Wrapped Up in You (Heartbreaker Bay, #8)(75)

“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 me.” Ivy shook her head. “Now I know he was just excited about figuring out a solution to his money problems.”

“But you didn’t know he’d do what he did. It wasn’t your fault,” Sadie said firmly. “It’s all on your brother, honey. Not you.”

“I appreciate you saying that, but I made mistakes. I didn’t turn him in when I could have. And then there was the thing with my phone. Brandon had it when Kel texted me asking if I’d seen my brother. Brandon texted him back, pretending to be me, saying I hadn’t. But I have no way to prove that.”

“I know Kel,” Sadie said. “He’s a logical, rational guy. Whatever his gut reaction might have been, when he thinks about everything, he’ll understand.”

Ivy shook her head. “I think that maybe love isn’t for me. It’s just too . . . hard.”

“None of us had an easy go of it with love,” Sadie said. “Well, except maybe Molly.”

Molly snorted. “You cannot be serious. I almost blew the best thing to ever happen to me by nearly getting Lucas killed, remember? Listen,” she said to Ivy. “If you believe nothing else, then please believe this. The right guy will believe in you when it counts. I’m not saying Kel isn’t the right guy, because I happen to think he is. I just also think he’s running scared on this thing with you. But that’s because of his own past, nothing to do with you.”

Kel had definitely been burned before, in a big way. And Ivy had played right into his fears. She got that. They were both pretty screwed up. Didn’t make it any easier to take. A few people were approaching the order window of the truck, so she got to her feet. “I’ve gotta go. The dinner crowd’s starting to show.”

“Don’t forget tonight,” Haley said.

“Forget what?”

“It’s Christmas Eve,” Molly said. “And there’s a group of us who always get together at the pub for Christmas Eve.”

Ivy knew that the tight-knit group of friends who worked and lived in the building always celebrated this night together, it was tradition. The pub was closed to outsiders, and until now, that had been her. Just a year ago, she’d watched from the outside, wondering if she’d ever be a part of anything like this.

She realized she’d come a long way. “I signed up to serve food at the Mission Homeless Center for a few hours after work,” she said, which she’d done for more than purely altruistic reasons. She hadn’t wanted to be alone.

“No problem,” Sadie said. “We’ll come volunteer with you, then we’ll all go to the pub.”

“I don’t know,” Ivy said quietly.

“Oh, you’ve got to come,” Haley said. “It’s my turn to put up the star. I mean, I might have to fight Spence for it, he seems to think it’s his turn, but he’s wrong.” She looked at her watch and stood. “Shoot. I’ve got to get going too.”