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I raised my eyebrows, shocked at the genuine concern he showed. “Yes, my mom, dad, and little sister were all in the accident, but my dad was affected the most. He’s paralyzed from the waist down, but the doctors think it could be temporary. He’s doing physical therapy and learning to live with it for now, but I’m hopeful.”
Mr. King nodded. “I’m glad to hear it.”
Maybe he wasn’t so bad after all. Lucas looked over at me and shrugged, thinking the same thing as me. Why was he being so nice? Maybe Amy got to him with speaking her truth.
“Blake.” Amy’s mother touched her arm, trying to bring the attention back to her. “How is your new job at the dance studio?”
“Oh, it’s just wonderful,” Blake gushed. I stuffed my mouth with pasta and cheese to keep myself from chiming in. “The girls need a little bit of work, though. Their previous coach didn’t train them very well.” Her eyes gleamed with pure evil as she looked right at me.
My mouth full, I couldn’t respond, but that was probably for the best. My eyes shot fireballs at her, though.
“I’m sure you heard about Scott’s generous donation to the studio,” Mr. King chimed in.
I choked on my food. Scratch that, a full mouth at this dinner was not a good idea at all. Lucas patted my back, helping me stop the ridiculously loud coughing that was barking out of my throat.
I finally stopped and grabbed my water glass. Taking a tiny sip, I looked up at Scott over the rim of my glass, my eyes wide in alarm.
He gave a sheepish grin and winked, but his attention was pulled away when Blake grabbed his arm and squeezed his biceps. I knew what was under that suit jacket. She needed to keep her hands off.
Amy didn’t miss that little interaction, though. She leaned around Lucas and glared at me.
She knew now. She knew about us.
“I didn’t realize it was you!” Blake gushed. “The studio has been under so much stress. Some of our teachers are a little overpaid.” She glanced at me. “But because of your donation, we don’t have to raise tuition. You’ve saved us!” She batted her lashes and flashed him her winning smile.
My head was spinning. The anonymous donor was Scott.Scottwas the anonymous donor. He saved my family from having to pay a higher tuition for Katy and helped me get paid a little more for attending Blake’s rehearsals.
I didn’t know what to think. I was shocked and flattered, but this felt like way too much, too soon. We were barely beginning to date. We never talked about the future. The amount of money he donated to the studio to accomplish this was more than my parents would have normally made in a full year of work, and he just donated it to the studio like it was nothing.
Combining my spinning head with the overwhelming smell of sauce, I thought I was going to throw up. I took my napkin off my lap and stood up. “Thank you all so much for dinner. I’m not feeling well, so I’m going to head home.”
“Ivy, wait,” Scott said, standing up as well. “I’ll walk you out. It’s . . . dark.”
My eyes flicked to the window, where it was clearly still light out. “No, I’m fine.”
“Please, I insist.”
Would he just let it go?
Amy’s head bounced back and forth between the two of us.
“We’re surrounded by gates,” his mother chimed in. “Stay here with Blake.”
“It’ll just take a minute,” Scott persisted.
I didn’t want to make a scene. “Fine.” I let Scott follow me out the door and into the driveway. The cool evening air surrounded us, and the marine layer creating fog that made it harder to see.
I whirled around and faced him. “You?” I asked.
He put his hands in his pockets and shrugged his shoulders. “Yeah.”
There were so many things I wanted to say, but only one word escaped my mouth. “Why?”
He took a few steps closer. “It was an easy way for me to help you. Your family has been through so much. I can’t help them directly while we keep things secret, but I could at least help in this way.”
I wrapped my arms around my waist, partly from the cold, and partly because I needed a hug. I was flattered, to be sure. He cared more for me than I had even expected. But my family’s finances were not his problem, and I didn’t need him to swoop in and save the day.
I shook my head. “It’s too much.”
