Chapter 16 - Ethan
I’ve never seen Sherry’s face light up as much as when I showed her a picture of my new niece.
“Hailey Jane Clarke,” I say, as she thumbs through the photos. I glance at my boss’s face and I think I see her eyes misting up. She straightens herself up, handing me my phone and clearing her throat.
“Beautiful,” she says, turning away from me. I think I see her wipe her eyes but she turns back around and nods at me. “I’ll have to go meet her and say hello to the new parents this week. I’m sure they’re exhausted.”
“Mara had a rough night, that’s for sure,” I say.
We both turn when the door to the building swings open. Zoe steps through, and my breath catches in my throat. She’s wearing her uniform, same as yesterday, but something in the way she walks makes my heart thump. She’s almost glowing. She looks to me right away and a smile creeps over her face before she catches herself. Looking away, she drops her things on the desk we cleared for her and starts chatting with our coworkers.
Sherry brushes past me. “So I hear you were quite the hero last night!” She says to Zoe with that misty look in her eyes again.
Zoe blushes and shakes her head. “Not really,” she laughs. “All I did was call the doctor. The midwife did everything.”
“Don’t be modest, now,” Sherry says. “Everyone’s talking about how calm you were and how you handled Dominic for Mara.”
“Everyone? The baby was only born about eight hours ago,” she laughs.
“Welcome to Lang Creek,” Bryan says with a grin. Zoe’s eyes widen and she looks at me as a blush creeps over her cheeks. I try not to grin. Bryan glances at me and winks, and I’m not sure why. Did he see something between the two of us?
I watch Zoe sit down at her desk with her back to me and I do the same. My thoughts drift back to last night, with Zoe in the forest. My cock pulses in my pants at the thought of it. It was probably the hottest thing I’ve ever done in my life. She wanted me just as badly as I wanted her, and that felt almost as good as being inside her again.
But then I think of what I told her.
No, I did not burn down that hotel.
I close my eyes and lean back in my chair, rubbing my temples. I lied to her. Bold-faced, no-question-about-it, definitely lied.
I did burn down the hotel last year. So did Dominic, and Sheriff Whittaker. We did it for the benefit of the town and the people that live here, but that doesn’t change the fact that we did it. Zoe didn’t seem to understand why we did it when I showed her the site of the fire. She seemed so happy when I told her I hadn’t done it–when I lied.
My chest burns and I take another deep breath.
I wonder what would happen if I came clean? If I just told her the truth?
Would she report me? Would she understand? Would she turn around and never speak to me again?
I glance over my shoulder and watch as she gets up and heads towards the kitchen. She steals a glance at me and smiles, and the shame inside me burns a bit hotter.
I know why I lied. I lied to keep my brother, the Sheriff, and myself safe. I lied because she’s not from here, and so she could never understand.
I lied because I want to make love to her again. I want to lay next to her and run my hands all over her body. I want to feel my cock buried deep inside her and I want to make her scream. Not only that, but I want to wake up next to her and watch her rub the sleep from her eyes as she smiles. I want to make her breakfast, and hear her laugh at the silly jokes I make.
I want all those things, and I know that if I told her about my involvement in the fire, all that would disappear in an instant.
So in reality, I didn’t lie for my brother, or the town, of the Sheriff. I lied for myself. I lied to give myself a chance to be with her.
My thoughts are spinning, and my emotions are reaching something like anguish as I sit at my desk and mull over my lie. Then, my phone buzzes in my pocket.
Want to hang out tonight?
It’s Zoe. I glance up, and see her walking back towards her desk with a mug of coffee in hand. She glances at me and winks. Before I can stop myself, the corner of my lips curl up into a grin.
Definitely. 7pm?
I press send, and lean back in my chair. My heart is thumping in my chest, and I’m not sure if it’s the guilt of lying or the excitement of seeing her again.
I jump when Bryan appears at my desk. He nods his head towards Zoe.
“So what’s going on there?” He says, grinning and wiggling his eyebrows.
“What? Nothing!” I say, a little too loud and a little too fast. I sit up in my chair, shuffling my papers and tucking a pen into my shirt pocket. “What do you mean?”
“Oh come on, Ethan, I saw the way she looked at you.” He leans over and stares at Zoe a little harder. “Can’t say I’m not jealous,” he adds.
Anger flares up inside me, burning up through my chest and tightening around my throat. I can feel the tips of my ears burning as I clench my fists, willing myself to keep my mouth shut. Snapping at him for saying something relatively innocuous is not going to help the rumor mill. Instead, I shrug.
“She’s alright.”
Bryan looks at me as if I’ve suddenly grown another head. “Alright? Dude, she’s smoking hot! I haven’t seen a girl like that in Lang Creek since 2003!”
“Are you keeping a journal of all the hot chicks that pass through?” I ask, deflecting his attention away from me.
“Might as well be,” he grins. “Well if you’re not going for it, I might just try my luck.”
The same anger flares up inside me, but this time I’m able to control it. I chuckle and nod my head towards Zoe.
“Go for it,” I say. “Let me know how it goes.” Knock yourself out. I already know how it’s going to go.
Bryan laughs and claps me on the shoulder. “Relax, Clarke,” he laughs. “I told you, I saw the way she looks at you.” I watch him walk towards Zoe’s desk. He sits on the edge of it and smiles at me before leaning towards her.
“So, Ms. Randall, has anyone shown you the Lang Mountain Lookout? I’m heading that way now, if you’re free you can jump in the truck with me.”
Zoe smiles at him and I feel a jealous pang in my chest. “That sounds great!” She says, pushing her chair away from her desk. “I’ve been wanting to go up there. And call me Zoe,” she adds.
“Sure, Zoe,” Bryan says, getting up at staring at me with a shit-eating grin on his face. I roll my eyes but I watch both of them as they walk out the door. It’s not until I hear the engine fire on that I turn back to my desk. My phone buzzes.
See you then xox
My shoulders relax and I smile. Bryan can take her to all the lookouts he wants, but I know that I’m the one she’s meeting tonight.