door in my face, leaving no room for further discussion.
“What an asshole.”
As I turn to walk back down the steps, I nearly crash into Paige coming up the walkway.
“Ivy? You okay?”
“Paige? What the hell are you doing here?” My expression must be absolutely feral at this point because Paige looks at me l ike I have 2 heads.
“Oh, well I’m just bringing coffee to my brother.”
“Your…. Brother?”
Fuck.
Luca
Paige came by earlier, giving me a speech about being nice to her friend Ivy, who happens to be my new neighbor, before she took off to a prenatal appointment. She’s due to give birth to my first niece in roughly 6 weeks. After a falling out with my dad, and an unpleasant, but not uncalled for, confrontation with my mom, I decided to escape to Oak Ridge, Kentucky. Seeking what? I’m not really sure. Paige and I still have some work to do within our strained relationship, but it was the first place that came to mind when I decided to finally get away from Northbrook.
I wasn’t prepared for the pint-sized spitfire to appear on my doorstep this morning, so I was somewhat short with her when she asked me to be a little bit quieter. I regret being a dick, but in my defense, I was taken aback by her sudden appearance. Her face was makeup free, with gorgeous hazel eyes behind a pair of dark-rimmed glasses, and fuck, don’t even get me started on her body. I could get lost in her tits and die a very happy man. She’s gorgeous… and I owe her an apology. Which I will get to — later. First, I need to run by the hardware store for another pack of screws to finish hanging my shelves now that it’s not so early in the day, and I likely won't have any issues waking up the neighbors.
I step out onto my porch when I hear a faint giggle to my left. Suddenly, a pair of legs appears from behind my tree. There’s a child on the swing hanging from the old oak tree in my front yard, and I haven’t had a chance to check if it is safe yet. Fuck.
I quietly approach, noting her dark curly hair and wide blue eyes.
“Hey, little one…” I’m not sure how to talk to kids… do I introduce myself? I should probably practice before Paige officially makes me an uncle. Before I can consider the next step, she stops swinging, giving me an assessing stare.
“Hi,” she responds.
“Where’s your mommy or daddy?” I ask the little girl.
“She points across my front yard towards Ivy’s house.”
Of course. The 4-year-old.
“Oh, are you supposed to be out here by yourself?”
“No, but I don't like it when daddy yells at mommy.”
“Ok. Do you want me to stay out here with you for now?”
“Otay.” She doesn’t seem to care one way or the other so I take a seat on the tree stump nearby and she resumes swinging. In the meantime, I pull out my phone and text Paige.
Luca: Hey, Ivy’s little girl is outside in my front yard and I’m not sure what to do.
My phone begins to ring and I don’t hesitate to answer. “What do you mean you don't know what to do?”
“She's by herself. She said her parents were inside fighting. Am I supposed to take her home?”
“Shit, ok. I’m at Rosie’s. I’ll be there in 5.” The line goes quiet for a minute before she speaks again, “He’s dangerous, Luca.”
And suddenly my entire body goes rigid.
True to her word, Paige arrives 5 minutes later and the little curly-haired pixie runs into her arms, nearly knocking my very pregnant sister to the ground. “Auntie Paige!”
“Hey, Ry!”
“You good to stay with her?” I ask. She seems to have a rapport with the little girl, and I need to make sure my neighbor is okay. The last thing I want is for Paige to go over there and get mixed up in some kind of domestic dispute.
“Yeah, we’re good,” she says, giving me a subtle nod in the direction of Ivy’s house.
I walk up the front steps of the sage green Victorian-style house and knock on the door. I can hear raised voices inside so when they don’t answer right away, I turn the knob and see that it’s unlocked.
“Fuck you, Ivy. You’re fucking worthless.”
Ivy’s face is red, tears streaming down her cheeks. I take a step into the room, not sure what my intentions are. The floor creaks and Ivy’s eyes meet mine, the man’s head spinning at the intrusion.
“You okay?” I ask, my eyes not leaving Ivy’s.
“Who the fuck are you? Already fucking some new guy? Always knew you were a whore!” He’s shouting way too close to her face for my liking, his finger pointed less than an inch from her cheek.
I don’t think before the words leave my lips. “I’m her fiancé, and you’re going to get the fuck out of her house.” Ivy’s eyes flash in surprise, and I give her a look that tells her to just go along with it for now. We can clear up this mess later. Right now, I just want to make sure she’s safe, and this man is entirely too comfortable intimidating this small woman. She looks to be roughly 5’2” on a good day.
“The fuck I am. It’s my day with my daughter.”
“Austin, I already told you, you aren’t taking Rylin today. I could smell the alcohol on your breath when you walked in, and I’ll be damned if you’re walking out of this house, puttin g my daughter in danger.”
“If you aren’t willing to leave on your own, I’m sure the police would be more than happy to escort you out.” I threaten. Not saying what I’m really thinking, which is that I’m more than willing to force his ass out the door myself.
“Go ahead, call the police,” he says.
“Sweetheart,” I say, playing up the term of endearment for Austin’s benefit. In for a penny, in for a pound. “Paige is outside with Ry, why don’t you head out and see them? I’ll handle this.”
Ivy nods and walks out the back door to her daughter, taking the path of least resistance and avoiding the need to pass by Austin on the way out as I pull out my phone to call the police.
“I don’t know who the fuck you think you are, but you’re going to leave my wife and daughter alone and get the fuck out of this house.”
“You know… Austin, was it? I don’t think I’m going to do that.”
“She always was a hot piece of ass,” he sneers. “How does it feel to know that I got there first? She was even hotter before she had our brat.”
“Watch your fucking mouth,” I seethe. I don’t know why I’m feeling so protective over this woman, and I don’t have time to unpack all of the reasons that this is a bad idea, but she seems like she needs someone in her corner and fuck if I’m not going to be that for her.
No man should ever speak to a woman this way, and I get the impression he’s the type of guy who doesn’t stop at hurling insults.
“You have no idea who you’re dealing with.”
I laugh in his fucking face, hoping he takes a swing at me so I can press charges. The piece of shit balls his hands into fists at his side preparing to lunge at me when 2 officers in full uniform walk in through the front door, with Ivy and Rylin in tow. Austin is quickly escorted off the premises and I’m left with my sister’s best friend and her sweet little girl.
The woman I just claimed as my fiancée.
I’m so fucked.