Page 19 of Relentless (The Titans of Founder's Ridge 2)

“What?” I make sure my voice is the picture of innocence.

“Seriously?” she snorts. “You can be a real dick sometimes, you know that?”

“I do.” All bets are off when it comes to my Ives. “That was pretty tame though, keep pushing me and see how far I’ll go.”

“That a threat?”

“I don’t make threats, I keep promises. I don’t want you dry humping other guys against my car.”

“But you can get a blowjob in a supply closet whenever you want?”

“Yeah, I can.”

“I can date or kiss whoever I want, too.”

“No, sweetheart, you can’t. Who said anything about dating anyone?”

“Oliver asked if he could take me to the party tomorrow. I said yes.”

Oh, fuck, that hurts. The thought of that British asshole with his hands on Ivy drives me insane. I torture myself with mental images of them pressed against each other in the pool, her legs wrapped around his waist. His lips on her neck, her lips on his. I look down at my white knuckles and force myself to loosen my grip on the steering wheel.

“What are you doing tonight?” I work hard to tame the raging, jealous beast within and sound normal.

“Nothing,” she shrugs.

“Movie night?”

“With you?”

“Obviously.” I give her the side eye for that.

“I don’t know. I’m still pretty pissed about your performance in front of Oliver.”

“He still taking you to the party?”

“Yes.”

“Then it’s all good,” I give her the smile I know she can’t resist. “I’ll bring the gummy bears.”

“Mom said she was going into the city with Frank, so I guess it’s just us this weekend.”

“Yeah, thank fuck. Can you elaborate on that shitshow at dinner last night?” I ask as I park in the garage.

“That,” she sighs and looks over at me, “was just my mom being her nasty self. Don’t worry about it, I know how to let it go.”

“She can’t restrict your diet like that.” I will be fucking damned if I watch Jennifer push Ivy into some sort of eating disorder. “You probably have to intake more calories during swim season than I do during football.”

“I do.” She turns to face me. “I also know how to take care of myself. I’ve been doing it on my own for years. You don’t have to worry about this, I promise.”

I look down at her and nod.

“I’m going to do my calculus homework and shower. Then I’ll find you, sound good?”

“Yeah, that works for me. So nerdy, homework on a Friday,” I tease.

She tosses her middle finger over her shoulder as she starts up the stairs.

I drop my bags on the couch in the living room and head back to the theater to get it ready for tonight. On my way through the kitchen I grab the gummy bears, a couple bags of microwave popcorn, and a few cookies that Babs baked earlier today.

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