The Kiss that Sparked it All novel Chapter 2637

No one knew exactly when he had arrived or how long he had been waiting, but the moment Ivy's eyes met Balfour's, they both broke into infectious grins.

Ivy sprinted towards Balfour, who opened his arms wide to envelop her in a warm, solid embrace.

"How long have you been waiting? Why didn't you give me a heads-up?" Ivy nuzzled into Balfour's chest.

His voice was deep and resonant, tinged with laughter. "For you, no amount of waiting is too long."

She looked up at him, their eyes locking, the corners of their mouths unable to resist curling into smiles.

"Come on, Grandma's waiting for you to pick her up from the hospital. I told her you had things to do today, but she insisted on waiting for you. She almost thought I was lying to her!"

"Didn't I just go and see her the night before last?"

To keep Alyssa from worrying, Ivy had made a point of visiting her as soon as she was feeling better. But with rehearsals and other commitments, she couldn't be at her side every day.

"After the meet-and-greet is over, I'm taking some time off. I'll stay home and spend some quality time with them."

That had been Ivy's plan all along, especially since Alyssa had taken a tumble down the stairs and needed time to recover.

"Yeah, someone's been so busy they've spent the last two nights sleeping at the studio and not coming home. Naturally, she worries when she doesn't see you, thinking I'm in cahoots with you to deceive her."

Balfour's words were laden with mock resentment. Ivy stroked his cheek, soothing him as one might smooth the fur of a grumpy cat.

"After the meet-and-greet, I'll take a break. I'll hang out with you at work every day so you can get tired of seeing me. How's that?"