Wrapped Up in You - Jill Shalvis Page 0,87
She stood up. “But now I really need to . . .” She made a vague wave toward her truck.
Sadie caught her hand. “You know we love you, right?”
Ivy had to swallow hard. “I lied to all of you. Friends don’t lie.”
“I lied to everyone when my girlfriend was cheating on me a while back,” Haley said. “I told everyone I was fine. That was a huge, big fat lie.”
Tae nodded. “We only found out she wasn’t fine when we found her in the courtyard drunk, sobbing out her troubles to the firepit while wearing only one shoe.”
“Hey,” Haley said. “I didn’t have any coins on me so I’d thrown my shoe into the fountain to make a wish. Plus, I thought I was talking to Old Man Eddie. But he’d fallen asleep on me.”
Old Man Eddie might not live in the alley anymore, but he was still the keeper of the firepit. He had lots of sage advice—on the days he wasn’t eating his homemade marijuana brownies.
“I’ve lied too,” Sadie said. “By omission. Before I got together with Caleb, I was afraid to let people in. Thought they wouldn’t like me. I pushed away anyone and everyone who tried to be my friend.”
Haley nodded to Ivy. “Yep. She did that. Big-time.”
“And I was the ‘I’m okay’ girl,” Molly said. “Which was a huge lie. I just never wanted anyone’s help because I didn’t want to be vulnerable.”
“I’ve lied too,” Tae said and then paused. “I know I’ve been away for a while, and I came back without really telling anyone why. It’s because I got a divorce. It was bad, and I’m broke. That’s why I’m living with my brother at the marina. I tell people it’s all good, but it’s not. The relationship was toxic and dangerous to my mental well-being, and I’m still working on being okay.”
Sadie slipped an arm around her. “All of us are working on being okay. You’re not alone.” She met Ivy’s gaze. “And neither are you. None of us are. We have each other.”
“I’m so grateful for that.” Haley smiled a little sadly. She looked at Dee, who nodded at her. “I’ve never told any of you before, but my family doesn’t approve of my so-called chosen lifestyle. So really, you’re all my family. Knowing that we all love each other unconditionally has gotten me through a bunch of stuff.”
Ivy felt her throat tighten. “I’ve not had much luck with unconditional love and happily-ever-after fairy-tale stuff. In fact, you might say I’m really bad at it.”
“But life’s not a fairy tale,” Molly said.
“And if you lose your shoe at midnight, you’re drunk,” Haley added sagely.
They all laughed at that. “But the good thing about that,” Sadie said, “is that true friends will get you home regardless. We’re that kind of friends, Ivy. The ride or die kind.”
“I’m not especially good at that either,” Ivy managed. “You’re all my first ride or dies.”
“No sweat,” Sadie said, and squeezed Ivy’s hand. “Me too.”
Ivy looked into her eyes. “Did Caleb tell you about last night? That Brandon broke into the new condo building with the intention of stealing computers and equipment to sell for cash?”
“He told me that it happened, and that one of the security guys was badly hurt, but he didn’t tell me it was your brother. Is that what happened between you and Kel?”
“How do you know something happened between me and Kel?” Ivy asked.
“Because from the day he arrived, you’ve been smiling like none of us had ever seen,” Sadie said. “The two of you seemed perfect together. But now you look like someone stole your best friend.”
Ivy drew a deep breath. “Let’s just say he didn’t take any of what happened very well. I lied to him about Brandon. And once he showed up, I continued to lie. Kel didn’t like Brandon from the start, but I kept telling him that he wasn’t a bad guy. An idiot, yes, a bad guy, no. But then Brandon broke into that building and hurt an innocent man. And . . .” She drew a deep breath. “That’s not all. He used my phone to make a PayPal transfer, stealing money from my savings account. Before I figured that out, he fled.”
“Oh my God,” Haley said. “But why would Kel get mad at you for that? None of that was your fault.”
“I was the one who told Brandon about the condo building. I was excited about buying one and he seemed excited for