Page 77 of Takeover

“Mmhmm.” I grind into her and kiss the side of her neck. “A little girl just like her mommy.”

“Ethan, stop.” She breaks out of my hold and turns to face me. “You just threw that out there last night, and honestly, I’m not ready for that. I want to be married when I have a child.” Her eyes widen at her admission and she says, “I’m not pushing you for a proposal or trying to pressure you. It’s too soon for us to be discussing children or marriage. We haven’t even known each other for a year. I’m not ready for you to become Mr. Tara.”

“Will your feelings change for me in a year?”

“No, of course not, but—”

“Okay, then. Let’s get married.” Her eyes widen again, then she pushes me away and stomps out of the bathroom.

“Shut up, Ethan.”

“I’m serious.” I follow her into the bedroom and watch while she yanks the covers on the bed. She pushes and twists the fitted sheet until it’s nice and smooth. She picks up the rest of the sheets from the floor and throws them on the bed with so much force, she stumbles. “We can do it this summer. Wherever you want.”

“Stop talking right now.” The boys barge into the room and they both jump on the bed. I grab each by an arm and put them down.

“Tara said we can cook breakfast,” Vincent says.

“I did. Come on, boys.” She holds out a hand for each kid and they walk out of the room, leaving me standing in the middle of the room to ponder how I could have fucked up a proposal worse than I just did.

Maybe casually throwing it out there while we were standing in the bathroom was not the best idea. She deserves more than that.

43

She lets out a shriek of surprise when I practically tackle her the instant she steps off the elevator.

“Ethan!” Elizabeth yells, but she wraps her arms around me and holds me tight. “I missed you, you jerk.” She hugs me again and kisses my cheeks.

“The prodigal sister returns. But you’re more than a month late, little sister.” I look into her face and smile at her. She smiles back, reminding me so much of our mother. I take after our father with my dark hair and Elizabeth is blonde with fair skin, but we both have the same blue eyes. I put my arm across her shoulder, and we walk to the living room. The minute we sit, Susan brings drinks. “I told you I would have picked you up.”

“It was early, and you know I’m a bear until I get some sleep. You look good, Brother,” she says to me. She runs a hand through my hair and smiles. “I’m glad to be back in New York. Remind me to never live abroad again.”

“You still look like a bear. I wanted you to come home with me months ago. I hated leaving you there.” She doesn’t say anything, just cocks her head to the side and picks up her drink. The reason she fled to London is not something she ever talks about. In fact, I didn’t know she was moving until a week before she left. “I’m glad you’re back. When do you want to get to work?”

My sister’s background is in public relations, but she also has a law degree that she never uses.

“Give me a few weeks, and I’ll hit the ground running. I have a couple of things I need to take care of first, and I really need a break.” She finishes her drink and leans back in the chair. “So,” she says after several minutes, “tell me about this relationship you’re involved in?” I sit up, eager to finally talk about the woman I love with my only sibling. “She’s gorgeous but not at all what I expected.” She nudges me in the ribs. “Before we get into that, I need to talk to you in your office.” She gets up and I follow her to the back of the first floor. Once she closes the door, she pulls a file out of her purse with our father’s name on it.

“My private investigator found some stuff in his financial records. Nothing that leads to anything yet, but it’s a start.” I lean back in my chair and run a hand over my face. I’d forgotten all about my sister’s plan to look into our dead father’s past. “Lots of payments made to a Molly Flynn. I’m looking into her as well, but I don’t know anything yet.”

“Okay,” I say, knowing she won’t take my advice about backing away. “If you discover anything, let me know.”

She sits on the couch in my office and stuffs the folder back in her bag, but from her posture, I know there is something else on her mind.

“What?” I ask.

“Tell me about Tara Taylor,” she says, and I do.

I tell her about how we met, the fights we had, how we got together and how much she loves Vincent. I expect my sister to be happy for me. In fact, she was my only familial support when I went through the divorce with Lindsay, but she doesn’t smile.

“She’s not what I expected. I knew you’d move on eventually, but she was a bit of a surprise.”

“Yeah, for me too, but I don’t think Tara surprised us for the same reason. Be careful here, Elizabeth,” I warn.

She raises both hands in surrender. “Well, she’s beautiful and ambitious…”

“But?”

“But what about Lindsay?”

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