Page 34 of Holly versus Mr. Ivy
“And your mom?” he gently prodded.
I inspected Rhett’s hand, still on top of mine. Heat from his warm skin melted into me. His fingers were long and slender. His knuckles bulged the slightest bit. He kept his nails cut short and smooth. They were nice.
I cleared my throat. “She has kidney cancer.”
He sucked in a breath. “Oh, Holly.” He squeezed my hands again. “That’s awful. Is she going to be okay?”
I shrugged. Were any of us ever okay? “We hope so. We’re waiting for surgery. The doctors hope it will be successful.” Her latest counts had improved, which made hope brighten within me. Hope was a dangerous thing, though. I tried to stay level-headed and not believe in promises no one could truly make.
Rhett pulled his hand away, dropping it next to him on the couch. “Is she the reason you can’t come in early frequently?”
I nodded.
Rhett’s lips pulled in a straight line. “I’m sorry. If I’d known, we could’ve figured out something else. I feel awful for pushing more hours on you.”
I didn’t enjoy being kept away from Mom more than was absolutely necessary. If Mom didn’t make it, I’d be frustrated that work had taken me away from what might be my last months with her. At the same time, we had to have money to pay the bills. Mom made little on her disability income. It was up to me, and right now, Anthony Ivy had my job on the line. “If you and I want jobs at the end of the year, we don’t really have much of a choice, do we?”
Rhett opened his mouth to respond, but the garage door leading into the house opened. My heart thudded. Was someone breaking in? How had we not heard anything? I twisted over the back of the couch, hands fisted in my lap. I had a baseball bat in my bedroom, but how would I get to it in time, and what if they had a gun? My heart beat wildly in my chest.
“Hols?” Noah called out.
My shoulders relaxed, and I let out a relieved sigh. “Yeah?” I shouted.
A second later, his dark brown hair—almost black—came into view as he bent down. He braced himself against the doorframe. While he worked on getting his shoes off, I turned my focus on Rhett. I whispered, “Sorry. I didn’t know he was coming over today. That’s my cousin, Noah.”
He bobbed his head once. “I enjoyed meeting your mom. I’m sure your cousin will also be nice.”
I shot him a questioning look. “It’s embarrassing for you to meet everyone. I barely agreed to be friends with you, and all of a sudden, you’re here and…”youknow everything about me.
Noah waltzed into the family room with a knowing glint in his eyes. “Hey, Hols. Whatcha doin’?”
And right then, after Noah spoke four whole words, everything clicked into place. Mom must have told Trevor I had a friend coming over today and sent Noah to spy on us. My brother wassodead. “We just got done watching a movie.” I checked my smart watch. “Ah. Would you look at the time, Rhett? You probably need to get going.” I stood, motioning for Rhett to do the same.
Rhett crossed his arms, a playful smile tugging his lips. “I have a few minutes.”
I shot him daggers.Get out!My two worlds were colliding, and I didn’t like it. Especially if Noah was here on behalf of Trevor.
Rhett’s attention went to Noah, who stood in front of Mom’s recliner, staring at us. Rhett offered Noah a wave. “Hi. I’m Rhett. Holly’s friend and coworker.”
Noah darted a quick glance in my direction before settling back on Rhett. “I’m Noah. Nice to meet you.”
“You too.”
“Rhett, you don’t want to be late. Aaron starts today. Remember?” I held my hand out to help him up from the couch.
Rhett nudged it aside.
I gaped at him. Had he justdismissedme? Oh, heck no. I stood directly in front of Rhett, blocking Noah from view. “I’ll walk you out.”
Rhett met my gaze, a challenge in his eyes. “In a minute. I want to talk to Noah.”
Unbelievable. I fisted my hands, placing them on my hips. “Why?”
“Because he seems like a nice guy and someone worth knowing.”
Noah poked his head over my shoulder. “It’s true, Hols. I am pretty awesome.”
Rhett pointed at Noah. “See?”
