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More frequently now than a ood day, Ivy didn’t have to know that If there was one thing experience had taught me, it was that she wouldn’t stick around to find out

"I know, Gra a seat at the rickety wooden table that had been falling apart in er than I’d been alive "I can’t believe we actually merited an in-person Ivy checkup"

My sister’s dark brown eyes locked on to ave Ivy a conspiratorial grin before turning back to inary friend there, Bear?"

My heart skipped a beat I could do this I had to do this For Gra into the underside ofperpetually absent siblings these days?"

"You’re the one who stopped returning etthat whatever she’d uidance counselor and the ranch hands--it wasn’t even the half of it Nobody kne bad things were

Nobody but me

"I didn’t return your calls because I didn’t feel like talking," I told Ivy through gritted teeth "You can’t just check out of our lives and then expectwhen you finally decide to pick up a phone"

"That’s not what happened, Tessie, and you know it"

Getting a rise out of Ivy felt better than it should have "It’s Tess"

"Actually," she snapped back, "it’s Theresa"

"For goodness’ sakes, Nora," randfather cut in "She’s only here for teeks each suet your panties in a twist over a few utted in two seconds flat Nora was our mother’s name I barely remembered her, but Ivy enty-one when our parents died The age difference between the two of us always felt massive, but the fact that Ivy had spent seventeen reat divide To randfather was the only real parent I’d ever known To Ivy, he was just the grandpa she’d spent teeks with every su up

It occurred to ht have called her Bear, too

He thinks I’ for this, no barbed comment I could toss out that would est ti at Graain, it was like none of it had ever happened, like she was a robot who’d just rebooted to avoid running a progra our grandfather by his first nahter This is Tess"

"I knoho she is," he grunted I tried not to see the uncertainty in his eyes

"You do," Ivy replied, her voice soothing but no-nonsense "And you also know that she can’t stay here You can’t stay here"

"Like hell we can’t!" I bolted to randfather slae, Theresa!"

Just like that, I was ain, if only for the moment