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“Contact your dad. He’s her manager. Let him deal with her.”
Mia bit the inside of her lip, looking concerned at his insistence. “I’ll call him when I get backstage.”
Nate cursed long and viciously in his head. Leave it to Ivy to upset her sister just when Mia was having fun. Nate reached for her hand, but Mia pulled it out of reach before he made contact.
“I’ll be back in a little while.”
Then, as the performance ended and the crowd politely applauded, Mia slipped away. And Nate wondered if he’d see her again before the evening was over.
Nine
It was a little after midnight when Nate returned to his hotel suite without his date for the evening. He wasn’t surprised that Mia hadn’t reappeared after heading backstage to check on her sister. At least she hadn’t left him hanging. She’d sent him several texts as she assessed the situation and waited for her father to show up and take charge of Ivy.
Now, his cell phone pinged and his screen lit up with a text.
I’m back at the hotel. Sorry about what happened tonight.
The tightness in his chest eased as he texted her back, letting her know that he was also at the hotel and asking her to come to his suite. It was time he and Mia had a serious conversation about what was going on between them and where he saw their relationship going. He needed to know where she stood.
A soft knock sounded on his door. When he opened it, Mia stood in the hallway holding a pint of his favorite ice cream and two spoons.
“What’s that for?”
“Girls always eat ice cream after a big disappointment.”
He wondered which disappointment she referred to: the fact that Free Fall didn’t win their category or that her sister had ruined his evening.
“I’m not a girl. And I don’t care that we lost.” He plucked the ice cream from her hand and gestured her in.
“I am a girl and the ice cream is for me. I just thought I’d share.” She swiped at the container, but he moved beyond her reach.
He set the ice cream on the coffee table and sat down on the couch. “It’s my favorite. And what do you have to be bummed about?”
“You’re mad at me.”
“I’m not.”
“Liar.” She followed him and sat down cross-legged, facing him. “I’m sorry I ruined our night.”
“You didn’t. Your sister did.”
“I shouldn’t have left you.”
In five minutes she’d managed to dispel his annoyance and arouse his sympathy. Here he’d been feeling sorry for himself, and she was the one who’d had to disrupt her evening to take care of Ivy.
“How come you didn’t tell me your sister has a drug problem?”
The question had been burning up his thoughts since he’d realized what’s going on.
“She doesn’t have a problem.”
Mia’s evasion annoyed him. It wasn’t just that she was keeping a whopping huge secret from him. Ivy’s career was something Nate and Trent were investing time and money in. If there was a problem, they needed to know.
“You don’t think I can see what’s going on? You forget, I’ve been there.”
Mia wouldn’t meet his gaze. “I know, but you got clean and Ivy can, too.”
“Who knows about this?”
