Page 26 of Desperate Temptations

I shrug. “Didn’t work out.”

Marie sits next to me, her hard gaze studying me. “Did you cancel or did you stand him up?”

I give her an offended look. “I’d never stand someone up.”

Her shoulders lift and fall unceremoniously. “I don’t know anymore, Trent. The man who came back from London is a shadow of my brother.”

My heart aches and I turn away from her. “This is where you tell me I told you so.”

She leans over, resting on her head on my shoulder. “I told you I’d pick up all the pieces, but my glue only holds for so long. You have to eventuallywantto be pieced back together.”

I blow out a jagged breath. “I thought I was strong enough to withstand whatever fall out came from it. I really did.”

“I know,” she says softly.

A broken laugh echoes in my chest, and hot tears sting in my eyes.“The worst part is… I just want to know he’s okay. He could call me anytime and I’d pick up. I’m that desperate for him.”

“Trent, as long as you’ve known Ethan, you have been in love with him. He is so deeply embedded in your bones, that even I believed you were meant for each other. When you said you guys started hooking up in London, I was so happy for you, but I was afraid. And I don’t say this to hurt you… but I think you were a little selfish to pursue him right after Lyndsey’s death.”

My throat aches, and I flinch at her words. I glance at my sister, seeing the despair on her face and know it hurts her a lot more than me to say that.

A half-smile graces my lips. “Why do you think I’d pick up his call? I know it’s not his fault he ran, Marie. He found out the love child wasn’t his, effectively cutting off that family from his life, and two hours later I told him I loved him while his cock was in my ass.”

She heaves, a forceful gag coming from her mouth. “What did I tell you about the detailed summaries? Please spare me the imagery.”

My tongue drags along my teeth as I grin harder and shrug. “He’s got a pretty dick. I think of it often.” I break out into a loud laugh as Marie grimaces and groans.

“Thank you for that, Trent. The next time I see Ethan, I’m going to be thinking about his large cock.”

My humor sobers up and I swallow. “You think we’ll see him again?”

Her eyes soften. “Yeah. You two could never stay away from each other for long.”

I stop short, staring at the abundance of rose petals and candles lit around my apartment. On my coffee table is a stack of gifts, but my attention is on the person standing behind it.

Ethan stands there with a bouquet of flowers. He blows out a long breath as he watches me approach him. Swallowing down any emotions, I force my heart to even its beats and nod at him.

“Hey.”

His lips curl into a soft smile. “Hey yourself.”

My mouth twitches to grin back. “You break in?”

Ethan shrugs. “Marie gave me the key”

I shake my head. “Of course she did. No wonder she was extra nosey today. What are you doing here?”

“I ordered that Italian place we used to love if you are hungry,” Ethan says, then he extends his arm, handing the bouquet to me as his tongue sweeps across his bottom lip while ignoring myquestion. “It’s a little selfish, but I hope I’m still the first to ever buy you flowers.”

Warmth swirls in my chest as I grab them and swallow the ache in my throat. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re the first. Is this a date?”

He nods, his fingers flexing at his sides. “I hope so, but more importantly, I want to say I’m sorry.”

My eyebrows raise and I frown. “Sorry? For what?”

Ethan lets out a hollow laugh. “All of it? But especially London.” He holds up his hand when I open my mouth to reply. “Don’t. Don’t tell me it’s okay,” he says, giving me a small smile. “It wasn’t, Trent. You said you loved me and I left without a goodbye.”

I pull the flowers closer to my chest, watching him silently. It had hurt, but maybe I’d grown used to it because even now, I’m more worried about if he’s okay.

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