Page 19 of Paparazzi Perfect
Her hand lingered on my arm briefly. “Sounds really special.”
“What about your family? I’d love to hear more about your life.”
“Well, Byron Bay was a pretty chill place to grow up. And it’s insanely beautiful. I pretty much surfed my childhood away.” Her fingers threaded through her long golden-brown hair. “I always thought I’d try for a career as a pro surfer. But then the opportunity to model came up, then I moved away so I could get more work.”
“Well, it seems like it’s paying off for you.”
A faint smile touched her lips. There was longing on her face as she talked about her hometown, and I watched in delight as she lit up at the thought of being out on the ocean at daybreak.
I forced myself to look away. “So, any brothers or sisters?” I asked.
“My parents tried for years to have kids. They didn’t think it was ever going to happen. But then, when they’d completelygiven up, my twin Jai and me came along. They always said we were the best thing that ever happened to them.”
“Twins. Wow. No wonder they were thrilled… if your twin is anything like you.” I smiled. “Do they still live there?”
She turned away, but not before I caught the sadness that flashed across her face.
“Sorry, Ivy. I didn’t mean to bring up something painful.”
She gave a small shake of her head. “Nah, it’s okay. It’s good talking about it sometimes, to be honest. My dad’s a Vietnam veteran.”
Her gaze dropped to her hands, her thumb rubbing slowly over one knuckle.
“He got conscripted when he was eighteen. Came home with a head injury just before it ended. Mum said he was never the same after he got back.”
“That’s terrible.” I laid my hand softly over hers for a few seconds. “I’m sorry.”
“A couple of years ago, Dad’s memory got so bad he had to go into a specialist home in Sydney. I don’t see him as much as I’d like to.” She stared out at the horizon. “Mum passed away a few months later. I think it was heartbreak. And Dad… he usually can’t remember Jai and me anymore.”
“That must be unbelievably hard.” I held her gaze for a moment. “And you’ve still come this far.”
“Thanks. I won’t lie. It was hard. I have my brother, though, and for that I’m eternally grateful. I’ve got some amazing memories with Dad too, from out on the waves. He taught us how to surf and came out with us when we were little.”
“So he was a surfer too. How old were you when you learned?”
“As soon as we were old enough to get on a board.” She grinned. “Me, Jai, and Dad out there at sunup until we knew our way around a board and could handle ourselves in the water.“
Her smile softened. “Then he just stopped. He didn’t want to leave the house much after that. But me and Jai still wentout. I’ve always thought being twins was the universe’s way of making sure we’d always have someone looking out for us.” Grains of white sand slipped through her fingers.
We gazed back over the ocean as the waves rolled onto the shore. An early surfer cut across an emerald wave, the crest glowing like molten gold beneath streaks of pink and orange in the sky.
Ivy pointed upward. “Check out the sea hawk.”
I heard its shrill cry before I spotted it gliding through the waking sky. “That’s amazing,” I said quietly, taking it all in.
The view. The calm. Her.
“This has been the best day ever.” She leaned closer until our shoulders almost touched.
A sharp, sudden heat spread through me. “I know exactly what you mean.”
We leaned back against the tree together, watching the fiery ball of sun rise higher over the Pacific.
***
When the scarlet sunrise faded into pale daylight, we wandered back onto the street, climbed into the back of an Uber, and headed to Ivy’s house to pick up her car, ready to begin our next adventure.
The car dropped us out front, and we headed inside.
