“Says me—and my sister, and my sister’s entourage.”
“Well, the only person I care about out of that lineup is you, and I don’t believe that you don’t want to talk to me.”
I lean my back against the railing behind us, glancing up at the blue sky. Ivy sucks her lower lip between her teeth, and I grin. I’ve only known her a day, and I already know that that small movement is a sign that she’s off-balance.
“What are you reading?”
She closes the book, and I catch a glimpse of the title—something about baking. Maybe some homework the royal pastry chef gave her.
“Is there a reason you’re here?” Ivy demands. “Shouldn’t you be making out with my sister right about now?” She angles her body away from me, staring out at the lake. The tree-lined shore shrinks away from us, and the only sound is the wind whipping around us, the cry of a few seagulls, and the yacht’s motor. Faint music trickles up toward us from the decks below.
“Maybe I should, but I don’t want to,” I answer.
Ivy gulps, and I watch the movement of her throat. Her lips drop open, and all I want to do is taste them again.
“I wanted to see you,” I say.
Ivy scoffs. “Right.”
“Is that so hard to believe?”
“What’s your angle, here? One sister isn’t enough, so you want to make headlines by bagging two of them? Newsflash: the media doesn’t care about me, so you’re not going to gain anything by trying to get with me.”
“Are you saying I’m going to bag you?”
“Please. I’m saying that whatever your motivations are, they’re pointless. I’m not a prize to be won, so you can fuck off.”
“That’s quite the one-eighty from this morning,” I grin. I know she’s mad, but a part of me loves hearing foul words coming out of her pretty mouth.
“I saw the way you were looking at my sister. I know I’ll always be second-best.”
I let out a frustrated sigh. “Your sister is a job, Ivy.”
She just sighs, shaking her head. “I knew it was a bad idea to follow you through the forest today. I don’t…” Ivy releases a breath. “I’m not cut out for this type of romance, or affair, or whatever you want to call it. You shouldn’t be here.”
“Look me in the eye and say it like you mean it.”
Her hands grip her book, and she turns to face me. She bites down on her lower lip, raising her eyes to mine. I can see the pulse in her neck thumping, and I long to run my tongue all the way up her delicate neck.
“Why are you here?” she whispers.
I lean into her, dropping my lips close to her ear. “Because I want to be.”
A faint shiver passes through Ivy’s body. I keep my head close to hers, closing my eyes for just a second. What is it about this girl that drives me wild?
Ivy snaps her head away from mine and clears her throat. “Shouldn’t you be canoodling with my sister, or something? I saw a couple boats full of photographers salivating at the thought of seeing the two of you together.”
I arch an eyebrow. “Are you jealous, Poison?”
“Stop calling me that.”
“You didn’t answer the question.”
Ivy’s eyes flash. “Am I jealous of my supermodel-turned-actress sister, around whom the entire universe orbits? Hmm, let me think about that for a second.” She shakes her head and drops her voice. “I wish I could say no, but that would be a lie. I’ve been jealous of her since before I learned the meaning of the word.”
In that simple sentence, that single moment of vulnerability, I feel closer to Ivy than I’ve felt to most other people. I, too, know what it’s like to feel crushing jealousy for a sibling. Wasn’t I the one who stewed in a vat of green envy when I heard that Theo was marrying Cara? Aren’t I the one who crawled back to my family, feeling alienated and oddly ashamed, and jealous of their healthy, able bodies?
The hurt in her face makes my chest sting, because I understand it. To her core, I know how Ivy feels right now. Envy is a dirty, insidious poison that seeps into your veins and eats you from the inside out. It makes you question everything and everyone, and leaves you a husk of the person you once were.
I put my hand on her thigh. “You shouldn’t be jealous, Ivy.”