Page 10 of Desperate Temptations

The guy stops short next to his car, knowing exactly who Ethan is. He tucks his shoulders back and juts his chin up. “What do you want?”

“To talk, fucker. Obviously.” Ethan sneers.

I glance around and then point to the side of the building across the way. “Let’s move away from listening ears.”

He sighs, opening his car to toss his laptop bag in then follows us to the more secluded spot.

“I’ll be right over,” I tell Ethan, wanting to give them a little privacy for whatever he wants to ask.

His eyebrows flicker, as if confused why I would move away, but then he nods.

I walk a few feet away, crossing my arms as I lean against the wall.

My best friend says something and the guy smiles, unease curling in my stomach as I watch the exchange. He’s getting too much pleasure from Ethan’s pain.

Ethan pulls his arm back and socks the guy in the face before I realize what’s happening.

“Bro, what!” I shout as I rush toward them while Ethan follows him to the ground, throwing another punch. Wrapping my arms under Ethan’s, I pull him off, using the weight of my body to throw us back and we stagger to our feet a few steps away.

Lyndsey’s fake husband stands, wiping the blood off his lip. “I’m going to fucking sue you.”

Ethan struggles to get out of my hold. “If she’s mine, I’m taking her.”

The guy has a decency to look slightly worried before sneering. “She’s not. Lyndsey told me all about how you used to fuck her. Wrong hole, wanker.”

It takes all my strength to hold Ethan back as I throw my body at him again, so we stumble into a wall.

“Get the fuck out of here before he kills you!” I yell at the guy before moving to stand in front of Ethan. Grabbing his face, I rest our foreheads against one another.

“Look at me. He’s trying to provoke you. Think, Ethan.” My words are low, not knowing if the guy actually left after I told him to.

His breaths came in quick pants, fanning across my face as we stay like that.

“It’s okay. We’ll figure it out, okay?” I whisper. Meeting his dead wife’s affair partner is affecting him more than he probably thought it would.

Ethan’s eyes shift up to mine, only a heartbeat away as we stare at each other.

“It’ll be okay,” I assure him again. “I’ve got you. I’ve got you. We’ll figure it out, but not if you’re in jail.”

Something flashes in his gaze, and then he shifts his head, his nose dragging along mine before our lips brush against each other. I jerk back, letting go of him as my heart beats wildly. My fingers ache to trace my mouth and feel the still stinging heat of our brief touch.

Ethan clears his throat, standing straighter and keeping his attention away from me.

Glancing over my shoulder, I realize the guy left us at some point. “What’d he say?”

Ethan grimaces, the flicker of pain back on his face. “He knew who I was. Said I was her loser ex-husband that wouldn’t sign the divorce papers. Then he called… It doesn’t matter. He made it sound like Lyndsey and I have been over for years.”

“I have a friend who can probably set us up with a good lawyer. Let me talk to her, okay? But I think we need to stay until then.”

He nods, blowing out a breath. When I walk away, he grabs onto my arm. I blink at him, confused as his cheeks pinken. Ethan lets go of me and shakes his head.

“I just… nevermind. It was dumb.”

His behavior has been strange for the past couple days, but I can’t begin to imagine what he’s going through. I figure he wants to open up, and while I’m not the best person to speak about feelings, I’ll be damned if my best friend shuts down on himself.

“Whatever you have to say, you can say it. Nothing’s dumb if it’s bothering you,” I say, trying not to cringe at how fucking lame I sound. It’s as if I read it from inside a Hallmark card.

Ethan grimaces, scratching at the back of his neck. “It’s just something he said. It’s wrong. Lynds and I only did anal a few times.”

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