“Girls I went to high school with,” Ivy replied on a sigh. “They’re ... horrible.”
“I think we figured that out ourselves,” Alison noted as she moved closer to the two women. “Are they even allowed to be out here? It seems to me that it shouldn’t be permitted. None of our friends and family are allowed to interact with us. Random jerks shouldn’t be able to either.”
“I have a feeling Greg picks and chooses what rules he wants to follow,” Ivy offered. “It’s fine. As long as I don’t interact with them, they’ll lose interest.”
“Honey, I have news for you. Those are the types of girls who enjoy making others feel bad about themselves,” Betsy argued. “They’re going to keep this up all day if they have to. They figure your misery is their victory.”
“That’s true.” Ivy wasn’t delusional. She knew exactly what sort of people Maisie and Ava were. “They hated me in high school because I was kind of awkward and kept to myself and was an easy mark. They mostly ignored me as an adult until I hooked up with Jack. Then it turned into a weird sort of war.”
“Oh.” Alison bobbed her head knowingly. “They’re jealous.”
Ivy opened her mouth to argue the point and then nodded. “Shadow Lake is a really small town. Jack moved here from Detroit ... and he has a steady job. He was considered a catch from the moment he crossed the town limits.”
Amusement wafted over Betsy’s face. “Oh, I can just bet. It’s the same in Mancelona. That’s where I live, by the way. Everybody knows everybody’s business. I can just imagine the rush that was on the second Jack hit town. Did a bunch of women line up with pot roasts?”
“Not pot roasts exactly,” Ivy hedged. “There were a lot of people who miraculously showed up wherever he happened to be.”
“But he chose you,” Alison mused. “That must’ve driven them crazy. They marked you as inferior to them and then you won the most coveted guy in town.”
“I don’t think they marked her as inferior,” Betsy countered. “I’ve dealt with those types of women before. If they marked her as inferior they would’ve ignored her. They marked her as their equal, which made them territorial, and when Jack picked Ivy over them, it was on.”
Ivy tended to believe Betsy’s version of events was closer to the truth, but it wasn’t worth continued debate. “They’ll lose interest eventually. Honestly, it doesn’t matter what they do or say. I learned a long time ago that they can’t touch me.”
“That’s a healthy attitude,” Alison noted. “You’re much more magnanimous than me, though. I would be slashing tires and bashing their skulls together.”
The sudden burst of vitriol surprised Ivy. “Oh, well ... I don’t really want to fight with them. It just makes them more desperate to get my attention.”
“Because they’re nasty harpies,” Alison muttered darkly. “You know what you should do? You should set their houses on fire.”
This was a side Ivy hadn’t yet seen of Alison and she was surprised ... as well as unnerved. “I think I prefer to leave them to ... whatever it is they do. Jack and I are happy, this small speed bump notwithstanding. We’re going to be married in a month. Then we’re going on our honeymoon. This should be behind us by then. That’s what I want to focus on.”
Alison was clearly dubious, but she held her hands out and shrugged. “If that’s what you want, more power to you. I would definitely burn their houses down.”
Ivy slid her gaze to Betsy to see if the woman appeared as alarmed as she felt but there was no hint of worry on the older woman’s face. In fact, she looked as if she was enjoying a sitcom more than anything else.
“Well ... I think I’m good,” Ivy said finally. “It’s something to consider, though.” She went back to picking up garbage, happily losing herself in the rhythm of her work. She’d almost managed to forget Ava and Maisie were there until the sound of tires on gravel caught her attention near the highway.
Her first thought was that Jason had shown up after all and she was going to have to figure out a way to contact Jack. When she lifted her head, though, she was greeted with the familiar sight of Brian’s cruiser. Rather than being happy to see them, which would’ve been her emotion any other day, Ivy’s heart dropped. She sensed trouble, and it wasn’t of the amusing variety.
“Oh, man,” she muttered under her breath. “This isn’t going to be good.”
Betsy followed her gaze, smirking. “Maybe he’s here to sweep you off your feet and save you from your life of drudgery.”
“He already did that.”
Betsy slid an appraising look toward Ivy. “You’ve got it bad for him, huh?”
Ivy nodded as she planted her poker into the ground and leaned on it. Jack’s lean form was coiled with rage when he exited the vehicle. “Yeah. He’s having a rough time of it right now. He blames himself for all of this.”
“Why do you think he’s here?”
“I’m ... not sure.” She watched with keen interest as Jack stalked around the front of the vehicle and pointed himself toward Ava and Maisie. “I don’t think it’s going to be good, though.”
“Oh, I don’t know.” Betsy made a clucking sound with her tongue. “It looks amusing to me.”
“Something to break up the monotony,” Alison agreed.
“Look who it is,” Ava called out gaily. “Are you here to help your jailbird honey with her community service, Detective? That seems like a waste of your considerable talents.”
“Shut up, Ava,” Brian barked, fury on full display. “You’re not a part of this.”
Ava let loose an amused expression. “I happen to disagree.”
Brian slowed his pace and focused on her. “Aren’t you supposed to be answering calls at the office?”
“I’m on break.”
“Your break is
