“So, were you two seeing each other?” I nudged.
“Not exactly.”
I smiled, hoping to put her at ease. “Could you explain what you mean?”
“We had plans to meet up… but… it fell through, and then…” She sighed, looking dejected. “All we’d done was text before he died.”
“Did Kyle reach out to you first?”
The pink returned to her cheeks. “Yes.” She gave a shy laugh. “He said I was pretty.”
I narrowed my eyes, wondering why Quinn would have gone ballistic over something that innocent. “Kyle didn’t say or do anything more overt? Your dad was awfully upset with him.”
She shook her head, looking emotional.
“Come on, Ivy, tell me the truth.”
Sighing, she said, “Kyle didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Something set your dad off. I don’t think it was just because Kyle said you were pretty.”
“Daddy overreacted. He does that a lot lately.”
“I feel like you’re not telling me everything, Ivy.”
She looked up guiltily. “I promise Kyle didn’t say anything dirty. He was just… showing interest. What’s wrong with that?”
“Nothing at all.”
“Well, Daddy sure didn’t see it that way. He went crazy when he discovered we were going to meet inperson. He locked me in my bedroom. I mean, for heaven’s sake, I’m eighteen years old.”
I nodded, a little surprised that Kyle had lied to my face about texting her. His protestations had seemed so sincere I’d certainly believed him that day. But if Ivy was telling the truth, Kyle had indeed been texting with her and even planned to meet up.
“So, you two didn’t ever actually get together?” I pressed.
“No. I swear. We’d been talking a few weeks and making plans… but then Daddy found out. He went through my phone when I was sleeping. Right after that is when he attacked Kyle. Once that happened, I didn’t dare talk to Kyle, and Kyle stopped texting.”
“Okay.”
She wiped at her eyes. “I… I can’t believe he’s dead.”
“I know. I’m sorry. It’s horribly shocking.”
“To think I’ll never see him on the street or get a text from him again… it’s heartbreaking.” She bit her lip. “I mean, even though we’d stopped texting after Daddy attacked him, I knew he was out there. I… I hoped we could pick up where we’d left off again at a later date.”
“I can see why you might hope for that.”
“It’s lonely here in Rainy Dale, and there was so much possibility there with Kyle.” She twirled a strand of her long blond hair around one finger, and she gave me a sheepish look. “I should probably tell you we… we did also exchange… pictures.”
“Did you?” I asked, surprised.
“Yes. Sorry I didn’t tell you right away. I feel kind of shy about it.”
“Uh… were they racy?” Perhaps that was why Quinn had been so upset?
She gasped. “No. I’m not like that.”
I laughed gruffly. “Well, people do that, Ivy. They send sexy pictures back and forth.”
