Page 15 of Three Grumpy Groomsmen

Liam rolls his eyes in a pretentious way that makes me want to grab him and kiss him until he admits that he likes at least one thing that came out of South Carolina.

“She doesn’t have a job. She doesn’t have a place to live. She’s been living with Brad. They were going to move into some house in South Carolina. What is she supposed to do now? She needs a new plan. She’s basically homeless,” Liam says.

“So we’ll help her make a new plan,” Ford says easily.

My buddy is a problem solver. I’m the people person in our business, charming and schmoozing people. He’s the get shit done guy. He deals with numbers, obstacles, and keeps hiccups from turning into disasters. It does not surprise me one bit that he is already in fix-it mode for Ivy.

“Oh, shit.” I turn and walk over to the coffee table. “I helped Ivy‘s parents deal with all the gifts, but there was this one left over.” I pick up the flat rectangular box and head back to the kitchen. I hand it to Ford.

“What is it?” he asks.

“I have no idea. But look who it’s from.”

He flips the tag on top and reads. Then he scowls. “Thisfucker. What is he up to?”

Liam frowns. “What is it?”

“It’s from Brad,” I say.

Liam leans in and grabs the box from Ford. He rips the paper off.

“Hey, you think you should do that?” Ford asks.

“Preemptively check what other fuckery Brad is up to?” Liam asks, pulling the box top off. “Yes.” He pulls out a short stack of papers, letting the box and wrapping paper drop to the floor. He reads the top page, then flips to the second, then the third.

“What is it?” Ford asks.

Liam looks up. “Brad gave her the house.”

“What house?” I ask. But a second later, the answer hits me.

“The house in South Carolina,” Liam confirms.

“What do you mean, hegaveme the house?”

We all turn to find Ivy standing just outside the bedroom door.

Damn, this girl keeps sneaking up on us. She’s like a ninja.

I hear Liam sigh. He steps past me to stand right in front of her. “This is a gift from Brad.” He hands her the papers.“Apparently, the house in South Carolina is fully yours. It’s all paid for. But everything connected to it is in your name.“ He pauses. “Only your name.”

Ivy takes the papers, staring at the top page for several seconds before looking up at her friend. “I don’t want the house in South Carolina.”

Liam nods. “I know.”

“So why would he do this?” she asks.

“His letter says it’s an apology. For leaving you. He didn’t want you to be without anything.” Liam says the last word weakly.

Ivy holds her hand out for the letter, and Liam passes it to her. I see her scan it, lips pressing together. It must be short but it's mere seconds later that she’s looking back up at us. “That’s literally all it says,” she says, sounding mystified. “No explanation for anything.”

I look at Ford. Brad has turned into a gigantic dickhead over the past couple of years since his cooking show has taken off. But still, I can’t believe this is the guy that we grew up with.

Ford looks murderous.

“We will fix this,” he says firmly. “You don’t have to keep a house you don’t want.”

She looks at him. “So what am I going to do?”

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