AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I make it a point to.”
She smiled. “At least you have your very well-adjusted, easy-to-love sisters.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “They’re humble too, which always helps.”
Greer whacked me in the stomach.
After Mom loaded up a reusable grocery bag and handed it over to me, Poppy left the table with her dishes in hand and walked closer so she could say something to me out of earshot.
“Ask her if she wants to play chess,” Poppy said.
My eyebrows shot up. “What?”
She tapped my chest. “Trust me.”
“I haven’t played chess since I was like, ten,” I admitted in a whisper.
Poppy’s eyes gleamed. “Do you want to spend time with her?”
The instant affirmation got stuck in my throat, but she saw it clearly on my face.
My little sister grinned. “Then it won’t matter, trust me.”
Then she walked away.
“Everyone is losing their minds in this house,” I muttered.
With the bag in hand, I decided to walk down to the guesthouse, knowing that the sound of my truck might set her on edge.
It was a beautiful night, the sky clear and the breeze cool. The smell of fall was in the air, even if the leaves hadn’t started changing.
Even when the natural cycle of the seasons was built into the trees, they seemed to resist change when summer was on its way out.
We all did that a bit, I guess. I’d always liked keeping things the same, knowing what to expect, and it was only with the arrival of Ivy that had my head spinning in a way that I didn’t hate.
Maybe that’s the thing about meeting someone. And not just anyone.
But meeting someone who lights a spark.
My entire life, I’d wanted it, and trusted that eventually I’d feel it—feel something that resembled the kind of love I’d seen between my dad and Sheila, but seeking it out sounded too exhausting, required too much effort when my entire life had naturally built around my family and what they needed on any given day.
But what did I need?
I approached the small house and asked myself that question, willing to look in the proverbial mirror and provide a harsh answer.
I might not need Ivy. But I wanted her.
And the spark I felt hadn’t sputtered and died simply because she was hiding behind a giant iron wall of her own making.
Warm light spilled from the windows of the house, and I took a deep breath, wondering exactly how hard I should push.
I lifted my hand and knocked softly on the door.
Chapter 15
Ivy
I was probably going to die sitting on that couch.
