Page 19 of When Ivy Met Mr. Holiday
Needless to say, I didn’t sleep well, berating myself for even thinking about crossing the line, and I might have scrolled on my phone and caught some pictures of me looking way too cozy with Jack at the airport. Some comments painted me as a man stealer, while others were impressed that aregulargirl like me could get someone like Jack.
One woman said it gave her confidence that she, too, could find her own famous Prince Charming. I guess I could take comfort that I was giving regular girls everywhere hope. Too bad it was false hope.
I opened a cupboard and grabbed my favorite holiday mug, which looked like a pink gingerbread house.
“Hey, sis,” my brother Shane croaked in his morning voice, startling me.
It sounded eerily like Dad’s—gravelly, half-asleep, and somehow still commanding.
I spun around, clutching my mug with one hand and my heart with the other. “Oh, my gosh, you scared the crap out of me. I didn’t think anyone else was up.”
Shane ran a hand through his mussed ash-brown hair, blinking like he hadn’t quite committed to being awake.
“I had a hard time sleeping on the guest room bed. It’s not as comfortable as mine at home.”
Being back this time around, it began to hit me: my goofy older brothers had quietly evolved into actual handsome men. Both had stylish hair—thanks in part to me—and solid builds that came from years of gym memberships and weekend warrior hobbies. They definitely took care of themselves, even if they still acted like overgrown teenagers sometimes.
Shane was the closest to me in age, though still five years older. My siblings used to tease me for being the “oops baby.” My parents preferred “unexpected blessing.” So, yeah—total oops. But they never made me feel like one. If anything, I was probably the most spoiled of the bunch.
Not that I’d ever admit that. Even under torture.
“Why aren’t you and Poppy sleeping at home?” I asked. “You live like ten minutes from here.” Poppy was his darling ten-year-old daughter and my niece. Shane and his ex-wife Angelina had divorced a few years ago, and he had moved back to Aspen Lake. He was an architect like our father and worked for Dad’s firm.
Shane grabbed the copper kettle from the gas range and walked it over to the sink.
“You know Mom. She insisted we both stay here for the holidays. And how could we pass up staying with your famous boyfriend?” he teased. “How were the bunk beds, by the way?” He smirked.
“Oh, ha ha. They were fine, thank you very much.” They were so not fine; every time I rolled over, they squeaked.
My siblings were so going to think we were . . . well . . . amorous. Very amorous. I searched the pantry for Mom’s canisterof homemade cocoa.
“So how are you and Poppy?”
I needed a change of subject. Stat. And I worried about Shane. His divorce had been kind of ugly, and Angelina had pretty much disappeared from Poppy’s life.
“We’re getting by. Poppy loves her school, and she’s made good friends here. Actually, she’s best friends with Eden’s daughter, Sophie.”
I leaned out of the pantry, nearly dropping the cocoa, stunned by this revelation.
“Eden, as in your ex-girlfriend, the woman I really wanted you to marry? That Eden?”
It had devastated my teen-girl heart when Shane had broken up with Eden. She’d always treated me like her little sister, and I’d adored her. Angelina, not so much. Honestly, I never really got her appeal, although we’d all tried to love her for Shane’s sake. And I would never bad-mouth her since she was Poppy’s mom.
Shane filled the kettle with water and nodded. “Yeah, that Eden.”
“I heard she’d moved back to town. I follow her online.”
She had a huge following—like, over a million—on her social media channel, A Dance in the Kitchen, where she blended her two passions together. Eden was an amazing dancer and cook. In fact, Shane had actually been her first dance partner.
“Of course, you do.” Shane grinned and shut off the water.
“Is she as gorgeous in person as she is online?”
“Even more so,” Shane sighed with what sounded like a lot of regret.
He’d never really explained why he’d broken up with Eden. We’d all been shocked when he did.
“Ouch. So do you ever talk to her? She’s divorced too, right?”
