Page 76 of Volatile

“Miss, are you okay?”

“Yes. I’m sorry. Now, what were you saying? Your Lily?”

He eyed her with concern. Stop looking at me. “Yes, that’s her name. Are you sure you’re all right? Maybe I can call someone for you.”

She shook her head. This was not happening. No. Fucking. Way.

Her brain was in overdrive. What were the odds that there was another Joshua living in this city with a Lily who loved lemon zinnias? Okay, deep breath.

“Um... yeah. I’m fine. I... I didn’t eat yet today and just got a little dizzy, that’s all.”

She was lying through her fucking teeth. She couldn’t think straight with him in front of her. He had to leave so she could start making sense of this clusterfuck.

His phone dinged, and he pulled it from his pocket. “Can I run out and pick you up something?”

“Oh no, that’s not necessary. I’m going to lunch right after this.”

More lies, but... Stop being so fucking nice, you fucking freak. It was messing her up big time, and she needed space to figure it out.

“If you’re sure....”

“Yes. Absolutely.” Ivy put on her best fake smile. She could not tip him off that she knew. Did he know who she was? He’d been buying flowers there longer than he’d been with Lily from what she calculated, but—

“Ivy?”

Damn name tag. His expression indicated she wasn’t fooling him worth shit. He knew she wasn’t okay. He quickly glanced down at his phone again.

“Go,” she said, attempting a laugh. “That’s probably an important call you’re ignoring for me. And the sooner you’re gone, the sooner I can eat. If I need anything, my boss is right in the next room.” Now stop giving a damn and leave already.

He gave her another look and nodded before picking up his zinnias. For his Lily. God, help her. She felt a fresh surge of nausea and needed to sit down. She’d been acting peculiar ever since he’d mentioned Lily, and for whatever she thought of this man, she didn’t believe him to be stupid. Ivy had no idea what was going through his mind, but she hoped against hope it wasn’t the same thing going through hers.

“Then I won’t keep you any longer. Enjoy your lunch.”

He left, and the moment she saw his truck pull away, she collapsed onto the chair. She’d been knocked so far off guard she wasn’t even herself anymore. It wasn’t like her to keep things inside. She was usually a ‘speak your mind then sort it out later’ type of girl. Especially with someone on the top of her want-to-skewer-to-the-wall list.

Ivy now knew everything. His full name. Address. Phone number. Even his damn bank account and credit card number. The guy had been hiding in plain sight for months, and she’d been clueless. Not anymore. She had all the information she needed, and she knew where Lily was staying. It might be difficult to get the police involved if Lily refused to cooperate, but Ivy could do everything possible to make his life hell. Except....

She dropped her head in her hands. Fuck, she was a mass of fried pieces. And here she thought that her merry-go-round of confusion had hit its peak weeks ago, but the damn thing had just accelerated to warp speed.

She reached out her leg, kicked her purse over, and pulled out her cell. It wasn’t a big surprise when Lily’s voice mail blared into her ear after dialing her number. More often than not, she disregarded Ivy’s calls. She also wanted to stop taking money for school. What the hell was that about? There was no way Ivy was going to let her sister become dependent on a man for everything, especially a bastard in Prince Charming’s clothing.

Please answer my call, Ivy texted.

Sorry. Really busy right now.

Is his last name Salinger?

She’d barely hit send when her phone buzzed. “What are you doing to me?” Lily whispered.

“Besides asking you a question?”

“Please, Ivy. I’m happy. Just let me be happy.”

“Did you know he’s a regular at the flower shop? Does he know who I am?” Does everyone fucking know everything except for me?

“No,” Lily responded after a long pause. “I mean, I knew. He doesn’t.” Another long pause. “Even before I was serious about him, I knew how you’d feel. How strong your opinions are. I couldn’t take the risk, how you’d stop at nothing... He knows I have an older sister, but I haven’t told him any of your personal details. He respects my reasons for not wanting to talk about you yet.”

Unbelievable.“And you thought he could just keep coming in week after week and we’d never find out about each other?”

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