“Good morning,” I say, not caring about the shit-eating grin on my face, too. “These are for you.” I hold up a bouquet of colorful flowers and her hand brushes mine when she takes them. When she looks into my eyes, I have to resist the urge to grab her and kiss her. Maybe that would cure the fact my heart both races and slows down each time I see her.
“These are beautiful.” She closes the door behind us. “What are you doing up so early?” I follow her to the kitchen where she pulls a vase from a bottom cupboard and fills it with water. I set the bag of groceries I brought with me on the island and take a seat.
“Well, Sara mentioned that you just started housesitting a couple days ago, and I made the assumption that you probably haven’t had time to make it to the store.” I start unloading the bag. Eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, onions, and cheese fill the counter space between us. “I’m going to make you breakfast.”
“Can you even cook?” she asks in a flirtatious tone.
“Of course I can cook.”
“Okay, but are you any good at it?”
“The best,” I say, making my way around the counter to stand in front of her. She freezes and looks into my eyes as I tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. “Why don’t you relax, do whatever it is girls do when they get ready for the day, and I’ll let you know when breakfast is ready.”
A confused expression washes over her face and she looks away. Her lips part like she’s going to say something, but then she closes them, nodding before disappearing up the stairs.
I hope she’s as accepting of the idea of us as she is to the idea of me cooking breakfast for her. If she is, I just might have to make this a regular morning routine.
Chapter Ten
Kelsey
Ethan’s here, in my kitchen. Well — my parents’ kitchen, but he’s here for me. He’s making me breakfast and I just — let him. Confessing my feelings should go easier than I thought. I hear drawers open and close from inside the kitchen. I hope he doesn’t ask me where anything is; I don’t know my way around this house. I should probably start visiting my parents more. Especially with Ethan living so close to them. I glance at the hallway mirror on the way to my room and pause when I see my appearance. A gasp slips past my lips a lot louder than expected.
“Is everything okay up there?” Ethan’s voice carries up the stairs. I cover my mouth with my hand and then quickly start smoothing out the frizz. Helen wasn’t kidding. My hair looks like a bird’s nest.
“Everything’s fine,” I say when I reach my room. I grab a pair of jeans and a t-shirt on my way to the bathroom. Quickly, I brush my teeth and my hair, and then apply a light coat of makeup.
Staring at my reflection in the mirror, I take a deep breath. It’s not a crime to be into Ethan. He’s smart, sexy, and still mysterious to me. The fact that he’s clearly still into me after all these years is something I can’t wrap my mind around.
I haven’t been the luckiest girl when it comes to men. I was the other woman for my first kiss, and for my first love, I found not one, but two other woman in our bed. I’ve been the accomplice and the victim. The next man I date isn’t going to betray me. That alone is a huge reason why I need to take it slow with Ethan or stay away from him completely. What’s that saying – once a cheater always a cheater? Please don’t let that apply to Ethan.
Crap. Maybe I shouldn’t tell him how I feel.
Closing my door, I casually make my way into the kitchen to find Ethan pulling the orange juice from the fridge. The table is set for two, and there’s enough food to feed us for the next week. Us. That’s so cute.
Crap again.
Make up your mind, Kelsey.
“Hey,” Ethan says, catching my gaze. “What do you have planned for today? I thought maybe we could go downtown, take a walk or something. You can show me everything I’ve missed the last seven years. Maybe we could even head out to the lake for a few hours.”
“That sounds great. I can’t believe it’s been that long. It feels like you’ve been here the entire time.” I take a seat at the table.
“Yeah, crazy, huh?”
Ethan places a glass of orange juice in front of me and takes the seat next to me. He scoots his chair in and his leg brushes against mine. It sends a tingle that settles in the pit of my stomach. Every time he gets close to me, I swear my body forgets how to act normal.
“So what’s new? Are you ready to be finished with college?” Ethan grabs a piece of toast and slathers it with grape jelly before I answer.
“College is good, and yes, I am ready to be done with this degree.”
I take a bite of bacon and look down at my plate. I can feel him staring at me so I wipe my mouth just to be on the safe side.
“What’s your major?” he asks.
“Accounting.”
“Really? I would have figured you’d be a writer one day or make reading a career. I swear, you always had a book in your hands when I saw you.”
This makes me laugh. “If you could get paid to be a reader, I’d have totally done that. And yes, I want to be a writer, but I don’t think my dad would be very impressed. I still plan to go to school for English, but not right now.” I say, shoving more food into my mouth before I share any more information than I need to.
“Your dad…really? I always thought you got along. What did I miss?”
Ethan turns his body to face me, resting one arm across the back of my chair. Something about his soft gaze and immediate interest in my relationship with my father instinctively tells me I can trust him.
“I don’t know.” I shrug. “One day he was my best friend, the next, he was different. From that day on he chose my brother over me every time. Then when Conner left, I hoped things would get better, but they never did. I thought by choosing accounting and following in his footsteps, the dad I used to know would come back. I miss him, and I can’t imagine going the rest of my life not being close to him. Sometimes I wonder if my taking a semester off after graduating high school was the problem, but I don’t know.”
Ethan nods slowly as if it takes him a while to process my answer. “I actually see why—”
His phone rings in his pocket and he pulls it out, glances at it, and quickly sets it to silence. He grabs another piece of toast and stands. “I…forgot I had some things to do on my house today. Can I take a rain check on that walk?” He heads out of the kitchen, but turns to face me in the doorway. “Accounting major or not, your dad would be a fool not to come around.”
Ethan
I should really learn to take my own advice. My father is a fool too, if he won’t accept me for who I am. But like Kelsey said, she can’t imagine living the rest of her life butting heads with her father and neither can I. There has to be a different way to gain his approval.
I know I made my decision and I chose Kelsey, but I still need to find a balance between her and my father. I can’t just straight up tell him I’m done or he’ll find another way to pull this off. The real me won’t let that happen. My cell buzzes inside my pocket a second time once I’m outside. It’s probably a follow up phone call to the text he just sent me.
I’M SENDING ONE OF YOUR BROTHERS IF I DON’T HEAR FROM YOU IN THE NEXT TWENTY FOUR HOURS.
Typical. He never asks how my day is or how I’m doing. He just gets right to the point. I’m about to answer the call when I look up to find Tyler Maron leaning against a blue Ford parked across the street in front of my house. He gives me a quick nod in greeting before pushing off the truck with his foot.
“Hey, Tyler, it’s been a long time. How’ve you been?”
“Ethan,” he says and pulls me in for a shoulder bump hug and slaps my back. “I heard you were back in town for a while. My dad told me where I could find you. What were you doing at Kelsey’s parents’ house?”