Chapter 7 #2
Lilah, of course, was ecstatic to have everyone there. We all piled into my truck, forced to listen to Maverick try and memorize-slash-rap every word of We Don’t Talk About Bruno.
Amatuer.
Later, when we were all camped out in lounge chairs watching Lilah splash around the shallow kiddie pool, Maverick tested my restraint and blood pressure.
“So I hear you have a hot nanny.”
Sophie immediately threw her arm out and slapped his bare chest.
“I mean, you’re not wrong,” she muttered, “but still man, don’t be a perv.”
I ground my molars to the point of pain, trying not to lay into him for speaking about Ivy like that. Even though I think about Ivy like that. As much as I try not to, I do think about how hot she is. But I also think about how funny she is. She’s kind and smart, and cute as hell.
God damn it, I want to know her.
“What?” Maverick scoffed. “She’s hot. She plays hard to get though, I think. Give me time, I can crack her”
I snapped. “Watch your fuckin’ mouth.”
“Woah, man. Okay. Damn, I was joking,” he said quickly, holding his hands up like I drew a gun instead of a line. “I swear, Wes,” he said a little more sincerely.
Lincoln kept his mouth shut. Sophie, on the other hand, just slowly smiled like the fucking Chesire Cat.
Later that day, Sophie and I were waiting in line at the concession stand, trying to grab everyone lunch. As we were sweating our asses off and waiting for our corn dogs, Sophie asked, “What did you do to Ivy?”
I frowned. “What?”
“Do you not like her or something? Because it’s really hard not to like Ivy.”
“No. I mean yes, she’s fine. Why?”
“Fine?”
I shrugged, trying my best to play it cool. “Did she say something?”
My mind instantly went to Friday night out on the porch.
“When Lincoln called, I was just finishing up breakfast with her. I asked if she wanted to come with us today. She seemed interested at first, but then said she was busy.” Sophie gave me a pointed look.
“And when I called her on that blatant lie, she said she didn’t want to make you… uncomfortable.”
Her eyebrows rose higher with every word.
She mimicked the stupid air quotes she does. “She said she didn’t want to ‘step on your toes.’”
I told Sophie that Ivy was right. It was best we kept things professional. I explained that I never said we couldn’t see each other outside of her job, but it was probably a good call on her part to set boundaries. That earned me an eye roll from my nosey sister.
Sunday was thankfully a lot less eventful. We went and got ice cream in town and had an easy movie night at home where we watched Encanto and How to Train Your Dragon.
Shocker.
The second Lilah’s eyes opened this morning, she yelled, “It’s Monday! Iby’s coming!”
Now, I’m just finishing cleaning up after breakfast, when I spot Ivy’s car rolling up through the front window. I hurry to wrap the extra egg and bacon burrito I made in a paper towel, and stick it in the microwave for safe keeping.
I wipe my hands off on a dish towel, and dust crumbs off my shirt that aren’t there. I straighten my shirt, then run both my hands through my hair, trying to smooth it back, cursing my nervous habit.
“She’s here, she’s here, she’s here!” Lilah shouts, jumping up and down, waiting in the entryway for Ivy to walk through the door.
We’re both waiting with bated breath when we eventually hear a light tap on the door, followed by the creak of it slowly swinging open. Ivy hesitantly pops her head inside, like the short weekend away made her feel unsure about coming in without knocking. I should get her a key.
“Hi,” she says shyly.
“Iby!”
Lilah charges Ivy, slamming into her legs and hugging her like they’ve been apart for years.
Ivy kneels down on the floor and wraps Lilah up in a hug, rocking their bodies back and forth dramatically and shaking her a bit, making Lilah squeal in delight.
“Hello, my girl. How was your weekend?” Ivy asks, gently holding Lilah by her upper arms and looking her in the eye.
She’s giving her the brightest smile, completely engrossed in whatever she’s about to say.
I love how sincere Ivy is. She doesn’t do the fake, high-pitched, kid voice with Lilah.
She talks to her, and treats her like a person, which I appreciate.
It’s something I didn’t realize mattered to me until now.
“Oh my gosh. So good! I went down a water slide!” Lilah replies, practically vibrating with excitement.
“No way! You’re so brave for doing that.” Ivy nods like they’re both in on the fact Lilah is, without question, super brave.
“I am so brave,” Lilah replies as if she had no idea. It makes me feel guilty as hell. I need to be better at that—telling her things like this. Sarah would’ve been amazing at it.
“What did you do?” Lilah asks Ivy.
Ivy stands and gives me a polite wave, which I return with a slight nod. She turns to take off her sandals at the door, and there's something so intimate about seeing her bare feet being on my floors.
Finally giving me a full view of her, I take Ivy in. Jesus. Her small, but curved frame is poured into a pair of jeans that mold to her ass perfectly. The folds beneath her ass are impossible to ignore, and her tight lavender colored shirt leaves nothing to the imagination.
The sight has my mouth watering.
“Nothing really. I went to breakfast with your Auntie Soph, then wrote a little,” she says casually as Lilah grabs her by the hand and drags her over to the large pile of blocks on the living room floor.
Wrote? She writes? I make a mental note to ask her about that later.
My chest starts to hurt when I think about her turning down Sophie’s invitation because of me.
Should I have invited her? Maybe I should include her from now on.
I don’t like the idea of her sitting at home when we’re out having fun—though I’m not sure she’d want to come.
I haven’t moved from my spot in the kitchen. I’m just standing here, watching her and Lilah interact.
“Hey, you want to know what I learned this weekend?” Ivy asks, “In mythology, female dragons are called Drakaina. Pretty cool huh?”
“Woah,” Lilah breathes. “That means I’m like a Dr-dra-drakaina then.”
“You totally are,” Ivy says, grinning.
They’re not even looking at each other. They’re just building a tower together, perfectly in sync, like they’ve done this a thousand times before. Lilah’s tongue is poking out of her mouth as she focuses, and Ivy’s nose is scrunched up in concentration.
Not only will she walk into a pond fully clothed for Lilah, but now she’s learning dragon facts for my daughter? She really is going to be the death of me.
“I, um, left you breakfast in the microwave,” I blurt, needing to say anything to make my presence known.
She looks up, a little surprised. “Oh. Thanks, you didn’t have to do that.”
“I had leftovers.”
I didn’t.
I purposefully made more for her.
She nods. “Cool, thanks. I never wake up early enough to eat in the morning,” she adds with a giggle.
What the hell? Okay, she eats breakfast now. Every day. Here.
I grab my backpack and walk over to kiss my daughter on the head. “Be good. I love you.”
She murmurs her reply, fully engrossed in her block tower.
Then I look at her nanny.
“Bye, Ivy.” Our eye contact lingers a little too long.
She breaks it first. “Bye, Wesley,” she whispers, turning back to the blocks.
I have to bite back a fucking groan at the sound of her using my name in that voice. That’s going to haunt my dreams. That ass in those jeans, and the way she said my name.
I don’t know whether to hate or love my past self for slipping up and introducing myself as Wesley instead of my usual Wes.
All I know is that I’ll be fucking my fist in the shower tonight to that plump ass and breathy voice.