Iris Kelly Doesn't Date (Bright Falls, #3)(63)

But love changed her.

“And Benedick,” Iris read from act 3, scene 1. “Love on; I will requite thee, taming my wild heart to thy loving hand.”

She glanced at Stevie then, who was sitting across from her near the shallow end, watching her with her mouth slightly open. Iris felt triumphant at first—she’d read the line softly, but a little angrily, a bullet wrapped in a feather. It felt right, perfect even, but then Adri interrupted the moment.

“Let’s add a little more wistfulness there, Iris,” she said, scribbling something on her iPad with her stylus. “Okay, on to scene 2. I think—”

“I disagree,” Iris said.

Adri lifted a brow. “Oh?”

Iris cleared her throat. “I just think Beatrice isn’t really sure about loving Benedick. Not yet. She says she’ll give him her heart, but that scares her, even pisses her off that she’s caught feelings, so she says it with a little . . . I don’t know.”

“Oomph,” Zayn said.

“Yeah,” Iris said, smiling at them. “Oomph.”

Adri pursed her mouth. “This is Beatrice’s first realization of love, Iris. It’s important that it’s infused with care. With a little bit of awe.”

“I get that,” Iris said. “But I don’t think Beatrice is in awe here. I think she’s fucking terrified.”

“She says I will requite thee,” Adri said.

“Because deep down she does crave love,” Iris said, “not because she’s not scared. She’s talking to herself here. She knows what her heart wants, but she also knows her heart is wild, and she—”

“She wants to love Benedick, so she will,” Adri said.

“It’s really that simple for you?” Iris said. “I would think as a director, you’d press for a little more nuance in these characters, particularly as the play is queer and we’re all—”

“What I want as a director,” Adri said, her voice bordering on deadly, “is for my actors to take my notes and shut the fuck up about it.”

Silence fell on the group. Iris stared Adri down, her chest swelling with a strange sense of accomplishment. She was right about Beatrice—she knew she was—but suddenly, she was very aware that Beatrice’s emotional state in this scene had very little to do with why Iris had decided to go toe-to-toe with Adri.

“Well, here’s what I want,” Iris said, but before she could go any further, Stevie stood up so quickly, waves undulated through the pool as she whipped her legs free.

“I think we could all use a break, yeah?” she said, her eyes widening on Iris.

“Good idea,” Ren said. They were sitting under the umbrella at the patio table, working on a laptop. They barely even broke their stride tapping at the keys as they spoke. “I’ll make sure Adri gets a drink.”

“I don’t drink while I work,” Adri said. She hadn’t moved from her chair, her eyes still locked on Iris.

“Maybe you should,” Iris said, fully aware that she was pushing her luck here. Next thing she knew, she’d be out on her ass with this play, but she couldn’t seem to keep her mouth shut.

“Iris,” Stevie said, appearing next to her. She slotted their fingers together. “Let’s go for a walk.”

“Drama, drama, drama,” Peter said as Iris let Stevie lead her away.

“We knew it would be with those two,” Nina said, chin-nodding toward Adri.

“I fucking love it,” Zayn said.

“Will you all shut up?” Stevie said, pulling Iris toward the stairs that led to the beach. Her tone held no vitriol though—more like a sister fussing at her siblings.

She kept moving too, walking fast until she and Iris hit the rocky beach. Iris’s bare feet sank into the sand, and she let Stevie yank her toward the water at nearly a running pace.

“Okay, slow down,” Iris said once they’d reached the waves.

“Sorry,” Stevie said, doing as Iris asked. They started walking north, their fingers still tangled together.

Iris sighed, looking back over her shoulder at the house. Adri stood at the stairs now, watching them, her green hair blowing in the wind.

“Does she want to get back together with you?” Iris asked. “Is that what this is all about?”

Stevie sighed. “What do you mean this? You started that argument.”

“I simply voiced my artistic opinion.”

Stevie snorted.

“Okay,” Iris said. “Fine. I wanted to get under her skin. Doesn’t mean I’m not right about Beatrice.”

Stevie glanced at her. “No, I think you’re right. But that’s not the point. Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why get under her skin?”

Iris sniffed and looked out at the water. It was a dull gray today, the clouds overhead growing thicker and darker by the minute. The wind picked up, ruffling her clothes and pulling strands of hair from her braid.

“I don’t know,” Iris said, even though she did. The more she thought about that whole scene last night, the more it bothered her. Adri’s bullying, the room switch, how upset Stevie had been when she’d come back from the beach. She didn’t like the way Adri treated Stevie, plain and simple, but neither did she want Stevie to feel like she needed Iris to do anything about it.