“Where are we heading?” Gerard asked as he opened my door.
“Back to get the little dude.”
“Got it.” He shut the door and I sent a text to Ivy.
Me ~ I just had a nice chat with Mims. You didn’t need to do that, but thank you, it was nice to see her.
Ivy ~ She owed you a big apology. I’m still not happy with her, but it’s a step in the right direction. Where are you off to, country star?
I laughed. It felt so fucking good to have her back in my life. Even for just a few days. Maybe I could agree to come to Willow Springs once a year. I could stomach this town for a few days every year, right? I owed it to Ivy and to Sebastian.
Me ~ Off to pick up Sebastian and take him to the park. I was thinking of taking him to The Chocolate Fountain for lunch. You want to meet us? I need to see Lenny. I miss the guy giving me shit.
Ivy ~ Lunch and dinner in the same day? Be careful, Ty. You don’t want to get too attached. <Laughing face emoji> Prepare yourself. Lenny thinks I still hate you and he will most likely let you know it.
Me ~ I’ve been attached to you since kindergarten, Ive. And I can handle Lenny. I’ll text you when we are on our way over there.
Ivy ~ See you soon. <heart emoji>
We pulled up to the house and I jumped out of the car. I had to remind Gerard that I didn’t require him to open my door for me. This was just an easier form of transportation at the moment.
My father’s current house wasn’t as nice as the one I’d grown up in, and I knew that was why he was building a big custom home. He couldn’t stand the idea of people knowing he wasn’t doing as well. He was all about status. And he’d kept up pretenses here, while his family went without for years after we left.
I had zero respect for the man.
As I made my way up the steps to ring the bell, the door flew open, and my father stepped out. “Hey, son. I heard you’re taking Sebastian to the park?”
I cringed when he called me son. It seemed phony. He didn’t know anything about me anymore.
I nodded. “Yeah. It seems like he spends an awful lot of time with the nanny.”
“Well, Shayla is not like your mama,” he said as if it were a strong defense. “She likes to keep busy. She’s not a homemaker.”
I rolled my eyes just as Shayla walked out onto the front porch as well. “Ty, hey there. Thanks for taking our little man for a few hours. That will allow Loretta to tidy up the house.”
“Where are you off to, darlin’?” my father asked her as he leaned in to kiss her and she turned her cheek. I had a hunch Shayla was living the life that she wanted, but not with the man that she wanted.
“You know. Botox, mani, pedi, and lunch with the girls. Which reminds me, Ty,” she said as she pressed her arms against the outside of her tits to shove them up. It was a very intentional move. I’d seen it one too many times and seeing it from my step monster from hell might be the worst one yet. She batted her lashes. “My girls all want to meet you. Can we schedule a night for everyone to come over for happy hour and meet the famous country singer?”
“No.” I turned and pushed the door open and left them both standing there. I owed her nothing. I owed him nothing. I was here for Sebastian and that’s it.
“Hi, Ty,” Loretta greeted me when I stepped inside and shut the door. I’d met her the other day when I’d gone to football practice. “He’s real excited to see you.”
“Good. We’ll be gone for a few hours. I’ll take him to the park and then to The Chocolate Fountain for lunch.”
“Sounds good. I’ll be here. This is so nice for him,” she whispered as she looked over her shoulder to make sure he wasn’t around. “He doesn’t get to play with kids his age much with your dad and Shayla being so busy. So I think he gets lonely.”
My chest squeezed. I’d already noticed it but hearing her say it stung a little more. Today when we went to the park, I was going to make it my mission to help him make some friends.
“Got it. Thanks for letting me know.”
“Ty,” his little voice shrieked as he hurried toward me. He wore these cute round glasses and he shoved them up his nose when he stopped in front of me.
“Hey, Bud. You ready to go have some fun?”
“I am.” He reached for my hand, and I stiffened for a minute before taking his in mine and leading him out the door. Loretta followed with a car seat and said we could keep it while I was here because they had a spare.
Ivy was right about being careful. I didn’t want to form all these attachments in Willow Springs.
Because I had no intention of staying.
Chapter Thirteen
Ivy
“A sexy man knows how to change a diaper and warm a bottle.” Gigi, shortly after the birth of her first baby
Ty had texted me a few minutes ago and I’d finished up the quote I was working on for a potential wedding the following spring, before walking down to meet him and Sebastian at The Chocolate Fountain.
When I stepped inside, I found Ty and his little brother sitting at the back table with a ton of food in front of them and three chocolate shakes.
“Look who the cat dragged in. Looks like the devil has come back to town, huh?” Lenny said, and Ty barked out a laugh.
“I can hear you, Len. You just told me you thought Ivy hating me was ridiculous and that you harbored no hard feelings,” he said over his laughter.
“I’m an old man. I can’t be held responsible for what I say.” Lenny raised a brow and leaned close to me. “He doesn’t seem all that bad. He’s being real nice to the kid, and he is a big star. Although you know how many stars go off the deep end? No thank you to all that attention. And now he’s got these damn photographers coming in here invading my space.”
I laughed as Lenny moved back behind the counter. We’d been coming to this place since we were kids.
I walked up to the table and Sebastian had chocolate shake all over his white T-shirt. “Hi, Ivy.”
“Hey there, Sebastian. I don’t know if you remember me? I ran into you and Loretta at the grocery store a few months back,” I said as I took my seat across from Ty. The way he looked at me had my thighs squeezing together.
“I think I remember you and Ty said you are his special friend. And Ty’s my brother, so I guess that makes you my special friend too.”
He was so damn cute, but my gaze kept going back to Ty who was watching me like he was trying to memorize every last curve on my face.
“Well, I can always use a special friend. I saw the camera guys outside the door. Are they giving you guys a hard time?”