Page 33 of Fractured Loyalties
There’s nothing there except a hint of curiosity.
“I also lost my younger sister and my older brother,” I keep going, forcing out truths that I don’t really want to share with her—with anyone.
“How?”
“How?” I repeat her question back to her, not sure if I can go down that road. It might actually traumatize her more than my dick did last night.Fuck.
“You can tell me…” Her voice trails off, and just as I open my mouth to speak, my phone blares, the ringtone signaling just how tight the leash my father has on me.
Shit.“I have to take this.” I rip my phone up from the console and throw the SUV into gear. I hit the answer button.
“What the hell do you want right now?”
“It has come to my attention that we need to talk this morning,” my father says tersely into my ear. “The sooner the better. Edward has brought asituationthat I was unaware of to my attention.”
I run my hand over my face and stomp the gas.Fucking Edward can’t keep anything secret.
“I’ll be back at the house in ten,” I snap, and then hang up before my dad can say anything else. I toss the phone back down into the cup holder and ignore the way Ivy is staring at me.
At least she’s not crying anymore.
“What’s wrong?” Her voice comes out timidly, and the concern in it is so fucking ironic that I could punch a hole in the windshield.
I turn into the school before I answer her, weaving around the other slow-moving vehicles. “It’s nothing that you need to concern yourself with.” I pull up alongside the curb and put the car in park.
I expect Ivy to bolt out of the passenger seat, but she doesn’t. She sits there, still clutching her backpack and watching me like a deer in the headlights.
I lean back in the seat and twist my head in her direction. “You want me to be completely honest with you?”
She studies my face for a few beats. “Yeah.”
I nod. “The smartest thing you can do in this house is to remain ignorant. It’s better to keep your nose out of secrets.”
Something lights up in her eyes that I don’t expect. “Then you should’ve kept your dick out of your stepsister.”
My brows skyrocket. I didnotthink innocent little Ivy had it in her to be so vulgar. I open my mouth to say something more to her, but she flings the door open and slides out. Her backpack slams into the car as she slings it over her shoulder.
“Fuck you, Roman.”
“Ivy—”
She slams the door shut, and I wince as she stalks away, never once looking back over her shoulder. I sit there in the driver’s seat, watching her go, and absolutely hating the mess I’ve gotten myself into.
She has no idea what I’ve done, what I’m doing, or what Iwilldo for her. But that little blast of fire she’s got tells me she’s the kind of woman who I mightnotbe able to ruin.
And that’s a little unnerving.
Because I sure as fuck can’t let her ruin me.
Fourteen
IVY
I needto find Kade to apologize…
And ask what the hell happened.
I go straight to the trophy case in the hallway, where the football team’s endless parade of championships is immortalized in gold and glass. He’s always hanging around there… but the longer I wait, the more I realize he isn’t coming.
