Chapter Thirty-Five
Ethan pulled up in front of Piper’s house a little over an hour later. He quickly got out, rounded the front, and helped Piper climb down.
All the lights were off in the house as Piper eased the front door open and stepped inside.
Following her up the stairs, Ethan stayed close, inhaling the faint scent of the shifters that had been there earlier that day.
At the landing, Ethan relaxed as Piper poked her head into her bedroom and sighed in relief.
“She’s still sleeping,” Piper whispered, the sounds of light snoring reaching Ethan’s ears.
Ethan moved around Piper, nodding for her to go back downstairs. “I’m going to clean up the blood on the bathroom counter to remove any evidence of what took place here today. Why don’t you go downstairs and get something to eat?”
Piper nodded, the dark circles under her eyes tearing at Ethan’s heart.
She turned without speaking and slowly made her way back down the stairs.
Ethan spent the next few minutes straightening the bathroom and cleaning up the blood from the sink.
Satisfied that everything looked okay, he hurried back downstairs to find Piper sitting at the bar eating a donut.
“You should probably eat something more nutritional,” he began, opening the fridge and taking out the makings of a turkey sandwich.
He poured Piper a glass of milk and set it in front of her on the bar. “I know you’re tired, Piper, but we really need to talk.”
Piper paused, took a drink of her milk, and wiped her mouth with a napkin. “I agree that we need to talk, but now’s not the time. I’m tired, I’m hungry, and I’m scared. I need to think, Ethan, and I find that hard to do with you here.”
Her words cut Ethan to the bone, though he didn’t blame her for how she felt. “Do you want me to leave?”
She merely nodded, not meeting his gaze.
The hardest thing Ethan had ever had to do was walk out of that kitchen, but that’s exactly what he did.
He stopped at the edge of the living room, unable to make himself leave without telling her how he felt.
With his back to her and a lump the size of a tennis ball in his throat, he quietly confessed, “I can’t help what I am, Piper. If I could change it, I would. For you, I would. That baby you carry beneath your heart is part of who and what I am. We created a life together, a beautiful life, innocent of any wrongdoing. Please don’t punish me by keeping the two people from me that I love the most in this world. Please, Piper…”
The sound of silence destroyed Ethan’s soul. He’d lost her. He’d lost Piper.
Striding to the door, he gripped the knob and left the house before he did something he would regret. Like toss her over his shoulder and take her home with him against her will.
But then he’d be no better than Foster.
* * * *
Linda Peterson tapped on Ethan’s office door and entered without waiting to be invited in.
She set a fresh cup of coffee in front of him, the morning paper, and a sausage biscuit.
“Thank you, Mrs. Peterson, but I’m not hungry.”
“You can’t continue on this path,” Linda gently scolded, refusing to budge. “You’ve lost weight, you haven’t returned any of your calls, and your eyes are starting to sink into your skull. Billy’s worried about you too, sir. He calls and checks on you every hour.”
Ethan picked up the cup of coffee and took a sip. “I’m fine, really. Thank you for the breakfast.”
With one last look of despair, Mrs. Peterson left the room, pulling the door closed behind her.
Rubbing at his gritty eyes, Ethan stared down at the newspaper, reading the headlines with no satisfaction. Local Mercedes Benz purchased by Seaborn Industries.
This should be a day of celebration for Ethan. He’d swooped in and snagged the Mercedes Benz right out from beneath Steinberg’s nose. Yet, Ethan felt no joy in his accomplishments. None of it mean shit without Piper.
Ethan hadn’t heard from Piper in nearly a month. She hadn’t returned any of his texts or calls. She didn’t answer her emails or her door for that matter when Ethan stopped by every other day.
He’d lost her.
“Your grandfather is here,” Linda announced over the intercom on Ethan’s phone.
“Send him in.” Ethan didn’t want to see Wallace at the moment. In fact, he didn’t want to see anyone but Piper.
The door swung open, and Wallace Seaborn marched into the room. “What the hell are you doing, boy?”
“Pardon?” Ethan responded in a soft tone. No one spoke to him in that manner. Not even his grandfather.
Not stopping until he stood before Ethan’s desk, Wallace flattened his palms on its surface. “Are you going to sit here and drown in your sorrow, or are you going to go after what’s yours? You’re a Seaborn, damnit, start acting like it.”
Anger reared its ugly head. “Because you’re my flesh and blood, I’m going to let that slide. Once.”
“Threaten me all you want,” Wallace shot back. “But from what I’ve heard about that girl, she’s as stubborn as they come. She’s not going to simply come running back, Ethan. She’ll have to be dragged back. Kicking and screaming if necessary. She’s your mate. Go claim her!”
Though Ethan resented his grandfather’s interference, he knew the older man was right. If he didn’t give it everything he had, he could very well lose Piper forever.
Pushing from his chair, Ethan rounded his desk, gripped his grandfather’s shoulders, and pulled him into a quick, tight hug. “Thank you.”
“Don’t take no for an answer,” Wallace called out as Ethan released him and rushed from the room.