blinked as she accepted the same pastel cupcake she’d turned down only a moment earlier. ‘When you said “Maybe later”, I didn’t think . . .’ She trailed off, feeling a mean sentence forming. Then she frowned. ‘Did Olivia really make these?’ For almost as long as Ivy had known her, Olivia had been a total klutz in the kitchen.
Ivy’s twin shook her head, laughing. ‘Trust me, I’m not that good,’ she said. ‘I actually got a lot of help from –’
‘Don’t be silly,’ Holly said. ‘These cakes are all you!’ She turned to the rest of the group, flipping her long blonde hair back and setting one hand on the hip of her jeans. Embroidered flowers swirled down her legs like a walking garden, stitched in such bright colours they made Ivy’s eyes hurt. ‘Don’t listen to her, you guys! You know how she’s always so modest.’
Brendan smiled politely, and their vampire friend Sophia was barely bothering to pretend that she was listening. Olivia’s bunny friend Camilla gave a distracted ‘Hmm’. Her blue eyes were unfocused beneath her artistic beret, and she was clearly too busy mentally storyboarding her next movie to care about the finer points of cupcake baking.
Ivy felt herself frown. I know my own sister. Olivia definitely got some help from someone else. Perhaps their bio-dad’s fiancée, Lillian?
It didn’t really matter who had helped – that wasn’t what made Ivy narrow her eyes as she watched Holly going round the group with the platter like a door-to-door saleswoman. No, the real problem was . . .
Why is Holly talking about Olivia as if she’s known her forever ? When Ivy had left for Transylvania, Holly hadn’t even lived in Franklin Grove.
‘Hey! Earth to Ivy.’ Brendan scooted closer, pulling a Tupperware box out of his backpack. ‘Olivia’s not the only one who’s been baking.’
‘Don’t tell me you’ve turned into a master chef too.’ Ivy took the box and started to peel back the lid as Holly started an enthusiastic conversation with the rest of the group about pastries. ‘I wasn’t gone that long – Oh !’ Ivy’s mouth dropped open. Inside were the most perfect, smooth orbs of sugary almond goodness. ‘Macaroons! For me?’
Brendan grinned, his dark hair flopping over his forehead. ‘Don’t you think I know what you like?’
Ivy shook her head, amazed. Instead of the usual pinks and greens, these macaroons were blood red. Gorgeous. Ivy sighed in wonder – each macaroon was wrapped in its own ribbon, and each ribbon had bats printed on it. Brendan knows me so well, she thought. These are perfect.
‘I just wanted to do something really special to welcome you back from Transylvania,’ said Brendan. Then he smiled. ‘I kinda missed you, you know.’
‘Me too,’ Ivy said, her throat suddenly tight.
She’d gone to Wallachia Academy to keep her grandparents happy and have a ‘proper’ vampire education, but it hadn’t taken long for her to realise that it had been a big mistake. Her uber-traditional grandparents might never understand, but Ivy knew that a boarding school thousands of miles from her twin and her boyfriend could never be the right place for her.
She wanted to tell Brendan this, but she knew she was skating on the thin ice of Lake Mushy. Quickly, she unwrapped a macaroon. As Brendan watched, grinning, she took a big bite. Her teeth caught on something cold and sharp.
‘Ow!’ She spat whatever it was out on to a napkin – then stared. It was a bat-shaped ring. Brendan had hidden it in the macaroon! The writing inscribed across its wings read: I’m batty for you.
‘Oh, ouch,’ Ivy groaned. She couldn’t help wincing, even as she saw her boyfriend’s grin widen. ‘Since when are you so pun-ny?’
He shrugged. ‘I guess something came over me while you were gone.’
Ivy rolled her eyes. ‘Like a fungus?’
‘Or a pun-gus.’ Brendan smirked shamelessly.
‘Hmm.’ She narrowed her eyes at him. ‘Tell me the truth. Were you really sick? Or was it just a bad case of a-pun-dicitis?’
Brendan snorted. ‘If it was, it must have been contagious.’
Ivy shook her head. ‘That’s it,’ she said, in between giggles. ‘I’m stopping now before the contagion spreads any further.’
‘Just don’t go away again,’ Brendan said, placing an arm around her shoulders. ‘Then we should all stay safe.’
‘Got it.’ Ivy slipped the ring on the ring finger of her right hand. A perfect fit.
Brendan bumped shoulders with her. ‘I know,’ he said, ‘you don’t like loads of mush and romance.’
‘To say the least,’ Ivy said firmly. Still, she couldn’t help stroking one finger over the little face of the bat on her ring. She looked up into Brendan’s eyes and found him grinning at her.
‘Don’t worry,’ he said. ‘I thought your return home was important enough to mark, but from now on –’ Brendan crossed his heart – ‘I promise, you’re going to be totally ignored and overlooked. Just the way you like it.’
‘You better,’ said Ivy, biting the insides of her cheeks to keep a dumb smile off her face. ‘I have something for you too.’
Nearby, Camilla jumped up, breaking into the Great Pastry Debate. ‘Come on, guys! Split into two groups, and pretend those sticks over there are swords. I need to figure out the choreography for my fight scene! Ivy, are you two on-board?’
‘Not this time.’ Ivy waved Camilla off. As the others took up formations under Camilla’s direction, laughing and fencing with the sticks they’d picked up from the grass, Ivy and Brendan scooted to a more sheltered spot. As soon as they were safely out of cupcake range – and, she hoped, out of sight as well – Ivy reached into her black rucksack and pulled out the gift she’d felt almost too embarrassed to bring along. She didn’t want any observers for this one.
‘The Dead Travel Fast ?’ Brendan said. Now he was the one gaping in amazement. ‘This is my favourite book!’
‘I know that, dummy.’ Ivy rolled her eyes as she dropped it in his lap, glad she had her back turned to the others. ‘Do you think I would have got it otherwise? It’s a first edition copy.’
‘A first edition, huh?’ Brendan raised his eyebrows in mock outrage. ‘Ivy Vega, you are a total fraud. You may pretend to be tough, but inside you are as soft as Holly’s cupcakes.’
‘Whatever!’ Ivy groaned. But she didn’t resist when he pulled her into a quick hug.
Wow. Olivia hid a grin as she quickly looked away from Ivy and Brendan. I’ve never seen Ivy so loved-up ! Usually her sister put on such a front of carelessness; sometimes it could be hard even for Olivia to guess at her feelings. Right now, though, Ivy and Brendan were smiling into each other’s faces with pure delight.
It must be true love, Olivia thought. Of course,
