Page 32 of When Ivy Met Mr. Holiday
Eden grinned and pulled the woman she was with next to her. “This is Brooke Crawford, soon-to-be Brooke Summers and my sister-in-law.”
Brooke was wrapped in an oversize cream-colored puffer jacket, her blonde curls tumbling over the faux-fur collar.
“It’s so nice to meet you.” I held out my hand.
She quickly removed her wool gloves and tucked them into her pocket.
“I’ve listened to some of your podcast episodes. At least the ones with Eden.”
Brooke beamed, taking my hand for a brief shake. “I’m happy to meet you.”
Eden’s eyes misted over. “You follow me?” She seemed genuinely surprised.
“Of course. You’re amazing.”
Jack decided he didn’t want to be left out, so he zipped to my side and put an arm around me.
Brooke gasped. “Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh! You’re Mr. Holiday.”
Jack was ever so pleased to be fangirled over.
“FYI, attractive men make me word vomit. You can ask my fiancé,” Brooke giggled. “But I’ll try to control myself.”
Eden laughed. “Brooke’s word vomiting is the best.”
I was so jealous of Brooke getting Eden for a sister-in-law. “By the way, this is Jack, my best . . . I mean best boyfriend.”
Yikes, that sounded ridiculous.
Thankfully, Eden and Brooke only looked impressed.
A pang of guilt punched me in the gut. The lies were piling up, and I was sitting on top of the stinky heap. I could already picture it—the sympathy, the rejoicing, the knowing looks when Jack and I broke up.
Oddly, it was the sympathy I dreaded most. It would only make me feel worse about being such a liar, liar, pants on fire. Boy, were my britches smoking.
Meanwhile, Jack was thriving. Shaking hands, flashing that easy grin, doing his thing, like he had zero qualms about lying through his teeth.
“For the record, Ivy’s the real star in our relationship,” he threw in there.
“Oh, wow. That’s the sweetest thing ever,” Brooke gushed.
“Yeah, he’s a real sweetie,” I deadpanned. “Anyway, we probably better get going. We’re meeting my family at the ice-skating rink.” I gave Eden a meaningful look. “You know, you’re always invited to my parents’ place. We’dalllove to see you.”
Translation: My brother Shane would love to see you.
Eden cleared her throat, knowing exactly what I meant. “Um . . . well, yeah. I’ll think about it. We better go too. Lots of shopping and wedding prep. Bye,” she sang as she grabbed Brooke’s arm and dashed away.
“What was all that about?” Jack asked.
“Shane used to date Eden,” I whispered. “We all thought they would get married. And apparently Eden’s daughter and Poppy are best friends. Sounds like fate trying to bring them back together.” At least that’s what I told myself.
“Interesting,” Jack mused.
“Very. Anyway, did you want to shop some more, or are you ready to hit the rink in our hideous sweaters?” I laughed. “Honestly, if your fans don’t send over a hostage negotiator to rescue you soon, it will surprise me. Just in case they do, how much ransom money do you think I could get for you?”
Jack didn’t miss a beat. “For this rare specimen?” He waved over his physique. “I’mpriceless.”
I rolled my eyes so hard I almost saw the back of my skull. But this was good. This was normal Jack. Not pretend-boyfriend Jack. This Jack was easy to resist. Not that I needed any help to resist him. I was in control of my feelings. Totally in control.
