Free Wicked Days by Lily Harper Hart Page B

his.”
    “I guess,” Ivy said, refusing to meet her aunt’s probing gaze. “If you like that kind of thing.”
    Felicity couldn’t help but grin. Who didn’t like that kind of thing? “I touched his shoulder, too. He feels like he works out quite a bit.”
    “Maybe you should date him,” Ivy suggested. “He’s new in town. The vultures are circling, but if you move fast enough you can probably cut Ava and Maisie off at the knees and claim him for yourself.”
    “I think I’m a little old for him.”
    “Maybe that’s what he likes.”
    “I think he likes you,” Felicity said. There was no way she was going to let Ivy wriggle out of this conversation.
    “Oh, good grief,” Ivy said, rolling her eyes until they landed on her aunt. “We have spent a grand total of two hours together now. He doesn’t know me. We’ve talked about a murder, he’s spied on me, and I’ve yelled at him. That’s the extent of our relationship.”
    “I didn’t say you were in love with him,” Felicity said. “I said you were attracted to him. Love is emotional. Attraction is physical. There’s a big difference.”
    “I suppose you’re going to enlighten me on the difference, aren’t you?”
    “You don’t know him well enough to love him,” Felicity said, ignoring the sarcasm. “That doesn’t mean your skin doesn’t hum whenever he’s around. Don’t bother denying it. I saw your auras touch when you grabbed his wrist. He was about to fly off the handle, and you managed to center him with a simple touch. It was … beautiful.”
    “I think you’re reading a little more into our interaction than what is really there,” Ivy said. “He just needed a second to collect himself. You threw him off his game. You need to stop blurting stuff like that out, by the way. Some people don’t like it.”
    “He’s been through something truly horrible,” Felicity said.
    “How do you know that?” Despite herself, Ivy was interested. She’d sensed the same thing about Jack. She couldn’t see auras like her aunt, but she trusted her instincts.
    “He’s been terribly hurt,” Felicity said. “Part of it was physical. I didn’t see a lot. He likes to hold his troubles close to his heart. He almost died, though. I did see that. And whoever was responsible for hurting him physically also betrayed him on a personal level. I don’t know the specifics. I just know that he’s a man who can’t let go of something very bad.”
    “That makes me feel guilty,” Ivy said. “I was pretty mean to him yesterday.”
    “That’s what I heard.”
    “He had it coming, though,” Ivy said. “I don’t care what he says. He was spying on me.”
    Felicity pursed her lips. “First off, I don’t think he was technically spying on you,” she said. “I do think he wanted to check out the crime scene. I also think there’s something about you that calls to him.”
    “Oh, whatever,” Ivy grumbled.
    “I want to know why you’re letting him believe Max is your boyfriend.”
    “He jumped to that conclusion,” Ivy said. “I’m not rewarding his spying by telling him the truth.”
    “Did you ever consider he jumped to that conclusion because he was jealous?”
    “He just met me. We’re not dating. He has nothing to be jealous about.”
    “If it’s any consolation, I don’t think he realizes he’s jealous,” Felicity said. “He’s not looking for a relationship – just like you. He just has all these … feelings, for lack of a better word … and he has no idea what to do with them.”
    “He should figure out a different way to deal with them.”
    “I know someone else feeling the exact same thing,” Felicity said pointedly.
    Ivy slammed the book shut and hopped down from the stool. “And on that note … I’m going.” She kissed her aunt on the cheek. “Call me when you find something. I can’t put up with another second of your meddling.”
    “Is that because you know I’m right?”
    “Auntie, Jack doesn’t