Ivy's Twisted Vine Redux by Latrivia Nelson (the beach read txt) 📗

stay away from you and out of you. I promise.” He crossed his heart.

Ivy was lost for words. She wasn’t sure if she wanted that, but she understood. Her eyes darted as she began to feel herself soften around the edges. “Who am I kidding, Nicola? I feel just horrible about the other night,” Ivy said in a low whisper. “Nothing came out right.” She hesitated. “It’s like there is some big wedge between us that makes it impossible for us to communicate. Do you know what I mean?”

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” Nicola said understandingly. The wedge is the fact that I slept with your best friend and paid for an abortion by her. He put his hands on her shoulders and sighed. “I just came over to wish you well, and to let you know that if I hadn’t done some things in my life, I would be fighting for you.”

“Things like what?” Ivy asked curiously. What did he continue to hide from her?

“Let’s hope to never have that conversation,” Nicola said looking over at his family who waited across the mezzanine. “I better go.”

***

Rachel sat quietly thinking as Nicola drove her back to her home across town after dinner. She didn’t have much to say after she saw the way that Nicola had looked at Ivy the entire night. Then there was that private conversation that looked to be extremely heated. He had tried to keep his attention diverted to her, saying sweet things about the way that she looked, flirting with her during dinner and even holding her hand. However, she knew that it was all just a front. He had never looked at her the way that he looked at Ivy, even when he just had simple things to say. Knowing that it could not continue on, she decided that she would support him through tonight. But then she planned to leave him alone to deal with his feelings for Ivy.

“You’re awfully quiet,” Nicola said turning down the radio. “Are you alright?”

“Oh, I’m fine,” Rachel said giving Nicola a weak smile. She ran her hands down the black leather and looked around his truck. It would be nice to have a man so successful as Nicola for a boyfriend. Maybe he would come back after he had straightened his life out. She stared at him as he drove. He was so strong and so beautiful. His eyes had a natural kindness about them, and he was always so thoughtful. She began to feel the urge to lean over and kiss him. Turning to say something, he caught her gazing at him.

“Okay, what is it?” he asked smiling at her.

“I don’t think that you’re quite over Ivy,” Rachel said looking back out the window. “I’m the next street.”

“I know where you are,” Nicola said awkwardly. “Why do you think that I’m not over Ivy?” He turned at her street and slowed his driving.

“For one, we haven’t made love yet.” Rachel looked down at her fingers. “It’s been long enough…nearly a month and a half. At first I thought that you were doing it for my sake, but tonight I realized that it was for your own. Secondly, I saw the way that you looked at her tonight. Something is still going on between you two.”

“Rachel, I haven’t made love to you, because I didn’t want to rush things.” He tried to explain. “I’m very attracted to you. You’re a beautiful woman…” Nicola avoided the discussion of his feelings for Ivy all together.

“I know that I’m beautiful, Nicola,” Rachel said cutting him off. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Of course,” Nicola said pulling into her driveway. He turned his truck off and turned to her giving her his full attention.

“When was the last time that you were intimate…with Ivy?”

Nicola looked away and sighed. Why not, “When was the last time that you were intimate with anyone?” That would have been a hell of a lot better. What was it with women? She would have never been asking these questions if he had just slept with her the first night and never called her again. “What difference does it make?” he asked staring her dead in her eyes. Inwardly, he knew exactly what difference it made, but he tried to buy himself time.

“When?” Rachel stared back at him.

“Recently,” Nicola said refusing to tell her that it was not even a week ago that he was in the middle of making love to Ivy when Santo busted in on them both.

“Since we’ve been seeing each other?” She clinched her keys.

Nicola debated whether or not to lie to her. “No.” He didn’t change his expression at all. He would tell her what she wanted to hear.

“Good.” Rachel said relieved. “Because I’d like you to spend the night tonight.” Her green eyes were wide and unopened to rejection. She willed him to say yes.

“Alright,” Nicola said unlocking the doors.

Nicola followed Rachel inside of her little three bedroom, red bricked home buried quietly in the mid-town Memphis neighborhood of Cooper and Young. She unlocked her door and motioned him inside. Nicola looked around impressed at the cozy little sanctuary decorated in art deco motif. Pulling off her shawl, she turned around and wrapped her hands around his neck. Purring like a cat, she felt him grab her by the waist and lift him up to her. Kissing her lips softly, he carried her over to her couch. As she lay back, he ran his fingers over the curve of her breast and thought of Ivy. Suddenly, he stopped.

“Wait. I can’t do this,” he said realizing that he was in between Rachel’s thighs.

“What?” Rachel asked confused. Her intense blue eyes burned through him.

“I can’t have sex with you tonight. And I can’t lie and tell you that I was with Ivy before we met. I was