Chapter Twenty
“Eros will have naked bodies; friendship naked personalities.”
C. S. Lewis
Jack
Cami, the photographer, tried to forcefully remove me from Ivy’s side like I was just another prop in the Wells family photos. But I refused to move. Hadn’t she just moments ago asked me to pose in a selfie with her so she could show it to her nieces and nephews?
“Boyfriends stand at the end,” she said, pointing near Tyler. “Easier to crop out later. You know, in case of breakups.”
“These two aren’t going to break up,” Jaquelyn sang.
Ivy tensed next to me.
“That’s what they all say.” With more force, Cami pointed to where she wanted me.
Begrudgingly, I moved over, not wanting to make a scene. However, I didn’t plan on breaking up with Ivy. Ever.
When I landed three people over from Ivy on the outskirts, she caught my gaze, nibbling on her bottom lip. Her eyes said, Sorry, all the while begging me to explain what had happened in the kitchen.
I knew what happened.
I had prematurely blurted again.
When it came to Ivy, I had zero game. Maybe because the last thing I wanted was to play games with her, and I was tired of hiding my feelings.
Regardless, I had meant to lead her slowly to the big reveal on Christmas morning.
But the way she kept kissing me and being so damn cute with her family as she styled and cut each member’s hair, not to mention I was still shook up over last night’s encounter with Sienna, I couldn’t help but basically spell out my feelings for her.
Could she really be so stubborn as to not understand what my offer meant? What my kiss meant?
I’d been anxious to talk to her, but her dad had kept me occupied up until the minute it was time to be placed in our poses.
His need of help moving furniture for the family photos had obviously been a ruse.
He was a strong man, and the couches hadn’t even been in the way.
But it had given him time to give me the “dad talk.”
The one littered with subtle questions and well-placed pauses and meaningful looks. The one that didn’t outright say, You better be careful with my daughter, Jack, but made sure I felt it anyway.
He obviously wanted to know my intentions. But more importantly, he wanted to be sure I wouldn’t hurt Ivy. That my Hollywood persona was just that.
I had tried my best to convince him that my intentions were pure, and I wasn’t the character I played in movies or the person the tabloids sometimes depicted. I swore I would never knowingly hurt Ivy. Not sure if he believed me.
Ivy closed her eyes and scrunched her nose. I knew that look. She was debating. This could be good. Or infinitely bad. Because once Ivy made up her mind, it would take an act of God to change it.
That was what I’d been hoping for this entire trip—for the guy upstairs to throw me a bone. In other words—a miracle.
And . . . maybe I was about to get one.
Ivy opened her eyes and exhaled, loud enough for me to hear. “Is it okay if I still stand by him in the photo?”
To an outsider, her request might have seemed innocuous, but to me it said Ivy’s stubborn shell was cracking.
Cami tilted her head from side to side, debating. Finally she nodded, though Ivy was already making her way toward me.
“I think we can make it work. Paige, I’ll need you and Peter to shift over to this side to balance the shot. Tyler, let’s have you move up front. And, Ivy—go ahead and tuck your shoulder in just a bit, right next to Jack. Perfect.”
Ivy next to me was perfect, especially when she grabbed my hand and squeezed it.
I let my thumb brush over hers—just once, enough to make sure she felt it.
“You look beautiful, by the way,” I whispered.
The way her form-fitted charcoal sweater dress hugged all her curves did me in. How she thought she was just a “regular” girl, I had no idea. She was stunning.
She nudged me with her hip. “Thank you. FYI, I think we need to talk.”
“We will,” I promised.
“Okay. You all look amazing. I’m going to take a few test shots to check the lighting,” Cami called out. “So everyone smile naturally. Just remember: If you blink, you owe me a Diet Coke,” she teased. “That’s the rule.”
Everyone laughed.
I laughed, too, but then it hit me. This was the first family photo I had ever been in.
I tightened my grip on Ivy’s hand, hoping she didn’t want to crop me out.
Not only did I want to be with her, but I wanted to be part of her family, as crazy as they were.
At least they loved each other and showed up.
The whole photo session blurred into a flurry of smiles, reshuffling poses, and Cami’s relentless commands.
We were herded into every formation imaginable—group shots, sibling shots, couple shots.
Every time Ivy wasn’t needed in a photo, I tried to steal a moment alone with her. She was right; we needed to talk.
But between Ivy’s mom calling her over to fix Paige’s hair, Cami’s booming directions, and the swirling madness that was the Wells family, the moment never came. Then Kaden slapped me on the back while his parents were getting their pictures done.
“Blackjack?” he grinned. “Wanna lose to a couple of middle schoolers?”
Graham chimed in, already shuffling the cards. “We take Venmo.”
This seemed suspicious. “Aren’t you a little young for Venmo accounts?”
Without missing a beat, Graham responded. “It’s a teen account under our mom’s.”
“Uh-huh.” I eyed them carefully.
“What, are you afraid you’re gonna lose, Uncle Jack?” Kaden goaded.
I was becoming quite fond of the title Uncle Jack. But these boys had no idea what they were getting into. I’d learned how to count cards a long time ago. It wasn’t something I was exactly proud of—but hey, it had paid for lunches back in high school.
I wasn’t sure how their parents would feel about their sons trying to hustle me. But maybe it was an uncle’s duty to teach them a lesson.
“All right, but just so you know, I prefer to be paid in cash.”
Kaden and Graham exchanged a look that said they fully intended to take me down.
“No problem.” Graham shuffled the deck a few more times, a little too expertly.
I dropped onto the nearest couch, a coffee table between us.
“Watch and learn,” I warned.
The boys shrugged cockily and sat across from me.
Admittedly, I was proud of their arrogant attitudes. But it was time for them to eat a little humble pie. “What do you want to wager?”
“Fifty bucks.” Kaden smirked.
“All right,” I agreed, “but I get to shuffle those cards once before you deal.”
They both looked like deer caught in the headlights.
“You wouldn’t be trying to cheat, would you?”
Both boys shook their heads—a little too fast.
“Then you’ve got nothing to worry about.” I held out my hand.
Reluctantly, Graham placed the deck in my palm.
My phone buzzed in my pocket.
“Saved by the buzzer, gentlemen. At least for now,” I said, rising to my feet, still clutching the cards. No telling what they’d try to pull if I left them unattended.
But whatever satisfaction I felt drained the second I saw the name on the screen: Tori.
Swiftly, I headed outside into the freezing temps, shoving the cards in my pocket. The chill had nothing on the icy terror flowing through my veins. I’d hoped my run-in with Sienna the night before was just that—a run-in. But I should have known better. This was Sienna we were talking about.
Why hadn’t I already told Ivy? Damn it.
“Hello,” I murmured.
“What the hell, Jack?”
I had been expecting a much worse greeting.
“Let me guess: You want to know why I was kissing Sienna?”
“Ding, ding, we have a winner. Or loser, in this case.”
My stomach sank as I leaned against the porch railing, looking in through the large window at Ivy twirling Emma around, smiling. She was my world, and the last thing I wanted to do was lose her.
“Tori, it’s not what you think.”
“Enlighten me, because the press and studio are breathing down my neck.”
“I was just doing a period run for Ivy last night, and, of course, Sienna had to be there.” It’d been the worst timing ever.
Although I wouldn’t put it past her to have followed me there.
“She approached me, said she wanted to apologize for how she’d treated Ivy, which of course I was wary of, but I heard her out. That was my first mistake.”
“No, Jack, that was your second. The minute you saw her, you should have turned around. Have I taught you nothing? She’s playing the short game, and you fell right into it.”
“You don’t think I know that?” I snapped. “I didn’t expect her to kiss me. And I didn’t think anyone saw.”
I could still feel her lips on mine—wrong and cold. Not even a flicker of temptation—just panic. And then the stupid hope that no one had witnessed it.
“Wrong again,” Tori berated me. “Tae Cho just posted a cozy photo of you two. Why didn’t you call me right away, Jack?”
I blew out a large breath. A white plume formed in front of me as I watched the love of my life. “I hoped it wouldn’t come to anything. And I couldn’t bear to tell Ivy.”
Tori let out a sigh. Not angry this time—more like pitying. “You have no choice now. We are officially in damage-control mode.”
I already knew the drill: Control the narrative. Acknowledge, don’t defend. Own my part and say I should have walked away sooner. Silence is not my friend.
I should have remembered that last night and just told Ivy what had happened. But when she looked so vulnerable all curled up in bed, I couldn’t. And then when she started treating me like her actual boyfriend, I didn’t want to rock the boat.
“I’ll handle the execs, but you need to be ready to make a public statement if they ask. This isn’t just about your image—it’s about their investment.”
“I got it,” I mumbled, even though my only true concern at the moment was Ivy.
“And, Jack . . . ,” she hesitated. “If Ivy’s comfortable, we need a photo and a joint statement—something that shows she’s not blindsided or betrayed.”
“But what if she is?”
Tori pulled no punches. “Then you have bigger problems than I can help with.”
That was what I was afraid of.