The way he said it, almost on the verge of tears himself, had Ivy crashing back to reality. “Oh, good grief.” She angrily wiped the tears away and stared into his eyes. “I don’t want to be this weepy mess. It’s not who I am.”
“You’re allowed to have a breakdown in your own home.”
“It’s still not who I am.” She offered up a rueful smile. “I’m strong. I’m a badass witch, although I feel like a big wuss right now.”
“You’re upset. Given what happened with Maisie and Ava ... .” Even though he told himself he’d put it behind him — for her sake as much as his — a sharp jab of annoyance coursed through him.
“What happened with Maisie and Ava was to be expected,” Ivy countered rationally. “There was no way I was going to get out of this without them trying to make things worse. That’s who they are.”
“I know but ... .”
“It’s fine.” Ivy squeezed his hand reassuringly. “There’s nothing they can do to hurt me. I have what they want and this is just them acting out because they’re jealous.”
Jack’s fingers were gentle as they brushed her wet hair away from her face. “You think all of this is because they want me, do you?”
She snorted. “Oh, look at Mr. Ego. While I’m sure they would love to claim you, it’s more that I think they want this.” She gestured at the limited space between the two of them. “They’re not real people, not authentic at least. They can never have this unless they become better people and I don’t see that happening for either of them.”
“I don’t either.” He leaned closer and gave her a soft kiss. “Ava got in trouble with her father. That might bring some measure of happiness to you.”
“Not really happiness, but I would be lying if the petty part of me didn’t enjoy the thought.”
“She’s been warned to stay away from you. That means I want to hear about it if she shows up again.”
Ivy hesitated. She wasn’t sure she could make that promise. “I don’t really want to tattle, Jack.”
“You had no problem asking Deacon to call me to tattle on Marvin.”
“I ... that was different.” She made a face. “I’m kind of worried about him. He didn’t show up for the end of shift. His car was still by the road when everybody left. Plus, the dude talks to himself.”
“I’ve heard you talking to yourself in the mornings.”
“I talk to Nicodemus. There’s a difference.”
Jack spared a glance for the cat on the couch, who didn’t as much as stir. “If you say so.” He stroked his hand over her hair again. “Before we start talking about Marvin, are you okay?”
“I’m okay.” She used her hand to hold his palm to her cheek for a beat and then released him. “I’m also starving and curious. That’s a deadly combination. Tell me what you’ve learned about Marvin.”
Jack stared into her eyes for a moment longer and then shifted back to his chair, content that she was telling the truth and she really was okay. The tears were cause for concern, but she was the type of woman who didn’t appreciate crying, which meant he had to let it go even though he would like nothing more than to dote on her for the rest of the evening.
“Well, for starters, he’s nuts.”
Ivy frowned as she dished sauce onto her pasta, making sure she got as many morels as she could find. There was no meat because she was a vegetarian, but Jack had also added tomato and zucchini chunks because he knew she was a big fan. “I don’t think you’re supposed to call him nuts. He has mental defects.”
“No, he’s nuts.” Jack managed a smirk as he took the ladle from her. He was much more careful when digging through the sauce. He didn’t mind the vegetables. But the morels? Yeah, he was convinced they tasted like feet. “He’s been locked up several times.”
“It’s still not nice to call him nuts,” Ivy chided. “We must be sympathetic to those who have issues.”
“Yeah, I don’t think I can agree with you on that,” Jack argued. “Maisie and Ava have issues, too, and I’m not sympathetic to them at all.”
“Yes, but their issues are chosen. I don’t think Marvin’s issues were chosen.”
“Fair enough.” Jack squeezed her hand and then grabbed the breadbasket. “Marvin had it rough. His mother was a religious zealot who used to take him door-to-door to preach the word of ... well, I’m not sure what religion they were so I don’t want to say.
“Anyway, the woman had a few issues and at one point declared one of the homes she was visiting to be hers and refused to leave,” he continued. “The police were called, the mother was taken in for evaluation, and Marvin went to live with his grandmother.”
“That’s good, right?” Ivy had sauce smeared at the corners of her mouth because she’d been shoveling in the pasta fast enough that an outside observer might believe food was about to be outlawed. “If the mother got help, that means Marvin can get help.”
“The mother killed herself while in the hospital,” Jack replied, using his napkin to wipe at the sauce. “She hung herself with bedsheets, which left Marvin with his grandmother ... who was another religious zealot.”
Ivy’s stomach rolled. “Well, that doesn’t sound good.”
“No. There’s not a lot known about the grandmother. She died when Marvin was seventeen. He was only two weeks from his birthday so they didn’t put him in a home or anything. That probably would’ve been for the best given some of the things he’s done since then, but he never had an evaluation back then.
“Instead he picked up odd jobs here or there, worked as a janitor and grounds crew member for the cemetery over in Bellaire. Most everyone said he was a good worker but bad with people.”
Ivy leaned back in
