Page 60 of When Ivy Met Mr. Holiday
But maybe, just maybe, I didn’t want to be saved. At least not yet. And honestly, I wasn’t sure if I could be. Jack had ruined me for other men. At least for now. I just hoped I hadn’t damaged our friendship.
On the upside, no one was ever going to question this fake relationship again. Paige had even mentioned how proud she was of me and my PDA. Which was a little weird.
Poppy giggled, snapping me back to the moment. I turned my attention to her.
“So, scoop, girlfriend.” I ran my fingers through her golden-blonde hair, the same shade as her mom’s.
“I like my teacher, Mrs. Garcia.”
“Nice. How about friends?” I was especially curious about her bestie, Eden’s daughter.
“Sophie’s the best,” she sang. “I met her at dance class this summer.”
“Oh, that’s fun.” I grabbed my styling wand off the counter near me. “Is she a good dancer likeyou?”
“Uh-huh. Our instructor told us we’re the best in the class, but we can’t tell anyone else.” She giggled.
“That’s probably a good idea.” I grabbed a strand of her hair and twirled it around my wand.
“Her mom is a really good dancer.”
“Is that right?” I pretended like I knew nothing about Eden.
“Yeah. The best. She’s won lots of awards, and she’s famous.”
“As famous as Jack?”
Poppy peeked at Jack and blushed. Adorable. She probably had a little crush on him. Who could blame her?
“Noooo,” she elongated.
Jack set down his phone and threw me a cocky smile. He loved being the most famous guy in the room. Okay, in the country.
Oddly, he’d been checking his phone a lot more today than usual. Normally, he never checked his phone around me unless he was waiting to hear about a part or something like that. I knew that wasn’t the case. He’d said something earlier about nervous energy. Maybe my accosting him every chance I got was making him twitchy.
“But she’s really nice. Like, so nice. And she makes the best food. I love going to their house,” Poppy added.
I grabbed another strand. “I’m so glad to hear that.” Now, if I could only think of a way to get Eden and my brother back together. “Do you spend a lot of time over there?”
“Yep,” Poppy chirped, swinging her feet under the chair. “Sophie’s mom helps me with dance and my homework. She even teaching me how to cook.”
“She sounds amazing.”
Poppy nodded, agreeing.
“And your dad picks you up from their house?”
Jack flashed me a side-eye that said he knew what I was up to. A little matchmaking scheme in the works. Listen: I got robbed as a teenager. Eden should have been my sister-in-law, and from the sound of it, Poppy’s mom. I was just trying to right a wrong.
“Most of the time. Sometimes Grandma does if Dad is working.”
That had to be torture for my brother. But I could work with this. Maybe I would get my mom involved, since I lived in Texas.
“Any cute boys at school?”
Poppy giggled. “Maybe.”
“Ooh, maybe. Tell your aunt.”
