Chapter 6 - He does get under my skin

Ivy's POV

"I wasn't planning to."

There it is again. That stupid pull beneath the irritation. Not attraction. I refuse to call it that. More like awareness. Too much awareness. Every time he speaks, I look at him. Every time I speak, he watches me like he's waiting to decide whether I'm too annoying or entertaining. Probably both and probably because I haven't bowed down to him and cowered away like he no doubt expects me to. I hate that I notice the small things too. The scar near one knuckle. The way he never fully relaxes. The fact his phone stays face down beside his plate, but he checks it every time it vibrates. He isn't comfortable here. That's obvious now. For all the money and the name attached to this house, Roman acts like a guest who's already planning his exit and not his return.

Alex asks about school which only started 2 days ago and thanks to my new roommate, I haven't gotten lost once. I think I may actually enjoy it there as long as I don't run into the spawn of Satan at every turning point, but I don't say that so I settle with.

"Good."

Roman looks up. "Good?" he asks mocking me no doubt.

I frown. "What?"

"You got lost on move-in day. And the day after that."

I stare at him. "How do you know that?" I snap but his mouth curves slightly. "You had the orientation app open at the party."

"That doesn't mean I got lost."

"You were wearing the wristband upside down. "I look at my wrist automatically. He smirks. Mom looks between us.

"You two really did make an impression on each other." she says but it's Alex's laughter that has our heads whipping in his direction. I'm so fucking glad this is entertaining for him.

"Don't start." Roman says with a sneer. I hate that he is so disrespectful to other people yet he demands respect like he's the king of everyone's kingdom.

"I didn't say anything." but the look he throws my mom while taking a sip of his alcoholic drink says otherwise. He knows he's getting a rise of Roman yet he doesn't care.

"You didn't need to."

I suddenly understand where Roman gets the whole dick-ish behaviour and the reading-people thing from. I don't have time to dwell on the ins and outs of their stupid dynamics because dessert arrives, and somehow the conversation becomes less painful. Mostly because Mom stops trying to force us into bonding and starts talking about the wedding instead. I learn Roman also didn't attend. Alex mentions it casually, but something changes in the room when he does. Roman's expression shuts down completely.

"You could've come," Alex says

"I was busy."

"You were in New York. You could have made the effort to come."

"Exactly."

Mom looks down right uncomfortable but me? I look at my plate while smiling. This isn't my argument. But I am so here for the drama to unravel.

Still, I hear the edge beneath Alex's voice.

"You knew it mattered." he says and that's when his son finally looks at him. If I didn't know any better, I would say that his dad marrying my Mom, who isn't a socialite, who wasn't rich to begin with and comes from a working class background, he hates the idea. That's probably why he never bothered to go to the wedding. That's probably why he hates us both so much.

I could be wrong. Maybe he simply had things to do and forgot about it. Me on the other hand, I was travelling through Europe with my Dad and had no idea about this. I knew they were dating but I had never met him. I had never had any phone calls with him so I thought it wasn't going to last but how fucking wrong was I? Before I can go into my own head about all of this, Romans big mouth opens on insults.

"It mattered to you. It didn't matter to me. You chose to marry her. Not me. I couldn't care less."

Silence.

I glance at Roman before I can stop myself. His face is blank, but the muscle in his jaw tightens once. Whatever exists between him and Alex is bigger than one missed wedding. I know enough about complicated parents to recognise the feeling. Dad and I are close. Mum and I are close. I've never had to choose between them emotionally, or physically. If I wanted to see Dad, I would. If I wanted to stay with Mom, again, I would and they have a good friendship but they would probably murder each other if they got together officially. My grandpa on my dads side hated the idea of them having a child out of wedlock and has never bothered to contact my dad or bothered to get to know his only granddaughter.

Roman catches me looking at him but I can't tell what emotions lie beneath that face of his.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Then stop staring." I snap and stand up. I am not sitting here for another battle with him.

Not. Happening.

"I wasn't staring, princess. It's all in your head."

"You were."

"You're obsessed with being looked at aren't you." he says in a mocking tone and I hate how I want to play this back and forth game just as much as I want him to leave me alone and possibly drop dead.

"Says the one."

"I don't need to be obsessed. It just happens. Women are always staring at me."

"Whatever. I'm going back to campus. I'm not staying here for another battle with you. I refuse to let you talk to everyone like shit."

"Good. No one wants you around anyway. Disappear from everyone's life and we won't have a problem. In fact.. it would be a blessing."

There he is.

Asshole restored.

For a second, I just stare at him. I could throw something back. God knows there are at least twenty insults sitting on the tip of my tongue, but the look on Mom's face stops me. Even Alex isn't laughing anymore. Roman's words hit harder than I want them to, but there's no fucking chance I'm giving him the satisfaction of knowing that. I grab my bag from the back of my chair and force a smile as I look at Mom. "Thanks for dinner. I'll call you tomorrow." Then I turn to Alex. "And congratulations. Officially this time."

I don't look at Roman as I walk out. I refuse to. But just before I reach the doorway, his voice comes from behind me, quieter than it has been all night. "Ivy." I stop for half a second. That's all he gets because I have had enough of him so I simply use the one word that is probably petty but I don't care. "Go fuck yourself, Blackwood." Then I leave before I bawl my eyes out in front of him.