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“You’re a psychologist, Ivy,” he whispered as he fiddled with the napkin. “Surely you know what that bikini can do to a man.” I felt a jolt as he growled under his breath.
Jesus.
“Dad?” Keith’s son, Brandon, came up with his hands tucked in his pockets. “Do I have to be here? Can I go?”
“Okay, son, that’s fine. Go if you want.” Keith looked at me, and I gave a small nod, agreeing with his decision. Right now, his son didn’t need to be forced into a social situation when he was dealing with so much already.
“Miss Ivy?” I heard a small voice next to me, and I looked down to find Reagan, Keith’s daughter. “Could you help me?” Her lips were dyed blue from her popsicle. It had slid down the stick and needed to be pushed up to the top so she could eat it.
“Of course.” I set my drink down and grabbed a napkin from the table and helped clean her hands. “Here’s a trick, Reagan, you put one finger like this,” I put my finger on the top of the stick, “and you use your thumb to push the popsicle up like this, so it doesn’t pop right off.”
“Oh, cool.” She giggled then bit off the top of the popsicle. It made my teeth hurt as I watched. “Thanks.”
“Anytime.” She raced off, her pigtails flying in all directions.
“Thank you,” Keith mouthed and then tuned back into a story Savannah was telling as I moved toward Ty.
“Here.” Ty grinned as he handed me my drink again. “You’re good with kids.”
“They’re just tiny adults.” I sipped the cold wine and felt it slide all the way through to my core, easing the hot flash that came on when he was near. “How was training today?”
“Good. We did the element circuit today, mountains, water, parachutes, mud.” He shrugged, and I chuckled. “What?”
“You just make it sound like a walk in the park.”
“It’s not, but that’s why I crave it.”
“So, you crave what challenges you?” I didn’t mean to make it sound the way I did, but I felt that wonderful jolt as his gaze locked on to mine.
“I crave very few things in life, but when I do,” his gaze dragged down my body, and I felt the heat right down to the center of my stomach, “I sink all of myself into it.”
“Sounds like you know what you like.”
“I do.” His jawbone flexed and his neck contracted, drawing my eyes to his shoulders.
“Ivy,” Savi was suddenly beside me with her phone, “his name is Patrick, and he’s a yoga instructor in town.” The picture she showed me was from his website, and he was sitting on a mat doing a pose. He looked good, though a bit short and small for my liking. “I had a friend of a friend call him. I don’t know anything about him, but my friend assures me he’s very nice. Anyway, long story short, he wants a date tomorrow night.”
“Tomorrow?” My jaw nearly hit the ground. “Oh, um…”
“Let me see this guy.” Mark popped out of nowhere and leaned over Savi’s shoulder. He made a noise in his throat. “Okay, so, he’s like her height with manicured eyebrows and a shiny face. Look at his bio. He likes vegan food, cats, and musicals.” He shook his head at me. “Oh, and look at his quote. ‘Kale is the key to living the best life.’ Pass!” He snorted.
“He cares about his body,” Savannah argued. I caught Ty’s perplexed expression as he turned it on me, and I looked around for an exit.
“I care about my body,” Mark said as he shoved nearly an entire hamburger in his mouth as she glared at him.
“He might be perfect for you, Ivy.” She turned her attention back to me. “So, yes? Just say the word and I’ll send this text.”
“I, ah…” I stumbled again.
“Okay, look, go on the date. One of the guys will be with you, anyway, and you can have a signal if you need the date to end.” She waved his picture at me. “Just think about it, and in the meantime, I’ll keep searching.” She leaned in. “Maybe you can find out how bendy he really is.” She grinned hopefully. “Think of the stories you can tell on our wine night!” My gaze shot over to Ty, and I recalled what I heard him say to Demi that night on the phone.
“I’ll get back to you, okay?” I bit my lip as I nodded, and she raced off to talk to Catalina, who was on her way down the path to us.
Ty’s phone went off, and he glanced at it and excused himself. I looked around and spotted Brandon sitting on the grass several yards away from us, looking over the lake. I finished my wine and headed over his way. A part of me just needed a moment to think straight.
He waved when I got closer, and he didn’t seem to mind that I was encroaching on his quiet time.
“Any chance I could sit with you?”
