Holly versus Mr. Ivy by Amanda P. Jones
Chapter 21
Holly
game time were ready to go, except for Rhett. It wasn’t like him to be late. Did he not want to come? Had he forgotten? The waffles, muffins, bacon, and scrambled eggs sat on the kitchen island, getting cold. The stack of boardgames waited on an unused dining chair pushed into the window seat of the bay window.
Where was he?
Things had been awkward at the restaurant the last two nights. Like we wanted to talk, but didn’t know exactly what to say to each other, so instead we didn’t really interact at all. I was dying to know exactly what happened to Rhett Thursday night. I wanted to ask him if it had just been because of something at the meeting, or if he really was sick, or if it had been something else altogether.
Noah strolled into the formal living room, where I paced.
“No sign of lover-boy yet?”
I scowled. “He’s just a friend. And no, not yet.”
“For now, he’s just a friend.” He threw an arm around my shoulders. “You know, there is this modern invention called a cell phone.” Noah whipped his cell out of his jeans pocket and waved it in my face. “It allows you to talk to someone no matter where they are. Maybe you should try it?”
I shoved his arm. “I’m giving him a few more minutes before calling. He might be stuck in traffic or something.”
He shot me a disbelieving look. “Puh-lease. On a Sunday morning? What traffic?”
“Why are you even in here?” My cousin was super annoying at times. “Go eat or something.”
“Your mom needs to take her medicine soon. I’m trying to get her to eat beforehand, but she’s waiting for you to start.”
Oh. Guilt for stressing over Rhett and forgetting Mom gnawed at me. “Right. Let’s eat, then. If Rhett comes, he comes. If he doesn’t, we can still have fun. It’s my week to win Telestrations.”
Noah smirked. “Hols, you are talented at many things. Drawing isn’t one of them.”
I pinched his side. “Like you have room to talk. Your stick figures are worse than mine.”
He jerked away from me. “I’m not the one claiming to be good at it.”
“I still don’t know how you won last week.”
He grinned. “Aunt Dee understands me just fine.”
Noah had won because Mom had guessed what he’d drawn. Although she must have telekinesis or seen his word because it still baffled me how she had guessed ‘movie reel’ based on his drawing of a pair of sparkling eyeglasses and two people standing side by side.
“I think you cheat.” I left the living room and walked to the kitchen.
Noah trailed behind, protesting. “I do not! You’re just jealous no one understood your prison escape drawing.”
I’d clearly drawn a broken cell door and a guy running away with a police officer chasing him. Trevor had guessed bank robbery. “We’ll see who wins today.” I pulled plates down from the cupboard. “Let’s eat.”
Mom spun in her seat at the dining table, looking at me. “What about Rhett?”
I shrugged, pretending I didn’t care if he came or not. I cared. More than I should. “Haven’t heard from him yet. But I’m starving.”
Mom’s lips pursed. “It’s rude to start before a guest arrives.”
I agreed. But there was no sense in wasting time when we had a strict schedule to adhere to. “Trust me, Rhett won’t mind.”
“Mom,” Trevor said, “what can I get you?”
I eyed my brother. He’d been uncharacteristically quiet about Rhett so far. Did he have something up his sleeve? Was something else bothering him? I moved right behind him, getting myself a plate.
“A waffle and a banana will be plenty,” Mom said.
“You got it.” Trevor forked a waffle off the platter, setting it onto Mom’s plate.
“What’s wrong?” I whispered to his back.
“What are you talking about?” he mumbled back.
“You haven’t said one thing about Rhett. It’s not like you to be so quiet.”
He snatched a banana from the fruit bowl in the center of the island and peeled the fruit by the stem. “Not everything revolves around you.”
I eyed him suspiciously.
“Will you two stop whispering? Some of us are hungry, and you’re holding up the line.”
I peered over my shoulder at Noah, thumbing to Trevor. “What’s wrong with him?”
The three of us were close. Growing up a few blocks away from each other, and with Noah being smack dab in between Trevor and me age-wise, we’d naturally bonded and hung out all the time. Noah had the advantage, though. As we got older, he split his time between Trevor and me when Trev’s interests no longer aligned with mine. Trev and I both claimed Noah as our best friend.
“Girl problems,” Noah mouthed.
“Will you stop talking about me like I’m not standing a foot away from you?” Trev barked.
Yikes. Whatever was going on with him was bad. “Do you want to talk about it?” I offered Trev.
He tossed the banana peel in the garbage. “There’s nothing to say.”
Riiigght. I snorted. “When you’re ready, I’m all ears.”
Noah bumped into my back, reaching for the platter of bacon. “I already told him that. He declined my offer as well. I think we need to wait a few days, sugar him up with donuts, and pounce his feelings out of him.”
Trevor poured syrup over Mom’s waffle. “Again,” he said with a bite in his tone, “I’m RIGHT here.”
I wrinkled my nose. “Agreed. Sugar and an intervention. How many days until he’s ready? Three? Four?”
Noah studied Trevor. “Based on the flared nostrils, we’d better say four.”
“That gives us plenty of time to plan our attack.”
Trevor handed Mom her plate and went back around the island behind Noah, getting himself a plate. “I don’t need your help. I’m fine.”
Why did brothers always think they didn’t need other people in their lives? “Fine,” I retorted. “I’ll stay out of your girl problems if you leave my dating life alone as well.” Once my plate had the perfect ratio of berries to squares on my waffle, I took a few slices of bacon and sat next to Mom.
“I’ll think about it,” Trevor said, putting bacon on his plate.
“How’s Joy, Noah?” I asked. “Did you see her yesterday?”
“Who is Joy?” Mom asked, super interested in the conversation all of a sudden.
Noah’s cheeks reddened. “Someone I met recently. And yes, I did see her yesterday.”
“Have you talked to her again?” I asked.
Trevor chuckled. “He has.”
What did that mean, and why hadn’t Noah told me?
Noah cleared his throat. “The food is getting cold. We should just focus on eating.”
Mom chimed in. “I want to hear about this girl, Noah.”
“Another time, Aunt Dee.”
Mom’s lips pursed. “Fine.” She took a bite of food, then addressed me. “The food is delicious, Holly. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Although, Noah made the waffles this week.”
“That’s why they’re fluffier,” Noah joked.
As if. “I don’t think so.”
Noah and Trevor joined us at the table. Trevor took a giant bite, chewed slowly, then declared. “They’re right about there with yours, Hols. I think our cousin might beat you one day.”
Noah and I had an unofficial bet every brunch. I’d won more often than him, but every week he improved. Pretty soon, his donut shop might turn into a full-blown breakfast joint.
“But today is not that day,” I said after swallowing a bite of bacon. I cut off a corner of my waffle, sans berries, to taste the full flavor of Noah’s confection. The sweet, fluffy waffle was pure bliss. “You used cinnamon and sour cream, didn’t you?” He’d finally figured out what made mine so divine.
“A chef never reveals his secrets.” Noah popped a strawberry in his mouth and smiled at me while chewing his fruit.
The high chime of our doorbell rang through the air. My stomach fluttered. Rhett had come after all. Scooting back my chair, I announced, “I’ll get it.”
Trevor scrambled up from his seat and ran to the door. “I’ve got it!”
He was planning on doing or saying something to Rhett about me. He was just waiting until Rhett got here.
Not. Happening.
Trevor loved to embarrass me. When my high school prom date had come to pick me up, Trevor had shown up with my baby photos blown up on a poster board, labeled in big black block letters with the question, “Won’t we make adorable babies?”
My poor date legitimately thought I put the display together. It had taken me all of dinner to convince him it had been my brother’s sick joke and not mine.
I raced after Trevor, pushing him into the wall right as he touched the doorknob.
“What the heck, Hols?” he grumbled, shoving me off him.
I stumbled back, my arms pinwheeling to keep me upright. Tripping over Noah’s shoes, I landed right on my butt. Ouch! An ache throbbed in my tailbone and reverberated up my spine.
Trevor smirked at me and opened the door with me sitting on the carpet, scowling.
“Are you Rhett?” Trevor demanded.
I smacked my hand against my forehead, shaking my head. Not cool, Trevor.
“Yes?” Rhett responded, confused.
“You’re late. Do you know how rude it is to keep people waiting?”
Trevor blocked Rhett’s face from my spot on the floor. All I could make out was the dark wash of the jeans Rhett wore. Flipping onto my knees, which elicited a hiss between my teeth from the pain, I slowly got up. Gingerly stepping to the front door, I pushed Trevor aside.
My heart stuttered at the sight of Rhett. Locks of damp hair clung to his head. His chocolate and caramel eyes were focused on me. The long-sleeved, baby-blue shirt he wore accentuated his defined chest, and I decided right then and there this t-shirt was my favorite of all time, especially since Rhett had pushed the sleeves up, showing off his glorious forearms. “Sorry about him.” I elbowed my brother, who didn’t move as much as I wanted him to. “He forgets to be nice most of the time, which is why we keep him locked up in a doghouse out back.”
“Hardy-har-har,” Trev deadpanned.
Rhett grinned and addressed Trevor. “You must be Holly’s brother.”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
I put my hands on my hips. “Did you want breakfast?”
Trevor looked at me, confused. “Yes?”
“Then be nice or else I’m taking your food away,” I warned my brother. Opening the door wider, I motioned for Rhett to come inside. “Truly, I’m sorry about him and Noah. I’m sure between the two of them, this will be a delightful morning for you—and a horrible one for me.”
Rhett smiled softly at me. “I will take everything they say with a grain of salt.”
“Thank you.” I looked at the floor. “Um, we started eating because I wasn’t sure if you were coming.”
Rhett toed off his shoes. “Sorry I’m late. My mom stopped by for an unexpected visit, and it put me behind schedule. I’m glad you didn’t wait for me to eat.”
Did it have to do with his meeting with Anthony? Or what had happened after? I eyed him. The tightness around his eyes told me he was still stressed and overwhelmed. Turning to Trev, I said, “Give us a minute.”
Trevor rolled his eyes and stalked away.
I shoved my hands into my back jeans pockets. “Is everything okay?”
He waved away my concern. “Family drama.”
Families could be difficult. Hello, he’d just witnessed mine. I also didn’t want Rhett to feel like he couldn’t tell me things anymore. “Need a listening ear? Or someone to bounce ideas off of?”
His lips pulled up into a sad smile. “Know anything about trusts?”
Not what I’d expected. Also…were we just skipping over what happened Thursday night? Wasn’t he going to tell me what was wrong? “Only that rich people usually set them up for their kids.” At least, all the TV shows I watched said as much.
“And grandkids.”
I scratched my forehead. “So, someone in your family is fighting over one?”
Rhett slowly shook his head, disgust marring his features. “According to my mom, my pregnant cousin is demanding a trust from my grandfather for her unborn child. Since this is the first great-grandchild, it sets a precedent. My grandpa has the money, but since he wasn’t the one to offer the trust, he said no, and now everyone’s prickly and upset. We’re supposed to have Thanksgiving with my dad’s side of the family this year, and no one wants to get together anymore. Uncle Anthony is mad and refuses to be in the same room as his parents, and it’s a stupid mess. I hate family money and the control it gives to those who have it. I can’t even access my trust until I’m married, which means it may be wasted.”
Rhett had a trust? He couldn’t use it until he married? Why hadn’t that motivated him to get to the altar? And why would it be wasted? Was he never going to get married?
He’d said he didn’t have a girlfriend and planned to keep it that way.
Well, that sucked. Guess it answered my question about what to do regarding my feelings for him. They were unrequited. Why waste time pursuing a man who never wanted a committed relationship?
I shook my head. “I’m sorry, that sucks. You and your parents are welcome here for Thanksgiving if you want. We’ll be a small group because of my mom.” Our extended family included over sixty people. With Mom’s cancer, it was best she stay away from crowds that large.
“That’s very generous of you to offer. I’ll see what my parents want to do. I’m hoping things will calm down and everyone will come to their senses.”
I squeezed his bicep, offering him comfort. Warmth seeped into me. Quickly dropping my hand, I spun around. “Let’s eat.”
“It smells good.”
I went into the kitchen. “Noah made waffles.”
Rhett jerked his chin up in greeting to Noah. For Mom? He grinned and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Hi, Deidre. You’re looking fantastic this morning. How are you?”
She patted Rhett’s hand. “Wonderful, now that you’re here. Get yourself a plate and come sit by me.”
Rhett, with a teasing glint in his eyes, pointedly said to Noah and Trevor. “Who leaves the most beautiful woman in the room to sit by herself?”
Hey, now. Mom was gorgeous, but what about me? “I am sitting next to her.”
Trevor and Noah snorted out laughs.
Rhett pointed at me. “See? Holly understands.”
“Stop flattering the women and get something to eat. Holly wants to redeem herself in Telestrations,” Noah said.
Rhett looked quite pleased. “I was the Pictionary champion in college. Holly’s redemption might be usurped.”
Of course Rhett could draw. Was there anything he couldn’t do?