The Ivy House - By Drea Stein Page 0,73

fresh t-shirt, and sweater to wrap herself in. The hot water sluiced over her, and she tried to clear her head. It means nothing, she told herself. She shouldn’t let herself get too wrapped up in him. It couldn’t be permanent. Not for him, and that was what she wanted. Sooner or later, someone was going to get hurt. But for now, she told herself, just enjoy the moment.

When she went downstairs, she found that Chase had made himself useful. He’d moved the kitchen table into the dining room and found candles. He’d opened a bottle of wine and set it out amid the takeout cartons.

“I didn’t know what you liked, so I got a little of everything,” he said, appearing in the soft candlelight. Music was playing, probably Coldplay, and even without a rug or curtains or a fresh paint job, all of a sudden, it felt right, Phoebe thought; it felt like home. Her breath hitched and her heart lurched. Home. It was what she had been trying to find for a long time.

Chase held out the chair for her and she glided into it. “We have moo shu, lo mein, chicken, and broccoli…”

Phoebe went for the moo shu, while Chase seemed to be happy with a lot of everything. It took a while before he brought up the attic.

“I thought you’d be busy arranging furniture.”

“So did I. Lynn wanted to poke around Savannah’s things and so we did.”

“Did you find anything interesting?” Chase asked.

Phoebe shrugged. “Nothing too out of the ordinary. Just those old photo albums.”

“Savannah’s?”

“And some from my parents, from before I was born. I didn’t really know where they went. Haven’t thought about them in a long time. The pictures, I mean. It was weird seeing them.”

“Why?” Chase asked.

Phoebe thought for a moment before she answered. “They were so happy. And in love. With each other. I remember it and seeing the pictures brought it all back to me.”

“I’m sorry,” Chase said, but it was more a question.

“Don’t be. It made me happy. Sad too, but happy. Happy that they had that. It was so different from what Savannah and Leland had.”

Chase’s chopsticks paused midway between his plate and his mouth. “What do you mean?”

“My parents had a steady type of love. I don’t remember them ever really arguing. Their relationship was even, steady. But then I think about Savannah and Leland.”

“What about them?” Chase’s eyes were dark in the candlelight, intently looking at her. Phoebe didn’t know why she pressed on, but she had to.

“Their love was intense. Leland gave up a lot to be with her. Savannah even gave up her career for a while. It burned so hot, their love, it consumed them. He was jealous of her acting, but she couldn’t not do it. In the end, they loved each other still, but they were at each other’s throats. At least that’s what all the stories said. It was like they were so on fire for each other, it burned them out.”

It hung in the air between them. Chase looked at her for a long time, before he took her hand and gently pulled her towards him, up from the table, into his arms. She looked at him for a long time, staring at his face, and finally he stood up and she did too. She led him up the stairs and into her bedroom.

Chapter 34

Chase stayed the night. He had offered to go back to his apartment, but Phoebe had simply thrown him a look and pulled him towards her. She didn’t want him to go, liking the warmth and strength of him. He didn’t seem to mind, wrapping himself around her.

It was the weekend and they stayed together the whole time. He helped her move things from the shed into the house and watched as she rearranged. They went shopping for groceries, making themselves pasta. He lamented the lack of a TV, but she made it worth his while.

Monday morning came around and Chase had to go back to work. She sent him away with a bang and the house felt strangely empty without him, but she was ready to start getting to work. She had a contract to fulfill after all. There were also some phone calls and emails from Dean asking her when she was coming back. There were emails from her workshop asking if they should purchase more materials to keep up with the new orders. Her landlord was asking if she wanted out of her