I hated to say it, but I despised Rosa. I knew I was supposed to be nice to her, and I truly wanted to make her feel safe around us, especially if Ethan was right and her husband was an asshole. But it was so hard to put a smile on my face and continue to act like everything was fine when I could tell that she was attracted to my man. I wasn’t being paranoid. It was very obvious, and you could see it in the way she kept clinging onto him, groping his arm and laughing flirtatiously. I was forced to trail behind them like some sort of unpaid bodyguard, and every time Ethan tried to draw me into the conversation, she would immediately shut me out and bring his attention back to her. “Do you know I spent a month in Greece? It was such a beautiful country. I would lie around on the beach all day long and sunbath with only a bikini on.”“I spent a year in Russia actually. But it was so cold, and I swear my nipples could cut glass by the time I left.”“I’m sorry, but I just can’t stop thin
Getting to the summit was easy enough. Getting back down, however, was an entirely different story. By the time Ethan and I got back down to the cabin, we were both exhausted and sweating profusely. Walking down at an incline was so much harder than walking up. And my ankles were screaming by then. "Poor baby," Ethan said, lifting me up in his arms and carrying me across the threshold of the cabin. "You seem so tired.""Thank you," I replied, wrapping my arms around his neck. "You're the sweetest boyfriend ever.""I'll need you to put that down in writing," he said. "So I can hold it against you any time you want to yell at me for something."I rolled my eyes as he took me all the way to the main bedroom, where he set me down in front of the bathroom. "As much as I would love to get in with you," he said, "it's getting kind of late. So I should probably use the second bathroom so I can go get some food before sundown. What do you think?"That made me a little bit sad, since I want
ETHANIt took a while before Liv finally calmed down and fell asleep in the living room. I sat beside her the entire time, stroking her hair and telling her the most random stories until her breathing changed and she calmed down enough to sleep off. That was when I went back outside to the truck and grabbed my phone. I called Richard Jones while sitting in the car, tapping my fingers on the steering wheel and trying to keep my rage in check. It was all I could do to not start banging my fist against the steering, and when he answered the call, it took a monumental effort to not scream at him. “Hello, Ethan,” he said. “How’s the trip going? I thought you weren’t going to be on your phone the entire time?”“Cut the bullshit, Richard,” I snapped. “Where the fuck is Marcus?”“Seriously?” he asked after a brief moment of silence. “May I ask why you want to know where he is?”“That’s none of your concern,” I said through gritted teeth. I just need to know where he is.”“Well, according t
MARCUSOne thing I'd come to accept was that every time Richard Jones called, it was never about something good. The last thing I needed was for him to disturb me on a random Saturday evening while I was trying to enjoy a Laker's game. I'd just finished having sex with Emily, and afterwards I'd taken a shower and eaten my dinner. This was not the time for him to be calling me."What the fuck do you want?" I asked as soon as I answered the call. "Is that really how you want to answer a call from an old friend?" he asked calmly. "I thought the animosity was behind us already."“Just tell me what the fuck you want, Richard,” I snapped. “I don’t have time for this shit. I’m watching a game.”“Really?” he asked. “Mind if I join you?”As soon as he said that, the intercom buzzed. I knew it was him, but I half hoped that it would just be someone else. At that point, I wouldn’t have minded if it was Ethan showing up. “I’m sure you don’t mind, right?” he said over the phone. “I just want to
Sunlight slowly crept into the room, and I slowly opened my eyes to find Ethan still sleeping beside me, his chest rising and falling slowly. I turned to my side, taking in the peaceful sight of him sleeping and wondering how he could look so handsome even while asleep. It was almost as if his features were softer while he slept, and his sharp jawline was more relaxed while his eyelids fluttered slightly.I briefly wondered what he was dreaming of, and the thought of him dreaming about me brought a smile to my face. I couldn't help but smile as I stared at him. He was so perfect, even in his sleep. I loved the way his hair looked slightly scruffy and disheveled, and the way his lips curled up ever so slightly, as if he was dreaming about something funny. I wanted to rub our heads together so I could get a peek into his head, where I would find the perfect man I’d been looking for my entire life.As I stared at him, my heart swelled with an indescribable emotion. I loved this man so f
By the time we finished having breakfast, the sun had already broken through the trees, and it was starting to feel like early spring. I stood in the kitchen doorway with my arms crossed and eyes squinting into the light as I stared outside at the lake. It was a beautiful day, my stomach was full, I’d had the most amazing quickie just this morning, and life couldn’t have been more perfect. "We should do something today," I said.Ethan looked up halfway through drying the dishes, and he gave me a questioning look. "Like what?"“I don’t know,” I replied. “Something fun. We can go fishing. Or spend the day painting.”“Painting?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. "Yeah,” I replied. “It would be such a shame if we allowed this day to go to waste. I brought some canvases and some art supplies. I thought it might be fun.""Babe, I can barely draw a stick figure without it looking like a crime scene,” he said. “Trust me, if you look at anything I tried to paint, you’ll instantly decide to brea
"Please tell me you're joking," I said, staring at his canvas in disbelief. "If you tilt your head slightly to the side, it's not so bad," he replied. "Seriously, I think it's even flattering.""Ethan, is this really how you see me?" I asked. "All you've done is draw a slim brunette with huge tits and a large ass.""If you think about it, isn't it flattering?" he smirked. "I mean you look hot.""Unbelievable!" I groaned, wanting to smack him across the face for his. "You're impossible sometimes."I thrust my own canvas in front of him, glaring daggers at him. "That's what you were supposed to do," I said. "I know it's not an accurate depiction of you, but I did the best I could. Notice how I didn't draw you naked, standing over a crowd of people with your dick swinging about."He stared at the painting for a while, and something in me shifted as I stared at him. Maybe it was the mist which came over his eyes, or the way he gently touched the painting with his mouth slightly open "I
I'd never felt more fear in my entire life than I did staring down the barrel of a gun, with Chris standing on the other end. To say that I was terrified would have been the understatement of the century. I froze completely, like a deer caught in headlights. And it was as if my brain had switched off completely. I hadn't seen him in months. I hadn't even considered that I might see him again, because it was obvious that things wouldn't work out between us since I chose Ethan over him. And yet there he was, standing in front of me so calmly and tilting his head to the side like he found my fear amusing. He looked different than the last time I'd seen him, with a scruffier beard which made him look homeless and disheveled, like he hadn't taken a shower in weeks. He was thinner than I remembered as well, and his eyes had sunken in so much that his head looked like a skull with paper thin skin wrapped over it. If it wasn't for his eyes, I probably wouldn't even have recognized him. "Yo
MARCUSI didn't want to do it initially. He didn't deserve a quick death, after all. But sometimes, when someone pisses you off too much, you just have to take care of things. And when you find out that the bastard who tried to harm the woman you love was only going to a mental institution instead of the jail he deserved, you just have to take care of things yourself. I stood on the balcony and stared down at the city sparkling beneath me while a cold breeze swept past. The sun had already set, but Manhattan was still as loud as ever, with horns blaring down below, people yelling constantly , and the wailing of a siren in the distance. No one would notice me up here, staring down at them and savoring my latest victory. I took a slow sip of my whiskey, letting the warmth roll down the back of my throat as I leaned on the cold steel railing. The evening was perfect, and I couldn’t have been happier after getting the call. Chris was dead, just like I intended. The report said he’d be
From the moment we pulled up in front of the mansion, my mouth fell open and it stayed like that permanently. The house looked like something out of a movie. It was so huge, and my eyes nearly rolled back into my skull as we walked in. There was a grand staircase which swept upward like it belonged in a castle, and sunlight streamed in through the large windows which made everything look so bright and golden."You've got to be kidding me," I whispered, taking in the beauty of the house. "This is actually insane.""Wait til you see the kitchen," Ethan said as he walked up behind me and took my hand in his. "You could set up a football game in it"When we walked into the kitchen, I knew he wasn't exaggerating. There were two kitchen islands which were so far apart that you probably couldn't even smell what someone was cooking from across the kitchen. There were so many shelves and drawers that it looked more like a convenience store than a home kitchen. Every room we walked into fel
Ethan was discharged the very next day, and I took him back to my apartment. Rachel had traveled down to Miami for a conference, so it was just the two of us in the house. After he’d taken a shower and eaten the lunch I prepared, he immediately sat down to call a real estate agent. “Is that really necessary?” I asked as I packed up the plates from the dining table. “Shouldn’t you be getting some rest?”“I’ll rest once we have our new home,” he said. “Buying a house usually takes a very long time to process, and I don’t have the time nor the patience to wait too long. The sooner we get started, the quicker we can be done with this.”I left him to his phone call, while I washed up in the kitchen. I could hear him talking in a sharp tone, using his CEO voice where he made it obvious that things were going to go his way, no matter what. I could have sat down and stared at him for hours when he talked like that, but I had other things to do. Like calling Richard Jones and telling him wha
I'd thought about seeing Marcus face to face again for a very long time now. I'd imagined standing across from him, looking dead into his eyes and showing him that I wasn't afraid of him anymore. I'd thought about how I was going to stand my ground, and not let him see the fear he'd once inflicted upon me. But standing right there in front of him, looking into those malicious eyes that had tormented me for years, I just couldn't do it. My knees began to shake, and I almost buckled to the ground in terror as the world fell away and it was just the two of us.And then he started to walk towards me. It took every bit of strength in me to not turn around and flee. I visibly shrank the closer he got, and a wave of panic washed over me as I realized that I had nowhere to go. If I turned and ran now, then I would be running for the rest of my life. And that was the last thing I wanted. So I stood my ground, stuck out my chin defiantly, and looked him dead in the eye. I took a deep breath
For a while, I just sat there and stared at Nate. I couldn't process the fact that he was here, and as my brain slowly booted up again, I felt Ethan tense beside me. "Nate, what are you doing here?" I asked. "Offering my condolences," he said. "I heard about the accident, and I just knew I had to come here as soon as I returned."He was more tanned than the last time I'd seen him, and his hair was a little bit longer. He looked like he'd come straight from the beach, in his plain white shirt and khaki pants. It was so different from the man in the tailored suit who strutted about like he owned the building. And yet, even now, there was an air of confidence about him as he stood in the middle of the room and stared at us. “Why the long faces?” he asked. “Did someone die?”“What the fuck are you doing here?” Ethan asked, attempting to stand up before I held him down. “I heard you were sick,” Nate said. “Oh, I mean shot. It’s all over the news. I just got back from Paris, so I though
Ethan ended up taking longer than we expected to get discharged, and he ended up staying in the hospital for two weeks. During that time, he had to get a lot of therapy so he could move his left arm again, because some nerves had been damaged and they needed to heal properly. I stayed with him the entire time, only leaving to shower and get a new batch of clean clothes when I had to. But otherwise, we just sat together and talked. He wasn't in too much pain, so mostly we had enough time to just sit and talk about life. It was on the thirteenth day that we spoke about what he told me in the cabin. He didn't want to talk about it when I brought it up, but I managed to convince him that it was necessary. This was the only way to clear his conscience, so he could finally be free of the guilt that he had carried after all these years. "But what if we find out that I was the one who killed him?" he asked quietly, staring out the window. "What if it's confirmed that I'm a murderer?""I kn
MARCUSI swear I could smell the pig even from outside the door. My blood was boiling even before I walked into the room, but it took a monumental effort to keep myself in check. I had to be quick. It shouldn't take longer than five minutes. Thankfully, the cop standing by the door didn't say anything as I walked in. He just gave me a polite nod, and he stepped aside as I walked in and shut the door behind me.Chris looked like a man who’d gotten into a cage fight with a gorilla. He was bruised all over, and several parts of his face were swollen, with one eye almost completely shut. His bottom lip was split open like a rotten fruit, and both of his hands were cuffed to the bedrails as if he was some sort of rabid animal. It was an amusing sight, which perfectly suited the bastard who’d tried to take Olivia from me. He shifted slightly when he saw me, then he flinched in terror. I saw the recognition in his bloodshot eyes, then confusion as he blinked several times, then something
The first thing on my mind when I woke up was Ethan. I bolted out of bed instantly, and I had to grip the bed frame as I swayed and nearly toppled to the ground. I felt like my brain was trying to explode from my skull, and the ringing in my ear was constant. I had to sit down on the bed once again, and it took me a few seconds to regain my breath and take in my surroundings. The room was eerily quiet, so much so that I could only hear the low humming of the air conditioning. I shifted slightly on the stiff bed, and I cursed aloud as my joints aches from how long I'd been curled up. My mouth was incredibly dry, and my skin felt so clammy. Every inch of me felt like it was protesting the simple act of waking up, and it was like I hadn't slept at all.But the guilt cut through the fog. How long had I been out? What if Ethan had woken up already? And I was just sitting here like a ditz and worrying about something ridiculous like hunger. Slowly, I dragged myself to my feet and made m
ETHANThe first thing I heard was the beeping. As I tried to open my eyes, a blinding pain shot up my entire body, and I almost couldn't breathe for a second. I felt like someone had smacked me in the face with a sledgehammer, and then gotten several bags of cement and laid them all over my body. I couldn't even lift a finger, and I could barely drag enough air into my lungs as I slowly forced my eyes open. I was lying in what appeared to be a hospital room, and the brightness of the room made my eyes throb. There were several wires and tubes all over my chest, and a large machine which was beeping to the side. The bed was so hard that I felt like I was lying on a wooden plank, and it somehow caused the pain to multiply a million times over. I tried to remember how I got here, but I couldn't. The last thing I remembered was being in the cabin with Liv, and beating the shit out of the guy who broke into our cabin. I didn't remember anything after that, except the relief I felt when